Pride Prejudice & Punctuation

almost all books people read nowadays come with punctuation whether a novel a chemistry book a rambam or even a chumash everything comes with punctuation theres a simple reason for this punctuation makes things easier to read without diluting or altering anything and yet for some reason when it comes to learning the text that needs it most people dont use punctuation the talmud contains the complicated discussions of torah shbal peh and would obviously benefit from some punctuation and yet everyone from brisk to yu from lakewood to migdal oz doesnt use punctuated gemaras why is that these are the reasons they give it makes no difference whether or not theres punctuation once you get used to it struggling over the punctuation is part of the necessary amelus of talmud torah especially when theres a machlokes in punctuation in addition the amelus helps you remember what you learned punctuated gemaros have a different tzuras hadaf which is assur to change how will you find a gemara in another shas how will you learn to read a real gemara if you use a punctuated one none of these arguments seem very strong ill go through each one it makes no difference whether or not theres punctuation once you get used to it having punctuation makes things clearer especially when reading the complicated back and forth of gemara having things punctuated helps ill admit its not the biggest deal but ive seen great scholars struggle for a moment to figure out the punctuation theres a reason everything else in the world is punctuated including most blog posts struggling over the punctuation is part of the necessary amelus of talmud torah especially when theres a machlokes in punctuation in addition it helps you remember what you learned with a punctuated gemara a person can think about the real issues of the gemara beyond how to read the words he can figure out matters of substance beyond where the comma goes a machlokes in punctuation is extremely rare i know of just as many questionable two dots and the punctuated gemara can mark it in those few cases having paragraphs and punctuation allows a person to go through things quicker and see it clearer giving him more time for chazara all of which helps him remember better see picture but why just ban punctuation there are all sorts of shortcuts all around the gemara page first it started with the mesoras hashas and the ayin mishpat and now they have likutei rashi and hagaos vtzionim not to mention the pesukim on the side which might cause someone to read tanach i think all these new laser print gemaros should be banned and people should return to using old manuscripts preferably with some letters rubbed out that would be true amelus punctuated gemaros have a different tzuras hadaf which is assur to change how will you find a gemara in another shas i dont know of punctuated gemaros that keep the tzuras hadaf but it shouldnt be too hard to make its just a technical detail tuvias edition is aimed for beginners so its filled with nekudos but no punctuation personally unless youve already finished shas with the old daf i think its time to use a different tzuras hadaf it was made by gentile printers hundreds of years ago and wasnt laid out perfectly there were no computers and they put tosafos on the page ok thats a separate issue using a different tzuras hadaf might make it a little harder to find something in another gemara but most of the time youll be using your own gemara anyways you can always look things up in the index or do a search on the computer it doesnt seem like a very big issue how will you learn to read a real gemara if you use a punctuated one for one you wont need to read the old fashioned gemaros because youll always be able to use a punctuated one but using a punctuated gemara will probably help people be able to use the other ones because theyll have been able to learn more gemara and have more experience which brings me to another point even if theyre against punctuated gemaros why on earth cant they let 5th graders use them it definitely would make a difference for beginners and they would be able to pick up gemara skills significantly quicker of course the question is based on the questionable assumption that the schools goals are to educate the kids see 31 years of batalah: i think all their arguments are just justifications for what they already have they use punctuation in all other seforim even though all the same arguments could be applied to mishnayos and rishonim they even use a full pasuk marking and trop system in torah shebichsav which actually was given from G d in a perfect umarked form if theres anything that shouldnt be punctuated its chumashim gemaros on the other hand are torah shebal peh and punctuating them just makes them more like the spoken word no one would say any of these arguments if gemaros had already been punctuated these are just ways of justifying things the real reasons people are against punctuated gemaros are not the justifications they say its very hard to accept any change especially something youve been doing a long time after having struggled so much as a beginner without punctuation its difficult to recognize there wasnt much of a point also it takes courage to read from a punctuated gemara you risk looking like youre not capable of reading from a real gemara the real reason gemaros arent punctuated is not because of any of the justifications given many of the kisvei yad did have some punctuation in them it was just too hard for the printers to print so they left it out the beginning of some mesechtos like brachos have some periods in them but it sort of tapers out at least they tried nowadays when the gemaros can easily be punctuated and published theres no reason to continue using gemaros from the 1500s this whole post may seem like making a mammoth out of a mole but it represents much more the refusal to change the gemaros are a prime example of refusing any change even a halachikly legitimate change for the better i think this is a point everyone can agree on

Talmudica Launch

The Talmud is a large uncharted ocean. Its pages are difficult to traverse, and even harder to remember. Most people learn the Talmud from a text without punctuation or charts. It is difficult to get a clear picture of the surroundings.

