Q&A: Doubt About the Initial Blessing
Doubt About the Initial Blessing
Question
I just saw that you write in the third book of the trilogy that in matters of Jewish law derived by reasoning, one should be stringent in cases of doubt, as with Torah-level law. You brought the obligation to recite a blessing before eating as an example of a law derived by reasoning, so in your opinion, in a case of doubt about the initial blessing, should one be stringent and recite it, as with a doubt regarding Grace After Meals?
Answer
Absolutely. If I remember correctly, I explained that there. But one should recite it without God's name and kingship.
Discussion on Answer
Indeed. If I remember correctly, I explained that there.
I just saw that the Rabbi discusses this in his article "Torah Reasoning and Its Halakhic Status" here: https://mikyab.net/%d7%9b%d7%aa%d7%91%d7%99%d7%9d/%d7%9e%d7%90%d7%9e%d7%a8%d7%99%d7%9d/%d7%a1%d7%91%d7%a8%d7%95%d7%aa-%d7%aa%d7%95%d7%a8%d7%a0%d7%99%d7%95%d7%aa-%d7%95%d7%9e%d7%a2%d7%9e%d7%93%d7%9f-%d7%94%d7%94%d7%9c%d7%9b%d7%aa%d7%99/
Is the reason in the case of Grace After Meals because it is from the Torah, and a Torah-level doubt is treated stringently?
And the reason in the case of the initial blessing because they established that a person should not leave this world without a blessing? If so, maybe one really should say it with God's name and kingship?
Yes.
So that one should not derive benefit. You can't say it with God's name and kingship, because that involves a possible Torah prohibition of "You shall not take [the name of the Lord] in vain."
Reciting Grace After Meals in a case of doubt is only if you ate an amount that brings satiety, which is an egg-bulk. Only then is one obligated in Grace After Meals by Torah law, and then one is actually fulfilling "And you shall eat and be satisfied and bless."
From Tosafot in Berakhot (12a, s.v. "not to include bread") it seems that one repeats the blessing with God's name and kingship, and this fits Tosafot's view that a blessing recited in vain is a rabbinic prohibition, not a Torah prohibition (Rosh Hashanah 33a, s.v. "that is Rabbi Yehuda").
See here, note 4:
https://ph.yhb.org.il/10-12-03/#_te01ftnref12_4
Without God's name and kingship because the text of the blessing is rabbinic, and the obligation derived by reasoning can be fulfilled without that?