[Avodah] Loyalty to HKBH

Micha Berger micha at aishdas.org
Wed Aug 15 13:00:22 PDT 2018


On Fri, Aug 10, 2018 at 10:12:05AM +1000, Rabbi Meir G. Rabi via Avodah wrote:
: Chazal ask -- Does HKBH care if we eat meat that was slaughtered as we do
: from the throat or just chop from the back of the neck?
: Chazal answer -- Observing these instructions does nothing for HKBH [He is
: after all perfect without any of our good deeds and He is in no way
: detracted by any of our misdeeds] rather these instructions provide us with
: an opportunity to become perfected.

"Letzareif ba es habeios". (Bereishis Rabba 44:1)

Also relevant is the machloqes Rambam and Ramban on what's wrong with
"al qan tzipor yagiu Rachamekha". This is the Ramban's explanation of the
gemara's saying that mitzvos are not for H's benefit but just gezeiros --
gezeiros for /us/, in this case, to learn rachamim. The Rambam (Moreh III)
uses it as proof that the details of mitzvos indeed may be arbitrary. (If
Hashem had to choose some way of ritualizing the big picture. And so if
you weren't asking why X and not Y, you're instead be left asking why
Y and not X?)

...
: The Karites similarly fought against the notion of Ben PeKuAh, in their
: eyes it was Rabbinical over-reach, perhaps an even greater fantasy than
: their stretching of the verse to mean "not to ignite a fire during Shabbos"
: although the wording actually reads, "no fire should burn during Shabbos"
: 
: And in this great battle, Rav Hai Gaon, a champion for our traditions who
: brilliantly fought the Karites, developed a winning strategy to smash the
: Karites: he brought Ben PeKuAh beasts to every public celebration and
: processed them as Ben PeKuAh, making a BBQ to feed the assembled crowds.

The Or Zarua doesn't give R' Hai Gaon's motive, so it may or may not
have been related to debates with the Qaraim.

But apparently the CI (and following him, RHSchachter) would not apply
halakhah that the gid hanasheh or cheilev of a premature BP is kosher
(YD 64:2) to to a BP that is incubated until it resembles a full term
animal. The Rambam and Tosafos (Shabbos 135a "ben") don't even acknowledge
that premature BP calves have any special heter to begin with. So much
for 2nd generation BP.

Similarly, the SA (13:2) distinguishes between a PB born full term and
live, and one that is premie or stillborn. "Im hifris al gabei qarqa"
would similarly apply to an animal that lives to parent a next generation.

For that matter, the SA (13:2) says that the child of a fully formed
BP is treif even with shechitah -- nor any of its descendents.

Nor do we get any sense of his cultivating a multi-generational herd. He
could have brought premies who didn't get a chance to fully develop. But
if he did, we obviously don't hold like R' Hai Gaon, given that neither
the Rambam, the Tur nor the SA allow.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             You will never "find" time for anything.
micha at aishdas.org        If you want time, you must make it.
http://www.aishdas.org                     - Charles Buxton
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