The animal tithe ( he, מַעְשַׂר בְּהֵמָה, "Ma'sar Behemah") is a commandment in the

Torah The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the ...

requiring the sanctifying a

tithe A tithe (; from Old English: ''teogoþa'' "tenth") is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash or cheques or more ...

of kosher grazing animals (cattle, sheep, and goats) to God, to be sacrificed as a '' Korban'' at the

Temple in Jerusalem The Temple in Jerusalem, or alternatively the Holy Temple (; , ), refers to the two now-destroyed religious structures that served as the central places of worship for Israelites and Jews on the modern-day Temple Mount in the Old City of Jeru ...

. The tithe of animals was not redeemable; and if one animal was exchanged for another both became sanctified. The method of levying the tithe of animals is indicated: they were counted singly; and every tenth one that passed under the rod became the tithe animal. The

Tannaim ''Tannaim'' ( Amoraic Hebrew: תנאים , singular , ''Tanna'' "repeaters", "teachers") were the rabbinic sages whose views are recorded in the Mishnah, from approximately 10–220 CE. The period of the ''Tannaim'', also referred to as the Mis ...

inferred from Deuteronomy that each tithe was to be taken of every year's produce separately, whether of crops, of cattle, or of anything else subject to tithing. Also they fixed a particular day to mark the beginning of the year for tithing. The new year's day for the tithing of animals ( Rosh Hashanah L'Ma'sar Behemah) is the first of

Elul Elul ( he, אֱלוּל, Standard ''ʾElūl'', Tiberian ''ʾĔlūl'') is the twelfth month of the Jewish civil year and the sixth month of the ecclesiastical year on the Hebrew calendar. It is a month of 29 days. Elul usually occurs in August� ...

according to

Rabbi Meir Rabbi Meir ( he, רַבִּי מֵאִיר) was a Jewish sage who lived in the time of the Mishnah. He was considered one of the greatest of the Tannaim of the fourth generation (139-163). He is the third most frequently mentioned sage in the Mishn ...

, or the first of

Tishrei Tishrei () or Tishri (; he, ''tīšrē'' or ''tīšrī''; from Akkadian ''tašrītu'' "beginning", from ''šurrû'' "to begin") is the first month of the civil year (which starts on 1 Tishrei) and the seventh month of the ecclesiastical year ...

according to Rabbi Eleazar and Rabbi Simeon. The

Sages A sage ( grc, σοφός, ''sophos''), in classical philosophy, is someone who has attained wisdom. The term has also been used interchangeably with a 'good person' ( grc, ἀγαθός, ''agathos''), and a 'virtuous person' ( grc, σπουδα� ...

ordained that animals should not be tithed in the present era when the Temple is not standing.

References

{{Jewish Encyclopedia, inline=1, article=TITHE, author1=J. M. Sel., author2=W. B. M. Sel., url=http://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/14408-tithe, accessdate=June 10, 2013 Positive Mitzvoth Jewish animal sacrifice Tithes in Judaism

See also

References