A new work is needed, one that will chart the Talmud. Things will be much clearer when they're all converted to charts and symbols. That is the task I have begun.

Announcing the launch of a new website:

Talmudica

to view its first pages click on the following links:
Kidushin daf: 29-33 34-40

It is a humble start, not fully complete, without a consistent system. Right now it can be used as an aid while learning the gemara or for chazara. Perhaps it can be developed enough to be able to be learned on its own.
But it's a start. Perhaps others will continue it.

Akeidas Yitzchak

There are many issues involved in the story of the akeida. In this post, I wonder what happens when one combines 2 classical questions.

ויהי אחר הדברים האלה והאלהים נסה את אברהם ויאמר אליו אברהם ויאמר הנני
ויאמר קח נא את בנך את יחידך אשר אהבת את יצחק ולך לך אל ארץ המריה והעלהו שם לעלה על אחד ההרים אשר אמר אליך

So begins the parsha of the Akeida. G-d tells Avraham to sacrifice his son, and then just as he is about to do it, G-d tells him:

אל תשלח ידך אל הנער ואל תעש לו מאומה כי עתה ידעתי כי ירא אלהים אתה ולא חשכת את בנך את יחידך ממני

Question One: How could G-d go back on His word? If He said that Yitzchak should be slaughtered, how could He then say “Just testing!”? G-d's word is Truth!

Answer: G-d didn't tell Avraham to slaughter Yitzchak, He just said “ha'alehu sham l'olah”, a somewhat ambiguos command that doesn't necessarily include slaughtering. Once Yitzchak was put on the mizbeach, that was enough. The command was fulfilled, and Akeidas Yizchak became an everlasting merit for our people.


Question Two: What was the big test for Avraham? G-d commanded him directly to bring his son as a korban! How could he have ignored a direct Divine command?

Answer: Avraham could have come up with some powerful arguments to not listen to the command. “G-d commanded man never to murder, how could I kill my own son? Moreover, G-d promised me that Yizchak will become a great nation, when he said:

ויוצא אתו החוצה ויאמר הבט נא השמימה וספר הכוכבים אם תוכל לספר אתם ויאמר לו כה יהיה
זרעך
and some time later..
כי ביצחק יקרא לך זרע..

..it can't be that I should kill him!” But Avraham listened to G-d and went to slaughter his son. He passed the test.

Now, does everything make sense? But one second..

...Question: If G-d just meant Yitzchak should be put on the mizbeach, why did Avraham pull out a knife and get ready to kill his son? Didn't he know that you can't murder? Didn't he know the promise? If in truth, G-d's command just meant put him on the mizbeach, why did Avraham try to do so much worse?!

For Further Emphasis: If G-d really meant for Avraham to kill Yitzchak, we understand why Avraham tried. But then how could G-d have changed His mind? And if G-d actually used a truly ambiguous command, then why did Avraham interpret it to mean something so crazy?


Answer: “Ha'alehu..” cannot just mean put Yitzchak on the mizbeach and take him down. Thats not what the words mean. It says “l'olah”! Putting Yitzchak on a mizbeach and doing nothing is nothing. “Ha'alehu” means put Yitzchak up as an olah, with full intentions to slaughter him just like an olah.

Avraham had to realize that when G-d commanded him to bring Yitzchak as an olah, He meant it. It was docheh any prohibition or promise from before because it was a direct command from G-d. Avraham didn't know what would happen, but he realized he would have to bring his son as a genuine olah.

Avraham traveled to the mountain and went up with Yitzchak and put him on the mizbeach. Then Avraham tied Yizchak down. Then he pulled out a knife, ready to slaughter his son. Only now, at this moment, did G-d say

אל תשלח ידך אל הנער ואל תעש לו מאומה כי עתה ידעתי כי ירא אלהים אתה ולא חשכת את בנך את יחידך ממני

Until Avraham showed he was totally ready to actually sacrifice his son, “Ha'alehu sham l'Olah” was not fulfilled. But once avraham raised the knife, it showed he had actually brought Yitzchak as an Olah. He hadn't slaughtered Yitzchak, but the command had been fulfilled. Yitzchak became a complete Olah, and the “ashes of Yitzchak” become an eternal remembrance before G-d. Avraham had fulfilled the nisayon of “Ha'alehu sham l'Olah”, no murder had been committed, and now Yitzchak could truly grow into the great nation of the promise:

