[Avodah] Rav Keller's JO article on evolution

[David Riceman]

From: "Zvi Lampel" <hlampel at thejnet.com> (citing Sefer HaIkkarim)

> "When witnesses testify, we do not say, let's tweak the time or interpret 
> the testimony to keep the witnesses innocent of perjury. To illustrate: 
> let's say they testified that Reuven killed Shimon on the first day of the 
> week, and then their testimony is proved false. We do not say, let's 
> interpret their testimony to prevent them from being false witnesses. 
> Let's say that by "on the first day of the 'week' " they meant on the 
> first of the seven-year sabbatical cycle (the "week" of years). Or let's 
> say that by "he killed him" they meant he refused to give him alms, which 
> would support him; or they meant he did not teach him the Torah, [which 
> is, after all,] the true source of life in the World to Come. We do not 
> say any of this because a testimony must be understood naturally, and if 
> witnesses are shown to have given false testimony, they must be put to 
> death, and we do not interpret their words in ways to save them...

This may be tangential to your main point, but how do you harmonize this 
with Pesahim 11b "Zeh yodeia b'ibburo shel hodesh v'zeh eino yodeia"?  See 
the whole sugya there (which extends to 12b).

David Riceman