Rambam Bekius

Understanding Exceptions to the Rule of the Middle Path (Hilchos Deios 2:3)

May 05, 2021 Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss
Rambam Bekius
Understanding Exceptions to the Rule of the Middle Path (Hilchos Deios 2:3)
Show Notes

This afternoon (5/5/21 at YBT) in our Rambam Bekius chavurah we took another couple of baby steps in our understanding of Hilchos Deios. We started reading about the two exceptions to the middle path rule, but decided after reading the first one that we'd use the exception to understand the rule itself. This led to a protracted discussion about what makes the middle path "good," as preparation for understanding why the extremes are good in the cases of the exception. After much hairsplitting and terminology crunching, we had a breakthrough, which answered an earlier question about the Rambam's definitions of chacham and chasid. Although we didn't tie up all the loose ends, we definitely had a productive analysis. (Should we change the title to Rambam b'Iyun? I don't even know anymore.)
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מקורות:
רמב"ם - משנה תורה: ספר המדע, הלכות דעות ב:ג
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Bekius Disclaimer:
Note that this is a bekius chavurah - as opposed to an iyun shiur. Each session consists of us reading through the Rambam's writings together without much preparation on my part, and without going into depth by consulting commentaries or primary sources. For all these reasons, there are bound to be inaccuracies, errors, and other types of shortcomings which would not be acceptable in a prepared shiur, but are quite typical of a bekius chavurah. Please bear this in mind, and know what you're signing up for when you listen!
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If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
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Rambam Resources:
- Mechon Mamre: the most accurate complete edition of the Mishneh Torah available online for free
- AlHaTorah: excellent site overall, and reliable for the first three books of the Mishneh Torah, as well as the Shelat edition of the Rambam's commentary on the Mishnah and other works of the Rambam
- Daat: features many of the Rambam's writings, including Qafih's translation of the Moreh ha'Nevuchim, complete with footnotes
- Explanatory Essays on The Guide for the Perplexed
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