(1) These are the rules that you shall set before them:
THE PROBLEM OF MINUTIAE
Martin Buber, I and Thou, pg. 157
Duties and obligations one has only toward the stranger: toward one’s intimates one is kind and loving. When a man steps before the countenance, the world becomes whole present to him for the first time in the fullness of the presence, illuminated by eternity, and he can say You in one word to the being of all beings.
- For Buber, how do minutiae and connection contradict?
Encyclopedia Britannica Entry on Occam's Razor, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Occams-razor
Occam’s razor, also spelled Ockham’s razor, also called law of economy or law of parsimony, principle stated by the Scholastic philosopher William of Ockham (1285–1347/49) that pluralitas non est ponenda sine necessitate, “plurality should not be posited without necessity.” The principle gives precedence to simplicity: of two competing theories, the simpler explanation of an entity is to be preferred. The principle is also expressed as “Entities are not to be multiplied beyond necessity.”
- How does minutiae seem with Occam's Razor in mind?
New Testament: Matthew 23:23-24
23 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24 You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel
- How does this question of the value of minutiae fit into a larger framework of anti-Jewish polemics?
BUT WHAT IF THE ISSUE WAS ACTUALLY...HOW WE PROCESS THE DATA?
Art Museum Scene, Ferris Bueller's Day Off
- What is Cameron not getting?
Then the word of the LORD came to him. He said to him, “Why are you here, Elijah?” (10) He replied, “I am moved by zeal for the LORD, the God of Hosts, for the Israelites have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and put Your prophets to the sword. I alone am left, and they are out to take my life.” (11) “Come out,” He called, “and stand on the mountain before the LORD.”
And lo, the LORD passed by. There was a great and mighty wind, splitting mountains and shattering rocks by the power of the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind—an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake. (12) After the earthquake—fire; but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire—a soft murmuring sound. (13) When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his mantle about his face and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Then a voice addressed him: “Why are you here, Elijah?” (14) He answered, “I am moved by zeal for the LORD, the God of Hosts; for the Israelites have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and have put Your prophets to the sword. I alone am left, and they are out to take my life.” (15) The LORD said to him, “Go back by the way you came, [and] on to the wilderness of Damascus. When you get there, anoint Hazael as king of Aram.
- Why does this experience turn into why it's time to replace Eliyahu as leader of the Jewish People?
- Does does it remind us of Cameron in Ferris Bueller's Day Off?
רב קוק, חכם עדיף מנביא (סדרת זרעונים פרק ב')
וְהֻצְרְכָה עֲבוֹדַת הַכְּלָלִים לְהִמָּסֵר לַנְּבִיאִים וַעֲבוֹדַת הַפְּרָטִים לַחֲכָמִים. וְחָכָם עָדִיף מִנָּבִיא, מַה שֶּׁלּא עָשְׂתָה הַנְּבוּאָה, בִּכְלֵי מִלְחַמְתָּהּ הַחוֹצְבִים לַהֲבוֹת אֵשׁ לְבַעֵר מִיִּשְׂרָאֵל עֲבוֹדַת אֱלִילִים וּלְשָׁרֵשׁ אַחֲרֵי עִקְּרֵי הַהַשְׁפָּלוֹת הַיּוֹתֵר גְּרוּעוֹת שֶׁל עשֶׁק וְחָמָס, שֶׁל רֶצַח וְזִמָּה, רְדִיפַת שׁחַד וְשַׁלְמוֹנִים, עָשׂוּ הַחֲכָמִים בְּהַרְחָבַת הַתּוֹרָה, בְּהַעֲמָדַת תַּלְמִידִים הַרְבֵּה וּבְשִׁנּוּן הַחֻקִּים הַפְּרָטִיִּים וְתוֹלְדוֹתֵיהֶם. "הֲלִיכוֹת עוֹלָם לוֹ, אַל תִּקְרֵי הֲלִיכוֹת אֶלָּא הֲלָכוֹת".
