Q&A: Not Believing in Separation or Immersion
Not Believing in Separation or Immersion
Question
Does the separation of terumot and tithes performed by a person who does not believe that God gave commandments—take effect?
And likewise, if a woman who does not believe immerses in order to satisfy her religious husband—is she pure? Is this connected to the discussion in Hullin (31a), where Maimonides (Mikvaot 1 8) ruled in accordance with Rav, who is lenient and does not require intention for non-sacred food?
Answer
Indeed, no intention is needed for non-sacred food, and therefore the immersion is effective for her.
Regarding the separation of terumah, that is a good question. In my opinion, no, because what fixes the tevel is the commandment of separation, not the physical act of separation. And commandments do not apply to someone who does not believe. Similar to this is what the later authorities (Acharonim) remarked about the Minchat Chinukh concerning someone who sits in a stolen sukkah: had there not been a verse disqualifying it, he indeed would not be fulfilling a commandment, but he still would not be considered as eating outside the sukkah. The later authorities wrote that this is incorrect, because one who does not fulfill the commandment did not eat in the sukkah. One should not distinguish between the act and the commandment.
By the way, in my personal opinion this is correct regarding terumah, but with respect to sukkah there is definitely room for the Minchat Chinukh’s reasoning.
Discussion on Answer
You’ve gone too far.
Why? After all, the farmer does it for purely commercial reasons, and the supervisor is only his agent, no?
He does not necessarily have to be his agent. He can also separate on his behalf without agency (and perhaps even without the legal principle of “acquiring on someone’s behalf,” with the farmer’s consent alone being enough). And even if he is his agent, it may be that the separation is effective, at least according to the view of an agent as a power of attorney, and perhaps also according to the view of an agent as an extended hand.
According to this, should we consider all the fruits and vegetables of non-believing farmers to be tevel even after the kashrut supervisor separated tithes?