Separating: Whatcha Say’n’? (I)

The gemara (Shabbos 74a) makes an incredibly enigmatic statement.  It says, “If you have in front of you types of food: separate and eat, separate and put down.  And don’t separate.  And if you separate, you are chayav chatas”, that is to says that you violated a Biblical prohibition.  The gemara immediately asks, “What does this mean?”  This statement seems to be self-contradictory!

The gemara brings five different explanations of this statement.  In order to start to understand borer, we must discuss each of the five explanations, where they differ, and how they answer the questions that are asked against them.  After discussing this, we will discuss some other issues that are raised in this statement, as well as a few other cases discussed in the gemara in various places.

Glossary

Al m’nas livnos – for the purpose of building.

Array – temporary.

Avid v’kay – already made.

Av – lit. father.  Main category of melacha.

B’karka – in (with) the ground.

B’kaylim – in (with) vessels.

Beis Hillel – a school of learning from the time of the mishna.

Beis Shammai – a school of learning from the time of the mishna.

Binyan – building.  One of the 39 melachos.

Borer – separating.  One of the 39 melachos.

Chayav­ – lit. obligated.  A biblical prohibition.  If one does this by accident, one has to bring a chatas offering.  If it is done intentionally in front of witnesses, one is stoned to death.

Chazon Ish – great rabbi who lived in the early twentieth century.

Choleh sh’ayn bo sakanah – an ill person.

Choleh sh’yesh bo sakana – someone deathly ill.

D’rabanan – from the rabbis of the Talmudic period.

D’oraysa – Biblically.

Gemara – the second part of the oral law to be written down.  Explains and expands upon the mishna.

Hilchos (halacha sing.) – the laws of.

Issur – prohibition.

Lavud – a halachic principle in which we consider gaps of less than three tefachim to be closed.

Maka b’patish – finishing touch to something.  One of the 39 melachos.

Melma’aleh lemateh – from top down.

Mishna – the first time the oral torah was written down, about 150 C.E.  It was written in a very terse and unclear manner, only understandable with the gemara.

Mishnah Brurah – a much accepted work on the Shulchan Aruch written by the Chofetz Chaim (Rav Yisoel Meir HaKohen Kagan) in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

Melacha (melachos pl.) – category of work prohibited on shabbos.  There are 39.

Mosif al ohel array - making a temporary addition to an already existing ohel.

Ohel – lit. tent.  Creating tents is one of the toldas or binyan.

Patur – lit. exempt.  A rabbinic prohibition.  There is no punishment for a violation.

Poskim – those that rule on Jewish law.

Rambam – an early Rishon.  (Maimonides)

Ramban – an early Rishon.  (Nachmonides)

Rashi – an early Rishon.  The most basic commentator on the Talmud.

Ran – a late Rishon.

Rema – the notes on Shulchan Aruch that quote the German and Eastern-European customs.  Written by Rabbi Moshe Isserles, the Rabbi of Crakow.

Rishonim (Rishon sing.) – aarly commentaries on the Talmud from about 1000 C.E. until about 1500 C.E.

Shabbos – the Sabbath (from Friday sunset until Saturday at nightfall).

Shinui – an unusual way of performing a prohibited act.  It downgrades a Biblical prohibition to a Rabbinic one, but a Rabbinic one is still prohibited.

Shulchan Aruch – Code of Jewish law.  Written by Rabbi Yosef Cairo in the early sixteenth century.

Sosair – destroying.  One of the 39 melachos.

Stira – See sosair.

Sugya – the relevant sources in the gemara and its commentaries.

Talis – prayer-shawl.

Taz – Turei Zahav.  A commentary on all four sections of Shulchan Aruch.

Tefach (tefachim pl.) – biblical and Talmudic measure.  Between 8 and 9.67 cm.

Toldah – subcategory of one of the melachos.  Also prohibited d’Oraysa.

Tosfos – a group of early rishonim many of whom were grandsons of Rashi.

Separating (I)

The next prohibition that I would like to discuss is borer, separating.  This is one of three melachos (main categories of prohibited actions on shabbos) that are very similar to one another.  These are borer, zore’ah (winnowing), and merakaid (sifting).  The main concept of all three of these is the separating of the undesired elements mixed in with the desired product.  The av melacha (main prohibition) of borer is separating pebbles from a pile of grain for the purpose of storing.  This differs from the other two melachos because zore’ah has an outside power (the wind) that contributes to the separation and merakaid is separating the desired flour from the undesired chunks using a tool.  Although there are differences between the three, they are sometimes used interchangeably.

Borer is different from many melachos in that the finest factor can change a particular action from being Biblically prohibited to completely permitted.  I hope to clarify the different aspects of the prohibition, including defining exactly what is permitted.

Mortar and Pestle at the Apothecary (II)

Last week we discussed the Rabbinic decree prohibiting medical treatments.  This week I would like to discuss an interesting loophole built into the prohibition.  A few weeks ago we discussed all of the dispensations given to sick people.  It seems unusual that the Rabbi’s would come and add restrictions to them!  The Radvaz has an ingenious explanation.  He explains that the entire decree prohibiting medical treatments is only for healthy people.  As soon as a person is classified as a choleh sh’ayn bo sakanah, the prohibition falls off.  That is to say that the Rabbis prohibited medical treatments for healthy people in an effort to remind of the Biblical prohibition that could be violated.  Practically, most healthy people do not need any medical treatments (although taking vitamins may be prohibited).  The main prohibition would fall on people with slight aches and pains.

We have finished the discussion of sick people on shabbos, and next week we will hopefully start a new topic.

Mortar and Pestle at the Apothecary (I)

Until now we have been discussing what exceptions sick people have from the standard laws of shabbos.  The last subtopic is about a Rabbinic prohibition in the area of medical treatments.

At the time of the gemara, many medical treatments required ground herbs.  In addition, many of the medicines were made to order.  Making these medicines on shabbos violates the Biblical prohibition of tochain, grinding.  In an attempt to prevent a widespread violation of shabbos in the medical field, the Rabbis made a blanket decree banning all forms of therapeutic practices on shabbos.  This includes taking medicines (which is most similar to the preparations of the time of the gemara) and many therapeutic activities.

Under the Weather (III)

As we said last week, the gemara that says that a sick person may suckle from an animal if he needs fresh milk.  The Ramban learns from this gemara, that a Jew may violate a prohibition using a shinui, an unusual way of doing it.  Although milking an animal is Biblically prohibited, suckling directly from the animal is clearly an unusual way of milking.  Based on this, the Shulchan Aruch rules that one may violate a Rabbinic prohibition using a shinui.

Although the gemara seems to allow even a Biblical prohibition when using a shinui, the Ramban clearly states that Rabbinic prohibitions were not waived, rather only prohibitions using a shinui.  The Shulchan Aruch learns that this means that only Rabbinic prohibitions are waived and only when using a shinui.  However, it is also possible to learn the Ramban that he that in order to protect the atmosphere of the day, it is only permissible to violate a prohibition if it is done in an unusual way, in order that it is clear that it is done for the sake of the sick person.  Therefore, even a Rabbinic prohibition may only be violated with a shinui.  The difference is that according to this understanding, even a Biblical prohibition may be violated with a shinui.  The general rule of the Ramban is that there are two requirements: it must be a Rabbinic prohibition and it must be done with a shinui.  However, even if is only Rabbinic because it is done with a shinui, it is still permitted.