[Avodah] Heter mechira

[Zev Sero]

Michael Makovi wrote:

>> 3. What if the goy doesn't want to sell it back?  Are you prepared to
>> part with it permanently?
>> R' Zev Sero
> 
> So do what we do with chametz - sell it to him for $5 down payment
> now, and tell him that after Pesach, he has to pay another
> $1,000,000,000 to keep it. So too with the land - sell it for a
> pittance now and a fortune when shemitta ends. I don't know if we do
> this, but we could if we needed to.

Chametz is sold for its market value, to be assessed after Pesach.
If the goy wants to keep the chametz, we will hire an assessor and
come up with a fair price which he will pay.  We'll be happy to get
the money and part with the chametz, and in fact the only reason we
agree to buy the stuff back is because if we don't then next year
we won't find a goy willing to buy our chametz.

In the case of the land, is the farmer willing to accept the fair
value of his land, and give it up to the goy, and especially to an
Arab?  If it wasn't shmita and an Arab offered him the fair market
value of his farm, would he accept it and leave?  Somehow I doubt it.

-- 
Zev Sero               Something has gone seriously awry with this Court's
zev at sero.name          interpretation of the Constitution.
                       	                          - Clarence Thomas