Shalom Rabbi. I have been finding some contradictions on the site, answers from different years that conflict. Here are four, each with the quotes and links. Which should be followed in each case?
1. On https://kashrut.org/kitniyot-species/#comment-2509 the answer says “Rice, millet, mustard seed, oats, beans, and the like are the original Kitniyot.” On https://kashrut.org/are-oats-considered-kitniyot/#comment-5014 the answer says “No. Oats are not Kitniyot.” Which one is correct for an Ashkenazi on Pesach, and should the older answer be updated so people are not confused?
2. On https://kashrut.org/dishwasher/#comment-178 the answer says “Dishwasher is not sufficient to kasher other items.” On https://kashrut.org/koshering-via-dishwasher/#comment-5228 the answer says “Kashering a pot in a dishwasher is a possibility. I’m reviewing that now.” Was there a conclusion on kashering a pot in a dishwasher, and does the older answer still stand?
3. On https://kashrut.org/eating-italian/ the guide says “Avoid rice and cooked or mashed potatoes.” On https://kashrut.org/bishul-akum-regarding-rice-and-pasta/#comment-5445 the answer says “Rice is more complicated because it is not considered Pat. However, in hotels, catered events, and similar settings, there are still grounds for leniency.” Does that leniency also apply to rice in a non kosher restaurant, or does the guide still hold for restaurants?
4. On https://kashrut.org/tovel-new-dishes-glassware-pot-pans/#comment-436 the answer says to sell new utensils “to a non-jewish person like a housekeeper or a coworker for $1. And then just Have them leave it in your house.” On https://kashrut.org/dvar-charif/#comment-4579 the answer says “all of the great authorities agree that tevilat keilim is min haTorah.” If tevila is min haTorah, how does the $1 sale work when the utensils stay in the Jewish home and are used every day?
Thank you for all the clarity you give.
Halachic research and decisions are sometimes fluid. A Rav makes a decision based on the sources and the facts as he understands them at the time. Sometimes, years later, additional learning or better information about the facts on the ground causes the issue to be looked at differently.
1. Oats and Kitniyot
The older answer treating oats as kitniyot reflected my automatic assumption at the time. Later, I reconsidered it.
Oats have traditionally been treated as one of the five grains. If that is how they were historically categorized, then where is the mesorah that oats were also included in the Ashkenazi gezeirah of kitniyot? I did not see a basis for simply adding them now.
So my current position is that oats are not kitniyot. The older answer will not be updated so I can be fully transparent.
2. Kashering in a Dishwasher
This is still something I am researching.
One question is factual: how hot does the water actually get inside modern dishwashers, and for how long?
There are also halachic questions concerning exactly how a dishwasher works and what temperature is required for hagalah in the particular circumstances.
It is possible that kashering a pot in a dishwasher can work, but I have not yet completed the research sufficiently to give that as a general ruling. When I am comfortable that I have worked through both the halachic and technical issues, I will post the conclusion.
For now, I would not rely on a dishwasher as the standard method for kashering other utensils.
3. Rice and Bishul Akum
Rice is more complicated.
There are grounds for leniency in a large hotel, catered event, institutional kitchen, large restaurant operation, and similar commercial settings.
I am less certain about a small mom-and-pop restaurant or food cooked in a private person’s home.
There is also the underlying question of whether rice falls within the category of food that is עולה על שולחן מלכים. I have heard that argued both ways, and I am still working through the issue.
So for now I would distinguish between the large commercial/institutional setting and the small restaurant or private home. When I am satisfied with the conclusion, I will post it more definitively.
4. Selling Utensils to a Non-Jew
You asked:
“If tevila is min haTorah, how does the $1 sale work when the utensils stay in the Jewish home and are used every day?”
Forgive me, but I will answer your question with a question; being Jewish and all.
If chametz on Pesach is prohibited min haTorah, how does selling chametz work when the chametz remains physically inside your house, supermarket, restaurant, bakery, or pizza shop?
You might respond that you personally do not sell actual chametz. But many commercial establishments sell genuine chametz every year under the supervision and approval of their hashgachah.
Ownership is a halachic reality. Something does not have to physically leave your house in order for ownership to transfer.
There are halachic mechanisms and workarounds that are perfectly valid, while others were discouraged by Chazal or later authorities. Selling the utensil to a non-Jew so that it is no longer a Jewish-owned utensil is a legitimate mechanism and was not necessarily subject to the same objections that exist in other areas.
More generally, when a Rav learns a sugya, he makes the best halachic determination he can based upon the information available to him. Over time, the sugya may be understood more clearly, additional sources may come to light, or the facts on the ground may turn out to be different from what was previously assumed.
It would take a rather large ego to discover new information and then refuse to change a ruling merely because the Rav does not want anyone to think that he made a mistake. Chazal themselves reconsider positions in the Gemara when new arguments or facts emerge.
I especially spend a great deal of time researching modern manufacturing processes and the practical realities behind kashrut questions. If further research shows that something I previously considered questionable actually has a sound basis for leniency, I am very happy to change the ruling.
A good example is animal rennet. After considerable research into the way modern animal rennet is manufactured and functions, I concluded that the rennet itself does not contribute taste in the manner I had previously been concerned about. I therefore changed my position from questionable to kosher.
That is not a weakness in halachic decision-making. That is how halachic decision-making is supposed to work.
thank you Rabbi, the explanation of why rulings change is really helpful.