Rabbi, thank you very much for your response.
After reading it, I realized that I probably did not even need to ask, since you have already addressed these topics in other writings and explanations. I ended up being somewhat redundant. Still, I have had some additional reflections and doubts that I would like to share.
I understand that there are possible halachic leniencies when eating in certain restaurants. However, this is a very uncommon practice where I live. Even with the explanations that, in some cases, there would be no halachic issue, I personally would not feel comfortable eating in those places. In addition, the rabbis in my community, who follow a more stringent approach, would certainly not encourage this type of behavior.
Another point is that, although there are sources in the Shulchan Aruch and other works that present certain permissions, I do not have deep mastery of the halachot of mixtures, levels of absorption (rishon, sheni, etc.), and other technical complexities. Therefore, even if I want to understand and eventually argue based on those sources, I do not feel confident enough to do so. And naturally, if I consult local rabbis who are more stringent, it is likely that the answer will be negative, accompanied by additional arguments about current reality, local customs, or practical precautions. In the end, I would simply remain quiet and not eat.
There is also an emotional aspect. I was directed toward learning in a certain way, and the idea of eating in a non-kosher restaurant, even within certain technical permissions, still creates a psychological barrier for me. The halachic approaches I have come to learn, especially through the Rambam in his Mishneh Torah and through other schools, are not widely known in my local community. It is not common to see Jews here eating out in non-kosher restaurants, and I myself have never done so since I began observing kashrut more strictly.
Approaches such as those of your late father, Rabbi Yitzchak Abadi, or the late Rabbi Yaakov Peretz, among others, came to me at a time when my mindset was, in a sense, already “closed.” I was educated within a very defined model of what is permitted and what is not. Only more recently, perhaps also because I study in the humanities, I began to realize that certain ideas, actions, and behaviors can be explained in different ways by different schools of thought. Not necessarily one is right and the other wrong, but rather it depends on the approach one chooses to adopt and how one wishes to influence people within a given framework. I can see something similar in Halacha as well. The problem is that these other approaches and schools are not commonly discussed or presented.
However, for many Jews this process is not simple. There is fear, whether due to lack of technical knowledge, or fear that any more lenient position will be confused with Reform Judaism (chas v’shalom), or even fear of social exposure. Thus, even when there are solid sources and halachic support, the social environment and personal insecurity often make it difficult for these options to be considered calmly.
This happens even in halachot that are objective and clearly established. As appears in Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Deah 89:3, where the halacha is direct and leaves no room to interpret “right” or “left,” the social and psychological fear still remains. And this is only one example. There must be dozens, or even hundreds, of similar cases in which the halacha is clear in the text, but communal practice is influenced by fears and customs that go beyond what is written.
In practice, I also feel that very few people have the courage to follow this path of clear Halacha without fear. Those who do are often a small minority, and are frequently rejected both by rabbis and by ordinary people who may not have the technical knowledge to understand the halachic basis behind such positions.
Perhaps I was not even able to formulate my own question correctly. Sometimes I use terms such as “leniency,” but it may be that I am using the words inaccurately. Because when you explain a topic with clarity, confidence, and solid grounding, what I might call a “kula” may in fact be considered lechatchilah within a legitimate halachic approach, and certainly not something that is merely bediavad. So I recognize that even in my terminology I may be confused, due to my limited formation within a single mindset regarding kashrut. Perhaps I am still learning to see the true breadth of legitimate halachic positions.
In addition, there is a communal concern that troubles me. In the city where I live there are two basic kosher restaurants, one of them a sushi restaurant. If the community itself does not support these establishments and begins to adopt permissions that lead people to eat elsewhere, how will these entrepreneurs be able to remain open? Many times they open with the Jewish community in mind, even if their customer base is not mostly Jewish. There is also a sense of collective responsibility. If a kosher restaurant is available, should we not strengthen it?
At the same time, despite these concerns and personal barriers, I would also like to have more access to halachic permissions and options. Not necessarily because I will always choose the more flexible options, but because I would like that when a rabbi presents me with a question of kashrut, he does not present only the personal decision he made or the stringencies he chose for himself. I would like him to present the full picture: what options exist within Halacha, which are more stringent, which are less, and which are considered acceptable. From there, I could responsibly choose the level that I am able to maintain.