ויאמר בי נשבעתי נאם יהוה כי יען אשר עשית את הדבר הזה ולא חשכת את בנך את יחידך: כי ברך אברכך והרבה ארבה את זרעך ככוכבי השמים וכחול אשר על שפת הים וירש זרעך את שער איביו: והתברכו בזרעך כל גויי הארץ עקב אשר שמעת בקלי

The Pesukim of Malchiyos, Zichronos and Shofaros

In the rosh hashana mussaf, we read 10 pesukim from Tanach for each section mentioned above. We read them in the following order: Torah, Kesuvim, then Nevi'im. The question is obvious: Why does Kesuvim come before Nevi'im?

Readers of Nebach are probably thinking “Everyone knows the answer to that! Artscroll p. 454 gives 2 answers!”: We have to start with the torah because its so important, and then we follow the rule “ma'alin b'kodesh v'ein moridin” and do kesuvim, then navi. That answer sounds a little bit forced. Alternatively, since King David wrote most of the Kesuvim pesukim said in mussaf, and he came before the nevi'im, so we say kesuvim first.

While davening, I realized another, similar answer. Its quite simple and obvious. The pesukim in kesuvim are primarily about the past and the present. G-d has reigned, He reigns. He remembers people, past and present. The shofar blows. This is especially true if you just read the pesukim as they are in the machzor.

The pesukim from navi are primarily about the future. G-d will be King, G-d will remember us, the great Shofar will blow. This is obvious just from the quotes alone. Therefore, we first read the pesukim about past and present, and only then read the prophecies of the future.

The 3 Billionth Sinner (draft)

(This post was written after Rosh Hashana, but I only got internet access now.)

The Ramabam, based on the gemara, says a person should always view himself as if he has a perfect balance between zechuyos and avonos and any deed he does now will tip the balance. He should also think the whole world is in a perfect balance, and his next action could either save the world or ruin it.

I used to be bothered by this. What are the chances of everything actually being in a 50-50 balance? What is the point in imagining such a unlikely thing? I could imagine the conversation within a potential sinner's mind:

Yetzer Tov: Wait, Don't sin! Maybe the world is tied right now at exactly 32.7 trillion mitzvoth and aveiros. This one sin might tip the balance!”
Yetzer HaRa: I don't think you a career in law would be good for you.

Next question: What is the point in voting? There's almost no chance that your one vote will tip the numbers! True, if everyone thought like that, no one would vote. When that happens, go ahead and vote! In the meantime, its like buying a lottery ticket without any prize!

Case 3 – Based on a true story! : Dovid's* school is having a trip the next day and the organizers need to know how many people are coming so they know how many busses to call. The sign-up list is a two-minute walk from his room.
Dovid's thoughts: Whats the point in signing up, there's no chance I'll be the 51st person on the last bus. And I could always sit on that seat by the steps.
Should he sign up? (You might notice the questions are getting easier.)



The next day: Dovid hadn't signed up but tries getting on a bus. Unfortunately, there are 42 other people who had the same thoughts as Dovid. There's no space for most of them, so they have to remain in school while everyone else goes on the trip.


A better example: The Altlantic Voyager is giving out tickets for its maiden voyage. It needs to know how many people are coming because it can only hold a certain number of passengers. If too many extra people get on, the boat will sink in the middle. 73 people sneak onto the boat, and the boat unfortunately sinks. Luckily, most people manage to get into lifeboats, and they return home. The surviving stowaways are arrested upon their return home.

At one of the stowaway's courtcase:
Lawyer for the Defence: If my client had been the only stowaway, the boat wouldn't have sunk. And even if he hadn't been on the boat, it would have sunk anyways! He did no wrong!
Q4: Your'e the jury. Should Simon go free?




Each and every person who didn't get a ticket for the boat was part of the reason the boat sunk. It doesn't matter if he was the actual person who crossed the limit, the group as a whole sunk the boat.

When someone doesn't vote, he is among the group of non-voters who could have made a difference. Each one of them is responsible for the their candidate's defeat. They are like the people who didn't sign up on for the bus or boat. The candidate knows how important it is to get his supporters to vote and spends millions trying to get that to happen. He's the one who truly knows how important voting is.

Similarly, each and every sinner is the individually responsible for the world being guilty. He's part of the guilty group who sunk the world.


