Offering its participants the chance to “discover how Talmudic teachings have practical relevance” in the modern-day world, a new live course from the Jewish.tv unit of Chabad.org begins April 14 with a selection from the Talmudic tractate known as Baba Metzia.

Taught by Rabbi Eli Wolf, an acclaimed scholar who leads workshops at Chabad-Lubavitch centers across North America, “Talmud for Beginners” will air each Wednesday night at 8:00 Eastern time. Those who miss the Talmud class broadcast will be able to view a recording of the program at Jewish.tv.

“The nature of the presentation will allow people of varying skill-sets to learn at their own level,” said Rabbi Shmuel Lifshitz, an editor with Chabad.org. “For those with little or no background in the Talmudic dialectic, it offers a set of skills through examining a specific discussion. At the same time, people who are familiar with the Talmud and its commentaries will gain further insights into a passage that has many layers of complexity.”

Traditionally studied as an introduction to Talmud exploration, the third chapter of Baba Metzia – known as Perek Hamafkid – extrapolates the laws associated with civil matters, more specifically addressing the varying degrees of liability for property entrusted for safekeeping. In its exploration of the section, the course will introduce and explain Talmudic terminology and style, focusing primarily on conveying the content of the material while learning the original text word for word. Knowledge of Hebrew is not a prerequisite.

Judging by comments and site clicks, the course’s announcement has sparked wide-spread interest, with people writing into the site from locations around the world.

The offering joins a selection of live courses on Jewish.tv examining everything from the weekly Torah portion – such as that given by Rabbi Yehoshua Gordon and viewed by more than 2,000 people – to Kabalistic explorations of the holidays.