Can we talk about kitniyot?
Originally appeared in Arutz Sheva/Israel National News
Without the kitniyot issues, we would be one more step closer to being simply “Jews of Israel”, instead of being Ashkenazi or Sephardi Jews, or Jews from Morocco, Ethiopia, or India.
Sukkot (Sukos) wasn’t even over, and I saw ads for Pesach (Passover) trips. So, I guess it is ok to bring up the topic of kitniyot now. Even though, it can be said that kitniyot is just a minor topic demonstrating how different groups practice Judaism, why won’t anybody talk about it?
Let’s start with defining what is kitniyot. It is an Ashkenazic minhag (custom) developed in the Middle Ages to not eat certain foods known collectively as legumes (“kitniyot”). There are three reasons for the minhag: (a) kitniyot is harvested and processed in the same manner as chametz (leaven or food mixed with leaven); (b) it is ground into flour and baked just like chametz [so people may mistakenly believe that if they can eat kitniyot, they can also eat chametz]; and (c) it may have chametz grains mixed into it [so people who eat kitniyot may inadvertently be eating chametz]. This has become an accepted part of Pesach in Ashkenazic communities.
Which foods are kitniyot? Generally speaking, they are legumes, as well as corn and rice, which the Medieval rabbis in Ashkenazi Jewish communities prohibited, owing to their similarity when ground, to wheat flour. Peanuts are not kitniyot but are often included as kitniyot.
Then there is the issue of ‘derivatives’, things made from kitniyot. Earlier rabbis declared that oil made from kitniyot is forbidden on Pesach, but some later rabbis suggest that such oil may be permitted because some of the original reasons for the minhag don’t apply. In other words, ask your rabbi.
In 2007, three rabbis from Machon Shilo, an Orthodox institution dedicated to the study of Jewish law and custom as practiced in Israel, issued a ruling permitting Ashkenazi Jews to eat kitniyot. The Machon Shilo organization, as reported in Israel National News (“Diaspora Kitniyot Abstinence” March 25, 2007) and The Jerusalem Post (“Passover: Is kitniyot on wane, does it presage a unified Jewish custom?” March 30, 2021) argued that citizens of Israel are neither Ashkenazi nor Sephardi but have become “Jews of the Land of Israel,” and therefore should abide by the customs and practices of Israel and not by previous customs. This is a great perspective to consider and act upon to build an am eḥad (one nation).
It is such an important point of view, that even Pirke Avot 2:5 clearly and unequivocally states: “Do not separate yourself from the community.” This position is clear that Jews should abide by the customs and practices of the country they live in. Kitniyot vs. non-kitniyot is one of the key issues creating separation.
Remember, kitniyot is not a halacha (law) but simply a minhag (custom). We then must ask two questions: (1) Is it permissible to do away with a custom? (2) Why should we do away with such a custom?
To the first question: Is it permissible to do away with a custom? The answer: Yes! Many rabbinic authorities have ruled that it is permitted (and perhaps even obligatory) to do away with this type of custom (see the sources noted in aforementioned articles).
Second question: Why should we do away with this custom? Answers: (a) It detracts from the joy of the holiday by limiting the number of permitted foods; (b) It causes exorbitant price rises which can result in "major financial loss”; (c) It emphasizes the insignificant (rice, beans and legumes) and ignores the significant (hametz which is, by Jewish law, indisputably forbidden from the five kinds of grain); and (d) It causes unnecessary divisions between different Jewish ethnic groups.
There is only one reason Ashkenazim still hold by this custom (again, not law). Tradition! However, does a “tradition” or a “custom” outweigh the rabbinic rulings and logic laid out above? Logic and rabbinic rulings. What more could you ask for?
How about Hillel and Shammai? They are two well-known scholars who lived in the first century BCE and were often on different sides of legal rabbinic interpretations that form the way we practice Judaism to this very day. The Sixteenth-century kabbalist Rabbi Isaac Luria (the “Ari”) believed that in our present reality, where divine commandments must be imposed upon an imperfect world, the rulings of the House of Hillel (Beit Hillel) represent the ultimate in conformity to the divine will, so we follow the more lenient rulings of the House of Hillel, while the rulings of the House of Shammai represent an ideal that is too lofty for our present state (which is why those rulings are perceived as “more strict” and more confining), and can only be realized on the conceptual level. In the era of Messiah, the situation will be reversed.
So, we must ask again, why are the Israeli Ashkenazi rabbis still holding on to this “foolish/mistaken” custom that is allowed to be changed by respected “giants of their generation,” and is in keeping with following the leniency of the great Beit Hillel?
Which present-day gadol hador (great one of the generation) Ashkenazi Rabbi, or even the Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel, will discuss and rule in favor of removing this mistaken custom? It is difficult enough to be Jewish – why not make this non-ḥalaḥic issue go away? Especially as a reward for living in Israel, at least.
Change has precedence here. Consider that just one generation ago, peanut oil was certified kosher for Passover for Ashkenazim. This was so recent that as a child, even I remember it.
Such a change might even have some unintended benefits. For example, it might lead to more inclusiveness between different cultural communities within Israel. This could contribute to Israelis become more of one nation. Additionally, along with mostly one-day ḥagim (holidays) in Israel, now being able to eat kitniyot might be another incentive for North American and European aliyah. All of which are good things.
The Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel could pasken (rule, decide): “If you live in Israel, you may eat kitniyot.” In other words, keep your customs (if you want) but don’t let them stop you from sharing, learning, and adopting experiences and customs from other Jews to make you closer Israel and one nation.
Without the kitniyot issues, we would be one more step closer to being simply “Jews of Israel”, instead of being Ashkenazi or Sephardi Jews, or Jews from Morocco, Ethiopia, or India. When we live in Israel, we should not be Ashkenazi Jews or anything else. We should be ha’am eḥad shel Yisroel (the one nation of Israel). And this small issue of kitniyot might be a good place to start.
Dear Israeli Ashkenazi Rabbis, you paskin to end this irrelevant minhag, at least for those in Israel, in time for next Passover?
# # #
About the Author: David Levine is not a rabbi, but some of his best friends and relations are Orthodox rabbis. Author of “Revolutions: In Their Own Words – What They Really Say About Their Causes”, “Hey Israel – You’re Perfect – Now Change!” (FREE download at www.bit.ly/HeyIsrael-2dEdition), and the forthcoming book “Prayer: In Their Own Words – Islam-Catholicism-Judaism – What Do They Pray For?” David is a former marketing & business executive, and a retired Rutgers University instructor. Follow him on X (Twitter): @DavidsLevine
Comments
Post a Comment