[Avodah] R' Angel & Geirus Redux

[Daniel Eidensohn]

R' Michael Makovi wrote:
> Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan (keep his experience in kiruv in mind, IMHO),
> Handbook of Jewish Thought, vol. 2. Now, I will say right now, I have
> NOT looked up the sources from the footnotes.
>
>   
That is a problem - since despite R' Kaplan's greatness in Torah and 
kiruv - I often find little correlation between what he writes as a 
summary at the top of the page and the copious notes at the bottom of 
the page. Also here what is clearly stated at the top seems to 
contradict the notes on the bottom. For example note 140.

"However, a person who has been brought up in a nonreligious
environment 139 where he never had the opportunity to learn about
Judaism, 140 is like a child who was abducted by gentiles, 141 and is
not considered to be doing wrong purposely." 


140. For example, the children of the Karaites; cf. Yad, Mamrim 3:3;
Hagahoth Mordecai, Yevamoth 107; Yoreh Deah 159:3. Others count later
generations of Karaites as apostates; cf. Radbaz, Mamrim 3:3; Sifethey
Cohen, Yoreh Deah 159:6, 266:17, 267:59; Choshen Mishpat 175:33; Yad
Avraham, Yoreh Deah 159:3; Mishnah Berurah 55:47; Teshuvoth Rabbi
Aaron ibn Chaim 113, 125; Teshuvoth Mabit 2:38;  Teshuvoth Rabbi
Betzalel Ashkenazi 3 (end). Other sources seem to indicate that the
later generations of Karaites were worse than the earlier ones; cf.
Tosaftoh, Avodah Zara 26b s.v. Ani; Rosh Avodah Zara 2:7, from
Yerushalmi, Avodah Zara 5:4 (34a). See also Rambam on Chullin 1:1.


Consequently you still haven't cited a single posek to suport your position.

An additional source indicating the lack of innocence of tinok shenishba 
is from Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach.

*Minchas Shlomo (3:19): Saving tinok shenishba on Shabbos… *Perhaps it 
is correct to say that also a tinok shenisba amongst the non‑Jews is not 
to be saved or killed since his whole life he considers himself to be a 
non‑Jew and he doesn’t believe that he is a Jew even if he is told 
directly. Therefore he will transgress the entire Torah inadvertently 
(shogeg). Perhaps it is better that he should die than to live 
mistakenly as a non‑Jew. Thus this would not be comparable at all to the 
the cases of a deaf person, crazy person or baby who are lacking 
intelligence [which seems to be the view of the Ginas Veradim 3:1]. It 
never occurred to me not to have mercy on a man like this who was 
captured amongst the non‑Jews and therefore considers himself to be a 
non‑Jew. Furthermore there is absolutely no doubt that it is in fact a 
mitzva to bring him close to Judaism and to have him repent and other 
similar things. However my interest is for the case where it is clear 
that he will remain with the thought that he is not Jewish and will 
therefore conduct himself in all his deeds as a non‑Jew. For example a 
child that no one in all in the world knows he is a Jew – except for the 
one who is now able to raise him from the pit. Futhermore if this man 
were very old and traveled to a distant country from where he could not 
return and reveal that this child is a Jew. In such a case even though 
his sins were completely inadvertent (shogeg), nevertheless it is 
possible that it is better for him to die rather than to live.  Then he 
should not be saved even during the week. However I am undecided on this 
issue because it is possible that G‑d would want this unfortunate man to 
live and therefore it would be a mitzva to save his life. The 
Rambam(Hilchos Mamrim 3:3) doesn’t present any contradiction to this 
idea. Consequently we need to decide in such a case where it is almost 
certain that he will conduct himself all his life as a non‑Jew that 
perhaps Shabbos should not be profaned to save his life and that this is 
not an example of sofek pikuach nefesh.