Q&A: Command and Essence, Torah-Level and Rabbinic
Command and Essence, Torah-Level and Rabbinic
Question
Hello,
I hope you're enjoying the weekday routine….
I'm listening to the series on halakhic ruling and Jewish law (lesson 10).
You define:
Torah-level as command and essence,
rabbinic as command without essence.
And then you argue that Hanukkah and Purim do have essence, but not enough to be considered Torah-level.
Question:
Who determines the line of "essence" above which something is Torah-level, and below which it is rabbinic?
Or more precisely, who can determine that at all?
The answer I give myself is that really the criterion for what is rabbinic and what is Torah-level is different.
And only after that division already exists, I try to say that this is substantial essence and this is lesser essence.
It seems to me like a kind of circle.
That is, according to the criterion of command and essence alone, you can't determine what is Torah-level and what is rabbinic… So if so, what relevance does this distinction have (for Purim and Hanukkah)?
Regards to your lovely wife.
Answer
Obviously, the distinction between Torah-level and rabbinic is rooted in command alone, that is, in the determination of the Sages. Whatever originates in the Torah is Torah-level, and whatever has no source there but was instituted by the Sages is rabbinic. That is the formal distinction.
I'm not proposing a criterion by which you could diagnose what is Torah-level and what is rabbinic. The diagnosis is according to what I wrote above. What I'm trying to explain is whether there is an essential difference beyond the formalism I described here. My claim is that there is. Something that has no source in the Torah is so because it has no essence, or at least not one significant enough. The Sages decide whether nevertheless to obligate, forbid, or leave it permitted. Something that does have a source, meaning it is Torah-level, indicates that it has essence.
I'll pass it on to her.
All the best, and regards to your lovely wife as well.