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The Chatam Sofer, Aruch Laner, Rabbi Maroof, and Little Old Me (special thanks to: Rabbi Jachter)

After concluding my longest post-title yet, I commence my post: In this post I suggested that the machloket in the Mishna between the Chakhamim and R' Shimon could be explained as a chukoteihem / Avoda Zara dichotomy (in other words, is tatooing an example of chukoteihem or Avoda Zara ). In this comment , Rabbi Maroof suggested a simpler ma'aseh / cheftza dichotomy. At first I thought the Rambam was a proof to his approach and then became convinced it was actually a disproof. In Rabbi Jachter's third article on cosmetic tattoos he presages our argument and also my first and second ways of understanding the Rambam: It is possible, however, that one violates the prohibition of Kitovet Kaaka on a biblical level only if one’s intention is for idolatry, even according to the opinion of the Chachamim. Recall that the Rambam and Tur write that the reason for the Kitovet Kaaka prohibition is to avoid idolatry. Indeed, the Chatam Sofer (commentary to Gittin 20b s.v...

Clarification of Kushya

Concerning the kushya mentioned in April 4th's post: During a discussion with Nachum I realized that I had not read the halacha carefully. It is significant that the Rambam's case is a renter. When one is renting from a Jew he may not remove the m'zuzot upon leaving; when he is renting from a non-Jew he must. It would seem to follow that if one sold one's house to a fellow Jew it would be permitted to take the m'zuzot . I have not done extensive research to see if everyone agrees that this halacha only applies in the case of a rental but a quick scan of the Aruch HaShulchan ( Siman 291) seems to bear out my contention. The solution to the kushya mentioned in the previous post must explain this.

Philosophical Method: Dialectic vs Demonstration, or, Matlock vs Sherlock

Dan asked a great question on the previous post: …can you to define what you mean by "philosophical method"? Also, what is the difference between the "philosophical method" and the "scientific method"? Of course, Dan is correct. There is no way to answer my question from the previous post without first addressing his questions. In this post I will attempt to answer his first question. I think “philosophical method” might be defined differently depending on when and where it is asked. I will try, to the best of my ability, to explain what it might have meant to R. Yehuda Halevi. The simplest answer is that it is a method whereby one attempts to reach the truth. That said, I think it is important to distinguish between two types of philosophical method: dialectic and demonstration . Let’s start with dialectical method. Let us say that a philosopher wishes to understand what love is. He or she might start with some examples and arrive at a ...

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