Rav Avraham Yitzchak Kook, The Sage is Preferable to the Prophet - Rav Kook. Orot. pgs. 120-121
It was, therefore, necessary to assign the expression of "broad principles" to the prophets, and the "particulars" to the Sages; and, as the Talmud declares, "the sage is more important than the prophet" (Bava Batra 12a). And what prophecy with its impassioned and fiery exhortations could not accomplish in purging the Jewish people of idolatry and in uprooting the basic causes of the most degrading forms of oppression and violence, of murder, sexual perversity and bribery, was accomplished by the sages through the expanded development of the Torah, by raising many disciples, and by the assiduous study of the particular laws and their derivative applications. "The eternal paths lead to Him" (Hab. 3:6) - the terms of "paths" halikhot, may also be read as halakhot, and the text would then mean that the laws lead to Him" (Niddah 73a).
- What's the role of minutiae in Rav Kook's understanding of rabbis vs. prophets?
What Is Sensory Overload With Anxiety?, https://www.webmd.com/balance/what-is-sensory-overload-with-anxiety
Sensory overload is not the same as a simple sense of annoyance at some kind of input. Rather, it's a sense of overwhelm or overstimulation that does not feel manageable in the moment. People with this condition typically experience different triggers and symptoms. Some signs of a sensory overload reaction can include:
CONCLUSION: HOW SHOULD WE SEE THE HALAKHIC MINUTIAE?
הקדמה לשולחן ערוך, ר' יוסף קארו
וקראתי שם ספר זה שלחן ערוך, כי בו ימצא ההוגה כל מינין, מטעמים ערוכים בכל ושמורים, סדורים וברורים.
Introduction to the Shulchan Arukh, R' Yosef Caro
And so I have named [this book] the Shulchan Arukh [lit. 'set table'], because within it the thinker will find all kinds of reasons [for halakhic practice], arranged in all and preserved, orderly and clear.
- How does the metaphor of rules as a 'set table' change the way we interact with the material?
רב רא"ם הכהן,
אקשיבה 10. הלכה שבעל פה - על יסודות פסיקת ההלכה | הרב רא"ם
אני מתיחס למורה הוראה כאומן. כמו שאומן מצייר ציור, לכתוב תשובה זה לייצור אורגן קוהרנטי, מורכב מאוד, של ציור. ולכן ברמה מסוימת, שו"ת הם יותר הלכה, עמוקה, מאשר ספרי סיכום ואפילו הרמב"ם. בגלל שהם מתמודדים במגזרת של הזמן, הם מתגלים דבר ה' באותה מגזרת.
Rav Re'em haCohen, Akshiva 10. Oral Halakhah - On the Foundation of Paskening Halakhah, Rav Re'em
I compare a teacher of Halakhah to an artist. As an artist paints a painting, to write a response is to create a organ - that is coherent, very complex/vast - of a painting. Therefore, on a certain level, responsa are more [authentically] halakhic - deeper/richer, than summary books [of Halakhah] and even Rambam['s writings]. Because [responsa] are dealing with a specific segment of time, they are revealed by God's word in that specific segment.
- How does the metaphor of halakhah as art change our perception of minutiae?
Franz Rosenzweig, The Star of Redemption, p. 191
But the commandment in the imperative, the immediate commandment, springing from the moment and already on the way to being said aloud at the moment of its springing up - for saying aloud and springing up are one and the same thing in the imperative to love - the “Love me” of the lover, this is the absolutely perfect expression, the perfectly pure language of love.
- How does seeing halakhah as a kind of love language affect how we perceive minutiae?
(ז) וַיִּקַּח֙ סֵ֣פֶר הַבְּרִ֔ית וַיִּקְרָ֖א בְּאׇזְנֵ֣י הָעָ֑ם וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּ כֹּ֛ל אֲשֶׁר־דִּבֶּ֥ר ה' נַעֲשֶׂ֥ה וְנִשְׁמָֽע׃
(7) Then he took the record of the covenant and read it aloud to the people. And they said, “All that ה' has spoken we will faithfully listen to!”
- What happens to when we 'listen' to mitzvot?