[Avodah] Maharsha - YeGiAh KaPeCha Ki Tov - The Superior System by which to Serve HKBH

[Akiva Miller]

.
R' Meir G. Rabi wrote:

> ... There is plenty of 100% Kosher food to eat, we can easily
> manage without cola drinks during Pesach, and there are plenty
> of clothes that are free of the risk of sha'atnez.
>
> Or is it superior to take the approach that we research, examine
> and analyse every detail attempting to determine if this is in
> fact prohibited or permitted.
>
> Which is the greater?
>
> The Maharsha [Chullin 44:] explains that as great as is he who
> fears HKBH, and errs on the side of caution to scrupulously avoid
> any risk of violating the Divine Will, he who undertakes to study,
> research and analyse in order to determine the Divine Will, to see
> if it is permitted or not, and accept that determination, is
> superior to the former.

This is an important question, and I hope to look at that Maharsha over
Shabbos. Meanwhile, I would point out that there are two distinct kinds of
questions that he might be talking about.

I might have a situation where all the facts are very clear, but it is the
halacha which is unclear. I suggest that the bracha acharona on puffed
wheat is a good example.

Or I might have a situation where the halacha is clear, but the facts and
details of the situation are murky. For example, the precise manufacturing
methods of certain foods.

(Some situations will straddle both of the above. For example, the precise
start and end of Shabbos is primarily a question of halacha and simply
looking at the sky. But if I am at an unusually high or low altitude, then
looking at the sky might not be enough, and I have to do some non-trivial
scientific calculations.)

I would suggest that the Maharsha certainly applies in my example of puffed
wheat. Although the person does have the option of avoiding the puffed
wheat, he can also use this opportunity to delve into Hilchos Brachos, and
reach a better understanding of Torah than he had yesterday, and wouldn't
that be wonderful?

But as for the person who spends his time researching manufacturing
methods, I'm not so sure. He will claim that "Hashem put this delicious
food into the world, and if I fail to eat it then I am being ungrateful. So
I need to find out if it is truly kosher." But I'm not sure whether that's
his Yetzer Tov speaking, or his Frum Yetzer Hara.

Akiva Miller
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.aishdas.org/pipermail/avodah-aishdas.org/attachments/20220408/91f43ed1/attachment-0001.htm>