the direct approach
December 4th, 2008 by AriRabbis very rarely try the direct approach when it comes to making halakhic (legal) rulings, but when they do the results are often hilarious. (from hirhurim).
He [R. Hershel Schachter] told a story about a student who asked him whether he (the student) was allowed to hug his great-aunt. R. Schachter said it was permitted (and that R. Mordechai Willig had previously told the student the same) but the student went on to ask R. Moshe Feinstein. He returned to R. Schachter to ask for a translation of R. Feinstein’s Yiddish response. R. Feinstein had told him something like “Zein nisht kein na’ar”, which R. Schachter translated as “Don’t act like an idiot”
December 4th, 2008 at 10:10 am
This reminds me of my favorite story of Phil z”l (as told by Josh S).
When Josh wanted to start having cholent at the hashkama minyan, he brought in the ingredients and was getting ready to start making it. He was told by someone that the bag of dry beans required hashgaha. He hadn’t heard of such a thing, and so he went to ask the rabbi about it. The rabbi sent him to Phil, who was at that time the mashgiah of the kitchen. When Josh asked him whether the dry beans needed hashgaha, Phil’s response was:
“It is unfortunate that your generation has missed by twenty years the period of time in which Orthodox Judaism was practiced with common sense.”