Tanach and Treifut
Question
1) If it is prohibited to study tanach in depth, were the Radak, Rashi, Ralbag, Ibn ezra, Malbim, etc., all in violation? 2) How come the Rabbis of the Gemara involved themselves in Midrash, such as we see in Midrash Rabba and throughout Talmud? 3) You often say that we should learn all the laws before shas. Then we look at your website and see that all we thought we "learned" in terms of dinim was erroneous because we never understood shas. How can we get out of the vicious cycle? 4) Does the very fact that a rabbi disagrees with your father make him a foolish robot? There have always been disagreements in halacha and - although I acknowledge that a lot of "opinion" today is plain ignorance - might there not be validity to other shitot as well? 5) How do you understand the Aruch Hashulchan's statement that a restaurant that regularly prepares treif throughout the day is not subject to "Stam Keilim". Do you disagree in principle or is he speaking about a specific case?
Answer
Answered by Aaron Abadi1) They studied Shas and Rishonim, and they were taught by major Rebbis who were taught by major Rebbis, and so on. Then they wrote one book explaining it for their communities. They didn't analyze the Tanach on their own by saying, "why did Yaakov.....? I was thinking that maybe Pshat is...." The in depth understanding of Tanach should be after knowing Shas and all the Halachot, and from a Rebbi, not on your own. 2) Yet they themselves were careful not to make their own Drashot, but rather repeat from their Rebbi 3) We are putting the laws up in our "Halachah/Jewish Laws" section. Shortly we will have all the relevant laws up, and then all you need is to know them well. Then study Tanach and eventually Gemara, etc... 4) When there is an opinion that is based on the Torah, not on what people do, and not on what people feel, then he is entitled to his opinion. Some of these opinions being thrown about are just weak justifications for things that are wrong. 5) Agree in principle, but it is more complicated than that. If you go to a restaurant that makes eggs with ham, and you are the only one that gets it without the ham, then that pot is certainly not Kosher. But there is more to the whole picture, and the scenario that is a problem is somewhat different than our normal situations. AA