7b: No Two-fers with Mitzvot

Always nice to get to a new mishna, even when it kicks off an argument about sacrifices that seem far from where I sit today. However, though the details of the sacrifices may be difficult, the concepts behind them provide interesting fodder.

First we have ma'asar sheni which, for those who may have forgotten, is the second tithe that is separated from a year's harvest in the first, second, fourth and fifth years of the shmitta cycle. It must be either eaten in Jerusalem, or else exchanged for money which is used in Jerusalem to buy food. The controversy here is that olah offerings, which are mandatory, ought not be purchased with money obtained for another holy purpose (ie ma'asar sheni money that was obtained in order to by food in Jerusalem). What the Talmud is doing is trying to close a loop hole. If one transferred their ma'asar sheni to money with the intention of buying an animal to be eaten in Jerusalem, and one needs to buy an olah offering anyway (which inevitably is an animal that is to be eaten in Jerusalem), then it seems like we could do a little double dipping -- two sacrifices for the price of one! But the Talmud nixes that one.

From here we can learn that we shouldn't try to cut corners with mitzvot, or at least each mitzvot deserves its own attention. This is similar to the idea that when one goes to a cemetery for a burial, s/he should not visit other graves. The trip is for that one person you are burying, and not a time to visit others. Despite the convenience, doing so can take away from the kavod due to the deceased.