What’s new with Chodosh – Facts on the ground | Why are people so lenient about a Din in the Torah?
Why do we rely on leniency these day when the Heter was due to שעת הדחק and we don’t have a shortage of food?
If the Heter is based on Safek, nowadays the Safek is verifiable and can’t be relied upon
If a store has information posted that it’s not Yoshon – there’s no Safek at all – what do people rely on?
Why are people making on Stam Cholov which is maybe a Safek Derabbanan and not on this?
If a person needed to eat because of פיקוח נפש and it was a question of הקל הקל תחלה should he eat Chodosh or drink Stam Cholov?
People spend a lot of money and time checking vegtables for bugs which the obligation to check is Derabanan but blatantly eat Chodosh – why?
Why does everyone spends thousands of dollars on computer check of a sefer Torah and here it’s easy to access the information and for free?
Why are Chasidim so lenient – How does a story from the Baal Shem Tov uproot Halacha – even if it’s true we go with halacha not stories – we can uproot all the Torah if it’s controlled by stories not Halacha?
Chassidim specifically love to quote Chasam Sofer “חדש אסור מן התורה” – when it comes to any slight deviance of Minhag or even culture – and חדש itself they don’t care about?
Shiur Reference Material
21 Comments
Nik davidson
Ari Shapiro
I was so happy to see your latest shiur about chodosh. This is something that I have been wondering about for years and you summed it up perfectly.
2 points about what was said and a general comment.
1. Both the OK and OU mentioned that the Rabbanut in Israel is very makpid on chodosh but they didn’t explain why. The reason is very simple. Everyone holds chodosh in Israel is doraysa and none of the heterim in chutz laaretz apply so it’s not that they are more makpid in israel chodosh is ikkar hadin according to everyone.
2. They mentioned that the British hechsherim ate makpid on chodosh. I heard the following. That in England they only have winter wheat and therefore everything is yoshon. So it’s not that they are more makpid it’s just the circumstances.
I was very disappointed by the defensive attitude taken by the hashgachas. IMHO the consumers should demand that they not certify any chodosh product period. The hashgachas should give the companies a reasonable amount of time to find yoshon sources (12-18 months) and then refuse to certify any product that is chodosh. Given the size of the kosher market I believe that the overwhelming majority of companies would comply and work it out. As you said according to most rishonim chodosh is an issur doraysa in America, period. The fact that the hechsherim rely on very very difficult heterim in 2026 is scandalous especially as they admitted that they know exactly which products are chodosh and which are yoshon.
Shiur 365 Riddle
1: There is no stira in the Ramban. While the initial appearance of tza’ras may be supernatural, there is nothing supernatural about the process of taharas hametzora/tzara’as. Regarding Sota, there is a need for a nes for us to do our mitzva of השקאת הסוטה.
2: It is important for Tosafos to say that בית הסתרים is de’oraysa so that a chatzitza there will be מצטרף to a chatzitza elsewhere to constitute a רוב.
Also, I think you are approaching the chadash/chalav yisrael question too mathematically. The fact that for hundreds of years klal Yisrael was makpid on the latter and not on the former carries weight in terms of people’s decisions today.
All the best
Yehoshua Duker
א- לכאורה כוונת הרמב”ן לומר מה שמכריעים ההלכה ע”פ נס ופלא, מכריעים דין ספק סוטה ע”פ המים המאררים, ולא מצינו כעי”ז בשום מקום
ב- עד”ז מצינו גם אצל אבני שייש, בפי’ הר”ש והרא”ש אבני שייש אינן ראויין לנגעים, ומקשים הלא כל עיקר נגעי בתים אינה ע”ד הטבע, ועכצ”ל שעצם הנגע מגיע רק ע”פ נס, אבל מראה הנגע הוא דבר טבעי, אבל אם מראה הנגע א”א א”כ ל”ש נגעים
בעיקר השאלה כבר העירו האחרנים שיש לומר שאיירי באופן שכבר יש חציצה בחצי גופו וחלק זה משלים לרוב, ועוד י”ל שבאופן חציצה יסוד הדין הוא שחשובה כמו שבטל לגופו, והכא איירי באופן שיש מניעה מביאת מים
Leave a Comment
Related Shiurim
Thank You
Compliments on the Sefer.
Really well put together and super effective at bringing the depth of the opportunity sefira provides into practical awareness and practice.