[Avodah] Local, Non-Global or Global Flood

[Meir Shinnar]

RMB
>
> But from a process and acceptability point of view, my problem is with
> the creation of new peshatim where there is no TORAH reason to do so. I
> find that kind of force fitting to another discipline beyond my personal
> range of acceptibility. (Meaning that it doesn't even feel to me like
> "a different but valid shitah".)
The problem with this approach is how one defines what is a TORAH
reason - and one of the TORAH reason that I (and I think many
rishonim) subscribe to is that the TORAH has a monistic view of truth
- truth from the torah and from other valid sources can't be in
conflict - or, in later terminology, Hashem will not willfully deceive
us and lead us astray on these issues -and therefore, any apparent
conflict, we must have misunderstood one of the two sources - and
therefore, we must rethink our initial understanding of the two
sources to reconcile them - and therefore, there becomes a TORAH
reason to allegorize...

It is the rejection of this monistic view that is problematic.
This doesn't mean that every latest theory or archaeological find
causes us to change - but if warranted, such changes in understanding
are actually driven by an internal torah dynamic.  Ultimately, it is
(IMHO) a far deeper emunah in the torah and the boreh that leads us
such changes than a far more surface emunah whose faith is bothered by
these contradictions or ends up with an antiintellectual stand.
Neither rashi nor rashbam saw a problem with ha"pshatim hamitchadhsim
bekol yom" - why do we?

Meir Shinnar