Q&A: Blessing on a Positive Commandment Fulfilled by Passive Omission
Blessing on a Positive Commandment Fulfilled by Passive Omission
Question
Hello Rabbi, is it possible to recite a blessing over the elimination of leaven according to the views that say the commandment of destruction is fulfilled through passive omission? And if so, can one recite the blessing even if one did nothing at all, simply by virtue of the fact that one will not have any leaven when the holiday begins?
Thank you very much, and happy holiday!
Answer
There are several ways to define the commandment of destruction, even if we assume that it is fulfilled through passive omission. See here on the site, in the columns on defining the different types of positive commandments. The accepted approach is that placing the crumbs is not required by law, and nevertheless everyone agrees that the blessing is recited.
Discussion on Answer
It certainly does not fit a positive prohibition. But there could still be a commandment to make sure that you do not have any leaven, like the view of Maharshal Or Zaru’a and Tosafot Rid regarding the commandment of a father to circumcise his son.
Yes, but according to the view that defines the commandment of destruction as a commandment fulfilled through passive omission, or alternatively as a prohibition inferred from a positive commandment, is it even possible in principle to institute a blessing for such a commandment? After all, it is fulfilled only at midday, and you are not really doing anything—rather, it takes effect on its own from the moment midday arrives. So I am asking myself how this works out according to those views, and whether this is not evidence against them that we are dealing with a commandment of action.