[Avodah] Inconceivable!

[Daniel Israel]

Jonathan Baker wrote:
> Daniel Israel:
>> The loshon in the gemara is "lo hayah, v'lo l'asid lihiyos."  It 
>> would seem to me that pshat in the gemara is that it is impossible. 
>>   If it is merely unlikely, how could the gemara know that it won't 
>> ever happen in the future?
> 
> R' Yonason says (you see why I remember that line), there was one and
> I sat on his grave.
> 
> So is the maskana that it's impossible, or is it that it's rare and
> extremely unlikely?

I'm not clear what you are asking.  Obviously R' Yonason holds it is 
possible, I was speaking entirely in the other man d'amar.

I understand R' Yonason's response as meaning, not only is it possible 
in theory, but I can prove it can happen, because it did happen.

-- 
Daniel M. Israel
dmi1 at cornell.edu