[Avodah] Sefer HaChinuch on why 2 weeks Nidah for a girl and only 1 for a boy

[Micha Berger]

On Thu, February 14, 2008 4:33 pm, RDK wrote:
:> Some people think that if you say Chazal or Ramban or the Sefer
:> Hachinuch were wrong about some scientific fact, then you are being
:> disrespectful to: them.  I was raised with a completely different
:> understanding and a different attitude.  I would add that if they did
:> refer to the highest standards of scientific knowledge of their own
:> time, that is a siman that we, too, should follow their example and
:> apply the highest standards of scientific knowledge of our time. Who
:> was it who said, "Chachma bagoyim ta'amin"?  Not some modern maskil
:> or Reform rabbi.*

: *I believe "Chachma bagoyim ta'amin" *Is immediately followed by the
: contrasting phrase "*Torah bagoyim al ta'amin". *It implies that the
: norm is one of *conflict* and lack of equation. Secular wisdom does
: NOT easily translate into Torah wisdom.

Lack of equation. You haven't proven that they're in conflict, or that
the translation isn't easy. (Although if you believe this, then you
can't have a very broad view of daas Torah -- how would a rav's
knowledge of Torah translate into advice on secular matters?

: Incorporating an extraneous methodology for discovering truth outside
: the Torah is fraught with dangers and pitfalls....

I agree with this sentiment, but for totally different reasons. I plan
a post in reply to RMM on the difference between academic knowledge
and talmud Torah in which this issue will be central. Be"H I'll have
time soon to compose it.

Those thoughts will address this paragraph of yours as well.

:  The Moreh Nevuchim is a clear illustration of how the Rambam went
: through a pain-staking careful process in screening out non-Jewish
: ideas were compatible with true Torah hashkafa of Chazal and which
: must be rejected.

1- This is content, not methodology. The Moreh uses Greek
philosophical methodology.

2- The Rambam didn't necessarily succeed. There is a reason why
learning the Yad usually begins with Yesodei haTorah pereq 5, skipping
the philosophy and going straight to mitzvas qiddush Hashem. Even
acharonim as "into" chokhmah as the Gra and RSRH take issue with where
the Rambam went.

Which seems to say to me that the line between Torah and chokhmah is
blurry, and thus a matter for machloqes. NOT clear and oppositional.


As kan the thesis of this post. Now, a side issue that I figured out a
new way to present, but don't really want to chase:
: It cannot conceivably be used as a blank check to be open to
: everything that is considered well established by modern science.

I think the question is defining "well established by mesorah" when
it's not a halachic question. With shades of answers depending how far
out you place the Torah / chokhmah line. (As well as when is science
given in the gemara to be taken at face value, when is it post-hoc
explanation, when is it describing the pesaq of a situation they
thought existed but doesn't, nishtaneh hateva, etc...)

When Torah and science appear to contradict, the appearance must be
false. A person is perforce going to decide which they misunderstood.
Thus, the question of how well a non-halachic Torah claim can be
considered established and how much trust one places in scientific
theories (without personally knowing the body of evidence behind any
specific theory) translates into different decisions.

BTW, if your answer is constant regardless of the theory in question
and regardless of the distance from halakhah of the specific topic, I
would question your position. A scientific claim underlying a pesaq
shouldn't be treated identically than one found in parshanut. And even
within aggadita, parshanut and study of the ikkarim involve different
standards of mesorah vs willingness for personal creativity. But
assuming we're not talking about a blind blanket policy, some people
will value apples more, others might consider oranges more valuable --
we're comparing the certainty of two very different kinds of
justification. I can't prove that my instincts are any more right than
yours. (Within limits. I'm obviously assuming we aren't dealing with
someone who doesn't consider mesorah as a justification at all.)

But I will try my best to refrain from further revisiting this topic
yet again. It has a habit of consuming electronic fora whole and
spitting out the bones.

SheTir'u baTov!
-micha

-- 
Micha Berger             "Man wants to achieve greatness overnight,
micha at aishdas.org        and he wants to sleep well that night too."
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