[Avodah] Appearance vs. Reality

[Micha Berger]

On Thu, Sep 04, 2008 at 08:45:05PM +0000, kennethgmiller at juno.com wrote:
: One of the topics that comes up here every now and again is the idea
: that in halacha, the way something appears could be more important than
: the way it actually is...

If you're discussing my theory, it's more the way something can appear
than how it actually does. You can't squint your eyes, say "I don't see
no bugs", and eat the strawberry.

That said, I don't think your example here would prove my theory:
: Mechaber 78:1 -- One was saying the Shema and urine began dripping
: on his legs...

: This is amazing to me. His body is dirty, but because he *looks* okay
: on the outermost level, that's what seems to count most. If someone has
: an alternate explanation, I'd love to hear it.

Kibud (perhaps as opposed to kavod) is all about pomp and
circumstance. One can argue that WRT being mekhabeid the Borei, appearance
IS substance in a way that isn't true in general.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             Never must we think that the Jewish element
micha at aishdas.org        in us could exist without the human element
http://www.aishdas.org   or vice versa.
Fax: (270) 514-1507                     - Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch