daf bit: Kiddushin 76
May. 26th, 2016 08:48 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
cellioThe mishna teaches that before marrying, a man should investigate his
prospective wife's lineage to verify her status. (The mishna has
previously discussed categories of people who are and are not allowed
to intermarry.) For a daughter of a priest he looks back two generations;
for Levites and other Israelites, three. (The mishna is more complicated,
but that's what it boils down to.) However, if the investigation reaches
a priest who served at the altar in the temple, a Levite who sang in the
temple choir, or a judge or public officer, he can stop there -- they've
already been vetted.
The g'mara, however, says that this investigation isn't required: families are presumed to be fit, and we only investigate if there is some question. This mishna, the g'mara says, is about cases where the matter is contested. (76a)