<html><head></head><body><FONT face="Courier New" size=4>>> And it is not clear that <BR>>>the Rambam holds that there is no mitzvah: <BR><BR>> The Ramban felt that way, as he argued against the Rambam, making it clear <BR>> what he understood the Rambam's position to be.<BR><BR>I would like to raise a broader issue than the particular one this part of the dialogue was discussing: Should one regard as accurate the way a critic of a shitta represents that shitta? Should one rely on his take to determine the shitta of the one attacked?<BR> <BR>Often one finds that Tosefos' kushyos on Rashi are answered by others maintaining that a closer examination of Rashi shows Tosefos was misunderstanding him (or at least criticizing the way Rashi expressed his opinion).<BR><BR>Similarly, the Rambam (and his son) sometimes ressonded to criticisms by saying that his shitta was misunderstood or misrepresented by the criticizer.<BR> <BR>And it seems to me that Abarbanel often scathingly criticizes others for saying things that closer examination shows they didn't say.<BR><BR>And, of course, we often see this complaint voiced on Avodah.<BR> <BR>Zvi Lampel</FONT><br></body></html>