I feel that when this choice is already made for me, I lose my autonomy. In a sense, many of us were formed this way, receiving only a conclusion and not the range of possibilities.
I can give an example. Last year I received a package of candy from the United States that did not have any kosher symbol (OU, Star-K, etc.). However, I had the Pesach 2025 list that you published on your website, and I saw that the candy appeared there as permitted for Pesach. Therefore, I understood that, even more so, I could eat it during the rest of the year. I ended up eating it. This was very positive for me, because it gave me greater clarity and confidence.
I can give another example from my local community. A few years ago, perhaps two, three, or four, people began to discuss more widely the issue of yashan flour. For a long time, it was a subject that was little known, and even ignored within the community. Over time, some people insisted on raising the issue, and a greater concern began, even leading to specific production. And yet, it is possible to argue that this discussion about yashan was, in practical terms, more important than other technical issues of kashrut that were widely ignored. This is just one more example of how, as we study more Torah, Talmud, and Halacha, we expand our understanding and reassess priorities.
In the end, I realize that this turned out to be more of a personal reflection than a question. But I believe you were able to understand the point, and perhaps you have already discussed these kinds of issues with others. There are also other areas and topics that raise many additional questions for me, but for now these are the ones that have been weighing on me the most. In any case, I sincerely thank you for your time and for all the work you have been doing for many years, even if many people, like myself, have only come to know you more recently.
Yashan and Bugs: How Communal Waves Form
Let me give you two historical examples from my own experience that illustrate how halachic awareness develops, and sometimes overdevelops.
When I was a teenager, there was a small group of Orthodox Jews who were very careful about yashan. We studied the halacha seriously and understood that grain harvested after Pesach (chadash) has restrictions, and that outside of Eretz Yisrael there is significant discussion among Rishonim and Poskim about its status today.
Booklets began circulating listing which products were “yashan” based on manufacturing codes and production dates. For years we followed those charts very carefully.
But over time, when we researched more deeply; contacting manufacturers, analyzing production systems, understanding how distribution actually worked; we discovered that much of the publicly circulated “data” was unreliable. The dating systems were inconsistent. Batch coding did not always correspond to harvest cycles. In many cases, the assumed certainty was not certainty at all.
Halachically, this shifted the equation. What was presented as “definite chadash” often became at most a safek and therefore safek d’rabbanan, where the halachic treatment is entirely different. Once we understood the real halachic framework instead of the communal assumption, the picture changed.
The point is not to dismiss yashan. The point is that communal movements sometimes operate with far more confidence than the halachic data actually justifies.
The same pattern occurred with bugs in vegetables.
In the early 1980s, we were among the first to identify significant insect infestation in certain produce. For years, people dismissed it. Then eventually the awareness spread, and the pendulum swung dramatically in the opposite direction. Instead of careful halachic analysis of miut hamatzui, levels of infestation, washing standards, and realistic risk assessment, the response in many communities became maximal stringency without structured learning of the sugyot.
Again, the issue is not whether insects are prohibited; of course they are. The issue is whether the communal response is driven by precise halachic categories or by fear momentum.
These examples show something important:
Communal practice often moves in waves; sometimes underreacting, sometimes overreacting; and not always in proportion to the actual halachic structure.
That is why literacy matters. Not rebellion. Not leniency for its own sake. But literacy.
When you understand the sugya, you can distinguish between:
true issur
safek
chumra
minhag
and social amplification
Without that clarity, communities can drift far from the balanced framework of the Gemara and Shulchan Aruch, sometimes in stricter directions, sometimes in looser ones, but always without precision.
Alan,
First of all, thank you. What you wrote is thoughtful, honest, and self-aware. This is not confusion. This is someone thinking carefully about Torah, community, psychology, and responsibility all at once. That is a very healthy place to be.
Let me respond point by point.
1. “I personally would not feel comfortable.”
That is completely legitimate.
If you choose not to eat in a certain place because of community norms, social responsibility, or personal discomfort, that is fine. Torah does not require you to exercise every permissible option.
The only thing I would strongly caution against is rewriting history in your own mind.
