Mathematics is the language that we use to express physical law. As a graduate student in the physics department, therefore, it was important to know a fair amount of mathematics. We (the physics department) and they (the math department) each had a series of classes called "Mathematics for Physicists". I, of course, feeling that taking such a class was beneath my dignity, took the same topics in math classes designed for mathematicians. After all, I reasoned, I'd rather get the fundamentals straight than some watered down elixir. I worked harder in those classes than any of my physics classes. Not that the material was intrinsically more difficult, but that mathematicians just think differently that physicists.
I publicly admit that my filing of a prozbul every seven years before Rosh HaShannah is largely pro forma; my heart isn't really in it. I mean, after all, I do not own a bank; nor am I someone that anyone would come to for a loan. I think for the same reason, learning Bava Metzia has been particularly difficult for me. I keep Shabbos, make Brachos, build a Sukkah, and so forth; so I always felt that the topics in Seder Mo'ed are relevant to my daily life. Learning Seder Nezikin, though, has felt as foreign to me as a physicist in the math department. I don't run a business, nor pay employees, nor buy and sell wholesale; I certainly don't make nor broker loans. I thought.
I just recently started the fifth chapter of Bava Metzia -- איזהו נשך/what is the case of interest on a loan (both the Torah and Rabbinic varieties). Very, very slow going. I saw the whole exercise as learning לשמה/purely for the intellectual challenge. Which is great for reward in the World to Come, but pretty much a damper on enthusiasm in This World.
Totally unrelated, I had a discussion with a friend about the status of a "net 30 bill". That is, a bill for goods or services that specifies payment in full is expected within 30 days of receipt of the bill. In particular, if it is not paid within 30 days... then what? Does it become a loan? Is that possible?
I was able to get 37 seconds of R' Fuerst's time (that's yet another advantage of davening mincha/ma'ariv where the rabbi does). I asked about the net 30 bill -- it is a loan from the time it is given, it is a past due loan once 30 days pass. Ummm... wait, let me clarify.... does that mean that any debt/any financial obligation is -- for all practical purposes -- a loan?! Yes. Wait... does that mean paying extra in appreciation for being given extra time is forbidden as רבית/interest? Yes. Wait... does that mean shmita would knock it off?! Yes; unless he writes a prozbul, of course. Baruch HaShem that R' Fuerst is so patient, because I asked one more question: Where would I find that principle explained in detail, that any financial obligation is essentially a loan? R' Fuerst just looked at me a bit quizzically and said, "It's just common sense."
Ouch.
So let's explore this a bit. You participate in sheva brachos; one person manages and then tells all the hosts what they owe -- that's a loan. You come home from a night out with your wife and the babysitter says you owe her 50$. You don't have that much cash. Besides all the other problems of not paying a worker on time, you have also now added a new loan to your credit report. If you wait till after shmita, the debt is cancelled. You can't give her extra because she had to wait till the next day to get her money. You can't even buy her an aliyah for being so nice about waiting! (Besides all the other reasons that you can't buy her an aliyah...)
Regarding "common sense": it is certainly true that my mother opined with some frequency that I had no common sense, but I don't think this is what she meant. My experience from graduate school, though, is the only way to move an idea to surprising to obvious is to learn the subject matter. To get a feel for the "personality" of the subject. So I have gone back to learning איזהו נשך with much more enthusiasm, knowing that these cases are part of daily living for everyone.
I publicly admit that my filing of a prozbul every seven years before Rosh HaShannah is largely pro forma; my heart isn't really in it. I mean, after all, I do not own a bank; nor am I someone that anyone would come to for a loan. I think for the same reason, learning Bava Metzia has been particularly difficult for me. I keep Shabbos, make Brachos, build a Sukkah, and so forth; so I always felt that the topics in Seder Mo'ed are relevant to my daily life. Learning Seder Nezikin, though, has felt as foreign to me as a physicist in the math department. I don't run a business, nor pay employees, nor buy and sell wholesale; I certainly don't make nor broker loans. I thought.
I just recently started the fifth chapter of Bava Metzia -- איזהו נשך/what is the case of interest on a loan (both the Torah and Rabbinic varieties). Very, very slow going. I saw the whole exercise as learning לשמה/purely for the intellectual challenge. Which is great for reward in the World to Come, but pretty much a damper on enthusiasm in This World.
Totally unrelated, I had a discussion with a friend about the status of a "net 30 bill". That is, a bill for goods or services that specifies payment in full is expected within 30 days of receipt of the bill. In particular, if it is not paid within 30 days... then what? Does it become a loan? Is that possible?
I was able to get 37 seconds of R' Fuerst's time (that's yet another advantage of davening mincha/ma'ariv where the rabbi does). I asked about the net 30 bill -- it is a loan from the time it is given, it is a past due loan once 30 days pass. Ummm... wait, let me clarify.... does that mean that any debt/any financial obligation is -- for all practical purposes -- a loan?! Yes. Wait... does that mean paying extra in appreciation for being given extra time is forbidden as רבית/interest? Yes. Wait... does that mean shmita would knock it off?! Yes; unless he writes a prozbul, of course. Baruch HaShem that R' Fuerst is so patient, because I asked one more question: Where would I find that principle explained in detail, that any financial obligation is essentially a loan? R' Fuerst just looked at me a bit quizzically and said, "It's just common sense."
Ouch.
So let's explore this a bit. You participate in sheva brachos; one person manages and then tells all the hosts what they owe -- that's a loan. You come home from a night out with your wife and the babysitter says you owe her 50$. You don't have that much cash. Besides all the other problems of not paying a worker on time, you have also now added a new loan to your credit report. If you wait till after shmita, the debt is cancelled. You can't give her extra because she had to wait till the next day to get her money. You can't even buy her an aliyah for being so nice about waiting! (Besides all the other reasons that you can't buy her an aliyah...)
Regarding "common sense": it is certainly true that my mother opined with some frequency that I had no common sense, but I don't think this is what she meant. My experience from graduate school, though, is the only way to move an idea to surprising to obvious is to learn the subject matter. To get a feel for the "personality" of the subject. So I have gone back to learning איזהו נשך with much more enthusiasm, knowing that these cases are part of daily living for everyone.
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