Unsatisfying answers found on Shavuot
A few questions from my Shavuot learning:
1) In Genesis 11:30 we are told that "Sarai was barren; she had no child". Isn't this redundant? Two commentators that I saw said that this is to indicate that later she did have a child, based on Bereishit Rabbah. I didn't find this answer terribly compelling. Perhaps someone knows of some other answer?
2) The Rambam begins Yesodei Hatorah by in chapter 2 explaining the levels of angels. This he refers to as Maaseh Merkava, which Chagiga says should not be taught except to one brilliant student. Chapter 3 explains the Rambam's views on astronomy (geocentric with 9 concentric spheres surrounding the Earth without space between them, like an onion). Chapter 4 explains that everything is made of fire, water, earth, and wind. These two chapters he calls Maaseh Bereishit, which can be taught to one student even if he is not brilliant. So, first problem: The Rambam has paskened that the universe is geocentric. So am I violating a halakha by thinking that the solar system is heliocentric?
Even if in fact the Rambam were correct about the science, why is this one of the Yesodei HaTorah (Foundatiuons of the Torah)? Will I fail to understand Torah correctly if I didn't know that the moon is closer to the Earth than Mars?
Emet L'Yaakov (written by R' Yaakov Kaminetzky) asks the first of these questions slightly differently. He says: If the Rambam is wrong here, how do I know that the Rambam is right elsewhere? He also asks how the Rambam can write down things which are not meant to be taught publically. He answers that these 4 chapters are an introduction to the Mishne Torah and not really part of it. However, I object that the Rambam knows how to write an introduction (See: Introduction to Rambam's commentary on Mishnah, Introduction to Perek HaChelek (from which we get 13 principles of faith), Introduction to Pirkei Avot (called 8 chapters), and Introduction to the Mishne Torah).
1) In Genesis 11:30 we are told that "Sarai was barren; she had no child". Isn't this redundant? Two commentators that I saw said that this is to indicate that later she did have a child, based on Bereishit Rabbah. I didn't find this answer terribly compelling. Perhaps someone knows of some other answer?
2) The Rambam begins Yesodei Hatorah by in chapter 2 explaining the levels of angels. This he refers to as Maaseh Merkava, which Chagiga says should not be taught except to one brilliant student. Chapter 3 explains the Rambam's views on astronomy (geocentric with 9 concentric spheres surrounding the Earth without space between them, like an onion). Chapter 4 explains that everything is made of fire, water, earth, and wind. These two chapters he calls Maaseh Bereishit, which can be taught to one student even if he is not brilliant. So, first problem: The Rambam has paskened that the universe is geocentric. So am I violating a halakha by thinking that the solar system is heliocentric?
Even if in fact the Rambam were correct about the science, why is this one of the Yesodei HaTorah (Foundatiuons of the Torah)? Will I fail to understand Torah correctly if I didn't know that the moon is closer to the Earth than Mars?
Emet L'Yaakov (written by R' Yaakov Kaminetzky) asks the first of these questions slightly differently. He says: If the Rambam is wrong here, how do I know that the Rambam is right elsewhere? He also asks how the Rambam can write down things which are not meant to be taught publically. He answers that these 4 chapters are an introduction to the Mishne Torah and not really part of it. However, I object that the Rambam knows how to write an introduction (See: Introduction to Rambam's commentary on Mishnah, Introduction to Perek HaChelek (from which we get 13 principles of faith), Introduction to Pirkei Avot (called 8 chapters), and Introduction to the Mishne Torah).