Challah, Chapter 4, Mishnah 9. At the end of the previous mishnah we dealt with the gifts of the kehunah: to whom they may be given and to whom they may not. Some hold that they are never given to a kohen who is an am ha'aretz, and others say that it depends, and that at times they may be given even to a kohen who is an am ha'aretz. This is the subject of our mishnah.
"Eilu nitanin l'chol kohen":
The items listed below may be given to any kohen, because with them there is no concern of tumah and taharah. Some explain that "any kohen" comes to include even a kohen who does not eat his ordinary food in a state of purity, and others say it means even a kohen who is an am ha'aretz.
"HaCharamim" - a person who declares items belonging to him as cherem and sets them aside; they are given to a kohen. They do not require being guarded in purity.
"V'habechorot" - the firstborn of a kosher animal. If it is unblemished, it is brought as an offering in the Beis HaMikdash and eaten by the kohanim in Jerusalem; and if it has a blemish, it belongs to the kohen and may be eaten anywhere. In both cases there is no concern: in the Beis HaMikdash everyone maintains purity, and outside there is no concern of purity at all.
"U'fidyon haben" - the five shekalim given for the redemption of a firstborn son, which have no connection to tumah and taharah.
"U'fidyon peter chamor" - the lamb given to redeem a peter chamor, the firstborn donkey, where the same idea applies.
"V'hazroa v'halechayayim v'hakeivah" - the gifts given from every ordinary animal that is slaughtered, which are not eaten in purity.
"V'reishis hagez" - the first shearing of the sheep, where the same idea applies as well.
"V'shemen sereifah" - oil of Terumah that became tamei and is designated for burning, from which a kohen is permitted to derive benefit. Since it is tamei in any case, it may be given to any kohen.
"V'kodshei hamikdash" - the offerings brought in the courtyard of the Beis HaMikdash, where everyone maintains purity.
"V'habikkurim" - the first fruits brought to the Beis HaMikdash, for the same reason.
"Rabbi Yehudah oser b'bikkurim":
Rabbi Yehudah forbids giving bikkurim to any kohen. Even though they are brought to the Beis HaMikdash, no actual service is performed with them and they are not offered on the altar, and therefore a kohen who is not a chaver will not be careful to eat them in purity. The Sages disagree: since they are brought into the courtyard of the Beis HaMikdash itself, everyone is careful to eat them in purity.
Karshinei Terumah:
Karshinei Terumah are a type of legume (called vetch), normally used as animal feed, but in a time of pressing need it is fit even for human consumption. For that reason Terumah and tithes are still separated from them. However, we learned in tractate Maaser Sheni that not everyone holds that they must be guarded in purity, since they are essentially animal feed.
"Rabbi Akiva matir" - to give them to any kohen, consistent with his view in Maaser Sheni (Chapter 2, Mishnah 4) that they may be handled entirely in a state of tumah, and therefore there is no need to be concerned about which kohen receives them.
"V'chachamim osrim" - they may not be given to any kohen, since they are considered to some degree human food, and therefore there is a certain level of purity that must be maintained with them.
In summary: in this mishnah we listed the gifts that may be given to any kohen - charamim, firstborn animals, redemption of the firstborn son, redemption of the firstborn donkey, the foreleg, cheeks and stomach, the first shearing, oil designated for burning, offerings of the Mikdash and bikkurim - all because with them there is no concern of tumah and taharah. We noted the dispute between Rabbi Yehudah and the Sages regarding bikkurim, and the dispute between Rabbi Akiva and the Sages regarding karshinei Terumah.