[Avodah] Chezkas Kashrus of Sifrei Torah

[Micha Berger via Avodah]

On Thu, Jan 05, 2017 at 01:06:16PM -0500, Sholom Simon via Avodah wrote:
: >Students of RYBS have to deal with the question of whether a chazaqah
: >disvara /can/ change. RYBS famously said that tan lemeisiv cannot:
: 
: Apparently some of the students disagree?
: 
: Tradition  Winter 2014 (Rabbi N. Helfgot)
: 
:     In a famous episode in 1975, the Rav strongly denounced a proposal
:     raised by R. Emanuel Rackman, z"l to reevaluating the validity of the
:     Talmudic dictum a woman would always be rather married to anyone (even
:     a scoundrel) than be alone in the modern context....
:                              The  Rav vigorously maintained that this
:     principle, like all hazakot of Hazal, was an ontological statement
:     about the nature of women, not subject to changing historical factors
:     or changing social mores.
: 
:     R. Lichtenstein...  noted his disagreement with the Rav's assessment of
:     this hazaka (and expressed astonishment at the vehemence of the Rav's
...

HOWEVER, on this particular issue RAL also said that he does not believe
this was the central aregument being employed against RAR's BD. So, while
this testimony touches on our question about whether chazaqos can change,
it does not mean RAL would have approved RER's BD even had RYBS remained
silent.

This was just one ilne in a longer speech. Because the idea is intriguing,
is gets discussed and argued. But as RAL noted (according to RARaffetR),
the primary argument RYBS gave against was that it shows a disconnect
from mesorah and baalei mesorah. To think you can solve a problem that
bothered everyone before you in a manner that would have been available
to them had they just thought of it, and thereby changing so many
fundamental halakhos.

   What does kabalas ol malchus shamayim require of the lomeid hatorah,
   person who studies Torah? First, we must pursue the truth,
   nothing else but the truth; however, the truth in talmud torah
   can only be achieved through singular halachic Torah thinking, and
   Torah understanding. The truth is attained from within, in accord
   with the methodology given to Moses and passed on from generation to
   generation. The truth can be discovered only by joining the ranks of
   the chachmei hamesorah. It is ridiculous to say "I have discovered
   something of which the Rashba didn't know, the Ktzos didn't know,
   the Vilna Gaon had no knowledge, I have discovered an approach to the
   interpretation of Torah which is completely new." One must join the
   ranks of the chachmei hamesorah -- chazal, rishonim, gedolei achronim
   -- and must not try to rationalize from without the chukei hatorah and
   must not judge the chukei mishpatim in terms of the secular system of
   things. Such an attempt, be it historicism, be it psychologism, be it
   utilitarianism, undermines the very foundations of torah umesorah, and
   it leads eventually to the most tragic consequences of assimilationism
   and nihilism, no matter how good the original intentions. Second,
   we must not yield -- I mean emotionally, it is very important -- we
   must not feel inferior, experience or develop an inferiority complex,
   and because of that complex yield to the charm -- usually it is a
   transient and passing charm -- of modern political and ideological
   sevoros (logic). I say not only not to compromise -- certainly not to
   compromise -- but even not to yield emotionally, not to feel inferior,
   not to experience an inferiority complex. The thought should never
   occur that it is important to cooperate just a little bit with the
   modern trend or with the secular, modern philosophy. In my opinion,
   yehadus (Judaism) does not have to apologize either to the modern
   woman or to the modern representatives of religious subjectivism.
   There is no need for apology -- we should have pride in our mesorah,
   in our heritage. And of course, certainly it goes without saying
   one must not try to compromise with these cultural trends, and one
   must not try to gear the halachic norm to the transient ways of a
   neurotic society, which is what our society is.
   ...

   I also was told that it was recommended that the method afkinu rabanan
   l'kidushin minei be reintroduced. If this recommendation is accepted,
   and I hope it will not be accepted, but if it is accepted, then
   there will be no need for a get. Ha-isha niknes b'shalosh d'rachim:
   b'kesef b'shtar ub'bia, the get of a gerushah (divorced woman) -
   we will be able to cross out this mishna, this halachah; every rabbi
   will suspend the kidushin. Why should there be this halachah if such a
   privilege exists? Why should this privilege be monopolized by rabanus
   haroshis in eretz yisrael? Why couldn't the Rabbinic Council do just
   as well as the rabanus haroshis, if the problem is afkinu rabbanan
   l'kidushin minei? [ribono shel olam], what are you, out to destroy
   all of it? I will be relieved of two masechtos; I will not have to
   say shiurim on Gitin and Kidushin, and then Yevamos as well.

   I want to be frank and open. Do you expect to survive as
   Orthodox rabbis? Do you expect to carry on the mesorah under such
   circumstances? I hope that those who are present will join me in
   simply objecting to such symposia and to such discussion and debate at
   the Rabbinical Convention. When I was told about it, I thought, "would
   it be possible?" I can not imagine at the Republican or Democratic
   National Convention that they would introduce a symposium on communism
   and democracy, that perhaps communism should replace democracy in the
   United States. Could you imagine such a possibility? I could not.
   There is a certain system of postulates to which people are committed,
   and such a discussion...

More of the same elided. See
http://arikahn.blogspot.com/2013/03/rabbi-soloveitchik-talmud-torah-and.html
for a transcript of that portion of the shiur, and for an audio of the whole
http://www.yutorah.org/lectures/lecture.cfm/767722
http://www.yutorah.org/lectures/lecture.cfm/767723

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             A person must be very patient
micha at aishdas.org        even with himself.
http://www.aishdas.org         - attributed to R' Nachman of Breslov
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