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זכרון דברים's avatar

Chazal tell us היה ר' יהודה אומר: לעולם הוי כונס דברי תורה כללים ומוציאם, שנאמר יערוף כמטר לקחי, ואין יערף אלא לשון כנעני, שאין אדם אומר לחבירו "פרוט לי סלע זו" - אלא "ערוף לי סלע זו", כך הוי כונס דברי תורה כללים - ופורט ומוציאם כטיפים הללו של טל; ולא כטיפים הללו של מטר גדולות, אלא כטיפים הללו של טל שהם קטנים:

If a person learns many halachos, each detail in its place, he will never remember them or apply them accurately. It is only when a person learns Torah with klalim (sorry, I am not pretentious enough to write 'qlalim') that he can truly appreciate a sugya.

These klalim are what are known as the 'lomdus' of the sugya. When the underlying logic of the sugya is reached, appreciated, and quantified, it is possible to be מדמה מילתא למילתא and reach the pesak halacha. Otherwise, we arrive at 'poskei tzedek' of the Hungarian variety, and comparisons between יש ברירה and בורר on Shabbos, or מיגו דהוי דופן לענין שבת and מיגו להוציא are suggested (the first is in an actual teshuva sefer, the second is a famous joke).

Learning שמירת שבת כהלכתה is not learning Halacha. It is a great Sefer, but not a way to learn Hilchos Shabbos. Of course, learning and reaching the underlying sevara takes far longer than the one who simply prepares for his 'smicha' program, and the superficial eye may think that the second is the one learning Halacha, but learning halacha without focusing on the underlying sevara causes superficiality, specious comparisons, and a boxed-in mindset. This is the source of the 'telephone-book' style of psak today, where people quote names instead of dealing with the halacha - 'Reb Nissim Karelitz says this, Reb Shomo Zalman argued, Rabbi Webster told me that he agrees with Reb Shlomo Zalman, but Reb Asher Weiss said in a shiur that he thinks the minhag is different.' Sadly, that is what passes for 'halacha' and 'psak' in many circles.

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Baruch's avatar

I do think that you are overplaying the role of Brisker chakira in the yeshiva word. Certainly, there is an aura of mystique surrounding the thrill of a new way of looking at things. But for the most part, it is only during the formative years (until 24 in America, until 20 in Israel) that it is really emphasized. Having learnt for many years in Lakewood, I will say that most of the interest among serious students is a clear and thorough understanding of the simple meaning of the foundational material. Certainly, some will have a more Lomdishe bent, others will gravitate to Halacha, with a few other genres thrown in, but I dont think that you (Rabbi CLinton) have an objection to lomdus in moderation. As an interesting illustration to my point: The quintessential master of Halacha, the Chazon Ish, wrote hagahos on the sefer R' Chaim Halevi. While he may have differed in his conclusions and his analytical style, if one steps back to see at what point in the sugya does the Chazon Ish part ways with Rav Chaim, it is actually at a very advanced stage in the sugya, with many hours of learning required to even appreciate the difference between the 2.

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