If something is permitted according to clear halachic sources, but you refrain for social or communal reasons, then say that honestly, to yourself and eventually to your children. Do not transform a social fence into a Torah prohibition. That blurring is one of the main reasons people today can no longer distinguish between:
> what is d’Oraita
> what is d’Rabbanan
> what is minhag
> what is chumra
> and what is simply communal culture
When everything becomes “Issur,” Torah loses clarity.
If you refrain socially — fine. Just know why.
2. “I don’t have mastery of the technical halachot.”
That’s fair. Most people don’t.
But two important things:
First: I wrote an extensive piece on *Ta’aruvot* (mixtures), and there are two podcast episodes dedicated to this topic (One Episode is already available; the second Episode will be out shortly). These address exactly the issues of absorption levels, rishon/sheni, bitul, etc., in a structured and accessible way.
Second: there is no mitzvah to argue with people.
If someone wants to debate, they must learn the sugya properly from beginning to end. And once you do that seriously, you quickly discover that most arguments are not based on full sugyot, but on inherited assumptions.
You do not need to “win debates.” You need to know what you are doing and why.
If something remains unclear, feel free to post questions publicly or email me privately.
3. Emotional conditioning and mindset
You describe something very real.
When someone is educated within a highly defined framework, questioning it can feel like betrayal — or even danger. That is not confusion. That is psychological inertia.
It takes time.
No one is suggesting that you wake up tomorrow and radically change behavior. Growth should be gradual. Just as when a pilot adjusts a plane, the correction must be small and steady, not a violent turn; so too with intellectual and religious recalibration.
The goal is not rebellion.
The goal is clarity.
Over time, you allow Halacha itself, the Gemara, the Rishonim, Shulchan Aruch, to become your anchor, rather than communal pressure.
4. “What if this weakens kosher establishments?”
This is an important communal question.
Communities absolutely should support kosher establishments. Ideally, kosher infrastructure should function as a community service, not as an economic pressure system.
My late father, Rabbi Yitzchak Abadi, in early Lakewood, placed free hashgachot on basic food establishments (like fish stores and bakeries) so that ordinary Jews could afford essentials without inflated costs. Fish does not require shechita; basic supervision can be practical and reasonable.
That model — communal responsibility with halachic literacy — is healthier than artificial scarcity.
Strengthening kosher restaurants is good. But strengthening them does not require suppressing halachic knowledge.
5. “Maybe what I call a kula is actually lechatchilah.”
Correct.
Very often what is labeled a “leniency” is simply the halachic baseline according to many legitimate Rishonim and Poskim. When something is clearly grounded in Shulchan Aruch, it is not automatically a compromise position.
Terminology matters. Words like “kula” and “chumra” are often used without precision.
6. The example of Pesach candy
I am very happy that the Pesach list gave you clarity and confidence. That list has been used for decades. The goal is not to be permissive for its own sake, but to provide grounded, researched information so that people can act with confidence rather than fear.
Clarity reduces anxiety. Fear increases distortion.
7. Yashan, bugs, and shifting communal priorities
Your example of yashan illustrates something important: communities often discover issues unevenly, sometimes emphasizing one area while ignoring another.
As people learn more Torah, priorities shift. That is natural and healthy.
The key is that discussions must be grounded in halachic reality, not in panic or social momentum. I will post an additional comment here addressing those issues a bit more.
8. Autonomy within Halacha
You wrote something very powerful: that you would like to see the full range of legitimate halachic positions, and then choose responsibly the level you can maintain.
That is not rebellion.
That is adult avodat Hashem.
Halacha has breadth. Within that breadth, there are legitimate schools. When only one conclusion is presented and alternatives are hidden, people lose autonomy — and eventually, trust.
9. A final thought
Do not rush.
Do not argue.
Do not feel pressured to change behavior overnight.
But do slowly build literacy.
Read. Learn the sugyot. Listen to the shiurim. Ask questions. Over time, emotional barriers soften naturally when they are replaced by understanding.
Clarity does not weaken Yirat Shamayim. It strengthens it.
And if something is truly forbidden, we will say so clearly.
If something is permitted, we will say so clearly.
And if something is a social choice, we will call it that.
That honesty is essential.
Thank you again for writing so thoughtfully. Keep the questions coming.