When Halacha Just Gets in the Way

I think it’s noteworthy how certain halachos somehow trigger significant resistance from mainstream frum Jews. Here are a couple of examples I’ve recently come across.

Honoring Employment Responsibilities

The first of those involves a melamed’s responsibilities to his (or her) students and employers. Here’s the Rema (Yore Deah 245:17):

ואין למלמד לנעור בלילה יותר מדאי שלא יהיה עצל ביום ללמוד וכן לא יתענה או לעצור במאכל ומשתה או לאכול ולשתות יותר מדאי כי כל אלו הדברים גורמים שלא יוכל ללמד היטב וכל המשנה ידו על התחתונה ומסלקין ליה

“A teacher must not stay awake too long at night so as not to be [too tired] to teach [properly] during the day…all those things make it [impossible] to teach well…and he should be removed [from his position]”

The Vilna Gaon explains that, in this regard, a teacher has an even higher responsibility than a hired worker (פועל) in that even unpaid Torah teachers are included. Either way, based on the widespread acceptance of this idea among the poskim, a paid melamed who, through negligence, delivers a sub-standard effort is no less a גזלן than a worker who spends his work hours doom scrolling social media on his phone.

All that sounds straightforward enough. But my scientific sampling of upwards of four yeshivishe people (who may or may not be related to me) suggests there’s disbelief that the halacha could possibly be applicable in the real world.

I think at least part of this resistance can be traced to lifestyle realities in the contemporary frum world. Davening starts early in the morning and wraps up in the late evening; large families generate the need for unending carpools, doctor visits, shopping, and chores; keeping a lid on expenses requires both enormous effort and stress; and, on top of everything else, learning is supposed to be your highest priority.

In that context, it’s hardly surprising that heads of large families - including melamdim - will push themselves past their healthy limits in a desperate pursuit of satisfaction in life. Which, in turn, leads to disbelief when choices perceived as essential to actualizing a frum lifestyle come in conflict with an explicit halacha.

And I do believe this is halacha is explicit. Do you really think that employers (like yeshiva menahalim) don’t really care about the implications of your late-night learning schedule? Consider a scenario where parents politely and repeatedly complain about their kids’ low-energy melamed. Do you really think a conscientious menahel won’t follow up?

Dancing on Shabbos and Yom Tov

Dancing - along with other musical activities like clapping and drumming - was forbidden due to the concern that someone involved might unthinkingly repair a broken musical instrument. Now you might think there’s nothing modern about this issue. After all, the Gemara itself (Beitza 30a) already tells us about the compliance troubles that existed in the ancient world:

א”ל רבא בר רב חנין לאביי תנן אין מטפחין ואין מספקין ואין מרקדין והאידנא דקא חזינן דעבדן הכי ולא אמרינן להו ולא מידי אמר ליה ולטעמך הא דאמר (רבא) לא ליתיב איניש אפומא דלחיא דלמא מגנדר ליה חפץ ואתי לאתויי (ד’ אמות ברה”ר) והא הני נשי דשקלן חצבייהו ואזלן ויתבן אפומא דמבואה ולא אמרינן להו ולא מידי אלא הנח להם לישראל מוטב שיהיו שוגגין ואל יהיו מזידין הכא נמי הנח להם לישראל מוטב שיהיו שוגגין ואל יהיו מזידין

“…why do we (rabbis) now say nothing when we see [people rhythmically clapping and slapping?]…[that’s because the rabbis conclude that] it’s better people should act without criminal intent rather than with criminal intent”

The Baaley Tosafos (Beitza 30a) suggest that, by their time already, the restriction is no longer relevant:

פרש”י שמא יתקן כלי שיר ומיהו לדידן שרי דדוקא בימיהן שהיו בקיאין לעשות כלי שיר שייך למגזר אבל לדידן אין אנו בקיאין לעשות כלי שיר ולא שייך למגזר

“…But for us, clapping to music is permitted. It was only in their days [when there was widespread expertise] in building musical instruments that such a restriction was relevant. But for us - who lack such expertise - there’s no reason to be strict.”

And then there’s the second explanation of the Rema (O”C 339:3):

וי”א דבזמן הזה הכל שרי דאין אנו בקיאין בעשיית כלי שיר וליכא למיגזר שמא יתקן כלי שיר דמלתא דלא שכיח הוא ואפשר שעל זה נהגו להקל בכל.

“And some say that in our days everything is permitted. Since we are not expert in the manufacture of musical instruments, there’s no reason to [be concerned] that one might repair a musical instrument because that’s something that’s very uncommon. And it’s possible that’s why we are lenient in all [such matters].”

So this would seem to be an open and shut case. Go ahead: feel free to clap and dance to your heart’s content.

Or don’t. For one thing, the Gemara’s מוטב שיהיו שוגגין ואל יהיו מזידין (repeated by the Rema in his first explanation to O”C 337:3) is hardly a ringing endorsement of the practice. Also, because it’s very common to replace and tune violin (or guitar) strings - both acts that are חיובי חטאות - the Aruch Hashulchan (339:8) is deeply skeptical that the argument of the Baaley Tosafos is useful in our day.

But the serious fire and brimstone is reserved for ספר זכרון יוסף. The Mishna Berura (339) - in the באור הלכה דה”מ להקל בכל - reports how Rabbi Akiva Eiger “hinted” to a very long passage in ספר זכרון יוסף that’s quoted at length in the באור הלכה.

Before veering off to discuss mixed dancing and related issues, זכרון יוסף expresses his strongly held opinion that dancing on Yom Tov - even with men and women separated and without the use of instruments - is forbidden according to halacha. The way this opinion is referenced in the באור הלכה tells us that, even though its omission from the body of the משנה ברורה suggests this isn’t the consensus position, it is still the preferred ideal.

The bottom line is that anyone who wants to dance and clap on Shabbos (or on Simchas Torah) has plenty of mainstream halachic support. But that’s certainly not the same thing as saying the practice is approved by mainstream halachic authorities.

Why does the yeshiva world - which generally claims to prefer the ideal halachic path - ignore the preferences of such an conspicuous group of authorities?

Part of the explanation probably hangs on an implicit acknowledgment of the need to provide lively kosher outlets for otherwise-suppressed bochurim. And there’s surely merit to that argument. But I suspect that there’s also a deep ideological connection between the modern yeshiva movement and the 17th Century kabbalistic literature from which contemporary Simchas Torah dancing (along with its derivatives) came.

Much like yeshivishe sleep deprivation, it’s at least as much a question of identity as pragmatism.

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Photo by Matheus Vinicius on Unsplash