[Avodah] Halachic Life Insurance

[Micha Berger]

On Wed, Feb 15, 2023 at 05:53:42AM +0200, Joel Rich via Avodah wrote:
> Undoubtedly. It's much like, in my mind, the change in practice about going
> to doctors rather than just relying on faith...

Jews ever didn't go to doctors?

The Mekhilta on Shemos 21:19 "verapo yerapei" talks about going
to doctors. And this is quoted repeated in the gemara, as "devei
R Yishma'el" (which indeed is the beis medrash responsible for the
Mekhilta), e.g. Berakhos 60a, BQ 85a.

(Note: this week's parashah.)

> risks that could not be dealt with in the past now can be. but sometimes
> folks seem to need halachic cover rather than just accepting that. Chazal
> were dealing with a different world.

In general, there is the question of the role of precedent in halakhah.
By far the most common case of where practice changes is where the metzi'us
changed in some way that makes the old pesaq inapplicable. Rather than
actually having grounds to change which pesaq we follow.

But there are exceptions -- like the change from Geonic Zemanim, to
Rishonim's Alos and haNeitz, and for the past 250 years or so, back to
the original.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger                 I slept and dreamt that life was joy.
http://www.aishdas.org/asp   I awoke and found that life was duty.
Author: Widen Your Tent      I worked and, behold -- duty is joy.
- https://amzn.to/2JRxnDF                      - Rabindranath Tagore