In my youth I wondered why people said, "You can't always be right." I reasoned that if a person only said something when he had facts, and otherwise would either keep his mouth shut or say simply, "I don't know"; then he would always be right. What's the problem? I still more or less (more on the less in a moment) believe that, which is why I am terrible at small talk. The "less" is that sometimes one is required to act with less that perfect information. (You would think that would be obvious, right? Sigh... I am a slow unlearner once I have an idea in my head.) Even more "less" is that sometimes one is called upon to render an opinion. While all of these TftDs represent, at some level, my opinion, this one is more than usual.
I was reasonably strong in my assertion that the proper bracha on Pringles® is (and always has been) בורא פרי האדמה. I also noted that there are those who disagree. I was asked by a good friend, "So why not cover your bases and follow the usual rule of choosing the more encompassing bracha (in this case שהכל נהיה בדברו)?" In other words, why did I choose to stick my head into the bee's nest of a מחלוקת הפוסקים when there is a perfectly valid alternative that avoids the whole issue.
So here's the thing: in this case there is no valid alternative. The Mishna Brura, commenting on the halacha that שהכל נהיה בדברו can be used whenever the bracha is not known, says the following (my paraphrase and added emphasis): "Not known" doesn't mean you don't know; it means that the decision of the poskim is that the bracha is not known. If you don't know the correct bracha then don't eat that food until you learn the correct bracha! In other words, you need pretty broad shoulders to say the bracha is not known and to conclude that שהכל נהיה בדברו will work. I, for one, do not have the shoulders to make that decision.
Now... peanut butter and Pringles®. One peanut butter, you should make a שהכל נהיה בדברו. I asked R' Fuerst: On vegetable soup -- even with the vegetables strained out -- the bracha is בורא פרי האדמה; why is the bracha on peanut butter -- which actually contains the (albeit completely smushed up) peanuts only שהכל נהיה בדברו? Answer: Physical grinding does more to lower the bracha than cooking. I asked then about Pringles®: But the potatoes are all smushed up there, so why isn't the bracha lowered to שהכל נהיה בדברו? Answer: because they are shaped into potato chip looking things, so they retain the original bracha. I further asked: So if I shape peanut butter into little peanut looking things and bake them, does the bracha return to בורא פרי האדמה? Answer: Don't get carried away. (And I was rewarded also with a delighted chuckle from the rav.)
Ultimately every Jew has to make his own decision about how to act. We ask a rav because he has more insight and breadth of knowledge than we do. See the Bava Kamma 69b where three different Amoraim say what their logic would have told them had they not learned differently from R' Yochanan. I prescribe my own vitamins for general health and analgesics for minor muscle and joint pain. When I had cancer, though, I relied completely on the board of experts managing my care. You have to know your realm of expertise and ignorance.
One parting thought on my statement that ignorance has no place in halacha. Perhaps I should have said it differently. R' Schwab was once giving an inspirational lecture to the public and compared Klal Yisrael to the armed forces. We have a navy, air force, and army. We have officers and enlisted men. Each Jew has his place in HaShem's armed forces. Afterward a rabbi of the Reform/Conservative Jewish religion stepped forward and asked, "So, rabbi... you say we all have a place in armed forces of HaShem. Where is our place?" R' Schwab answered on the spot and to the point: You, sir, are the deserters.
That's where I put ignorance.
I was reasonably strong in my assertion that the proper bracha on Pringles® is (and always has been) בורא פרי האדמה. I also noted that there are those who disagree. I was asked by a good friend, "So why not cover your bases and follow the usual rule of choosing the more encompassing bracha (in this case שהכל נהיה בדברו)?" In other words, why did I choose to stick my head into the bee's nest of a מחלוקת הפוסקים when there is a perfectly valid alternative that avoids the whole issue.
So here's the thing: in this case there is no valid alternative. The Mishna Brura, commenting on the halacha that שהכל נהיה בדברו can be used whenever the bracha is not known, says the following (my paraphrase and added emphasis): "Not known" doesn't mean you don't know; it means that the decision of the poskim is that the bracha is not known. If you don't know the correct bracha then don't eat that food until you learn the correct bracha! In other words, you need pretty broad shoulders to say the bracha is not known and to conclude that שהכל נהיה בדברו will work. I, for one, do not have the shoulders to make that decision.
Now... peanut butter and Pringles®. One peanut butter, you should make a שהכל נהיה בדברו. I asked R' Fuerst: On vegetable soup -- even with the vegetables strained out -- the bracha is בורא פרי האדמה; why is the bracha on peanut butter -- which actually contains the (albeit completely smushed up) peanuts only שהכל נהיה בדברו? Answer: Physical grinding does more to lower the bracha than cooking. I asked then about Pringles®: But the potatoes are all smushed up there, so why isn't the bracha lowered to שהכל נהיה בדברו? Answer: because they are shaped into potato chip looking things, so they retain the original bracha. I further asked: So if I shape peanut butter into little peanut looking things and bake them, does the bracha return to בורא פרי האדמה? Answer: Don't get carried away. (And I was rewarded also with a delighted chuckle from the rav.)
Ultimately every Jew has to make his own decision about how to act. We ask a rav because he has more insight and breadth of knowledge than we do. See the Bava Kamma 69b where three different Amoraim say what their logic would have told them had they not learned differently from R' Yochanan. I prescribe my own vitamins for general health and analgesics for minor muscle and joint pain. When I had cancer, though, I relied completely on the board of experts managing my care. You have to know your realm of expertise and ignorance.
One parting thought on my statement that ignorance has no place in halacha. Perhaps I should have said it differently. R' Schwab was once giving an inspirational lecture to the public and compared Klal Yisrael to the armed forces. We have a navy, air force, and army. We have officers and enlisted men. Each Jew has his place in HaShem's armed forces. Afterward a rabbi of the Reform/Conservative Jewish religion stepped forward and asked, "So, rabbi... you say we all have a place in armed forces of HaShem. Where is our place?" R' Schwab answered on the spot and to the point: You, sir, are the deserters.
That's where I put ignorance.
Comments