Whether for voting or being judged, make sure your in the right boat.




*not his real name

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Heter Mechira

The shemittah year is over, but I figured I'll publish some notes on Heter Mechira. Its based on an article in Journal of Halacha and Contemporary Society and on the book Shemittah and Yovel by Dayan I. Grunfeld. Its mostly accurate.

In the early 1900's, the frum residents of Israel would have faced serious hunger problems if they couldn't work the land on shemitah. They came up with a heter mechira in which they would sell the land to a gentile, and have gentiles do some work for them. Nowadays, the farms would lose much international business if they didn't produce food every 7^th year. Therefore they use the heter mechira and work the land themselves. For the heter mechira to be muttar to do, all of the following halachic leniencies must be true. (It may be easier for the shemitah food to be kosher to eat.)

1. Shemitah nowadays is 100% d'rabanan. Other parts of the heter rely on this.

Although there aren't that many views that dispute this, it may be that shemitah should be considered like a d'oraysa because it was accepted with an “curse & a oath ” [see Nechemia 10].

2. Selling the land uproots the kedusha from both the land and the fruit. (Otherwise there would be no point.)

Although even many haredim in Israel are lenient, its not such a simple issue. The main machlokes is between R' Yosef Karo and the Mabit. There is a teshuva of the Rambam that supports the Mabit.

Correction: Many people are lenient and treat peiros nachri without kedushas shevi'is. But almost everyone holds that it is forbidden for a Jew to work on land owned by a gentile. The hetter mechira relies on a minority opinon that permits it.

3. A “Ha'arama Nikeret” is muttar.

This isn't such a serious problem, especially since shemitah is d'rabanan.

4. It is permitted to temporarily sell Jewish land to a gentile.

This is where the heter runs into serious issues. If the sale is real, it should be forbidden. Even renting land to a gentile is rabbinically forbidden! The HM proponents have 2 responses. 1.A temporary sale is permitted yet still works to uproot the kedusha. 2. Its permitted to sell land to Muslims.

Its questionable who exactly the issur to sell land to applies, but an accurate girsa of Rambam Perush HaMishanyos includes all gentiles.

5. The sale is considered a real sale.

If you sell a whole country to one Arab, but there's no way he'll be able to use it in any way, is the sale real? The government doesn't recognize the sale, and Dina d'Malchusa Dina should make it void.

Some Heter proponents rely on the opinion that Dina d'Malchusa Dina doens't apply in Eretz Yisroel because every Jew has a portion in the land.

Other issues

Shemitah was accepted during much harder times and kept through much worse conditions. They never tried such a heter then. A midrash talks of the gentiles who mock the Jews for eating thorns during the shemitah year.

As Israel got richer, the one-time heter became even more lenient. What was once a horas sha'ah to allow non-Jews to do issurei d'rabanan grew into the heter today where shemitah is treated like any other year.

Other Kulas

R' yannai told the people to work the land during shemitah to pay their tax. Perhaps it was similar hardships as now.

Tosafos suggests it was actual pikuach nefesh. The historic evidence shows that a cruel Roman general was waging war against the Persians, and he probably wouldn't have exempted the Jews from their taxes!

According to the Ba'al HaMa'or, shemitah is voluntary!

I would say this das yochid is cancelled out by the da'as yochid that shemitah is d'oraysa. If your choshesh for one, you should be choshesh for the other.

There is some question what the exact year of shemitah is. Perhaps that safek can help to be lenient.

Safek d'rabanan l'kula doesn't apply if it would be mevatel the mitzvah.

The Ironies.

On many issues, each side takes the opposite views of what they usually would hold so they can be for/against the heter mechira. (Or they keep to their veiws and refrain from using an argument.)

1. You can sell sell land in Israel to Muslims.

2. Dina d'Malchusa Dina doesn't apply in Eretz Yisrael.

You wouldn't here the DL community make these argument in other contexts, and many don't even use them for heter mechira.

3. Manuscripts show the girsa in the Rambam was really goy, not akkum.

4. The historic evidence shows Tosafos was right when they said it was pikuach nefesh.

Charedim don't like basing halachos on more accurate manuscripts, and definitely not on historic evidence.

The Blood of the Burglar

These are my cartoons on "בא במחתרת" about a burglar's break-in as discussed in the 8th perek of Sanhedrin. I didn't write the final page of p'sak, and the cartoons need a little shading in, but otherwise it's done.