Kaisipang Hudyo sa Levitico 23:15: Kuzari & Yesod Mora VeSod HaTorah

41. The Rabbi: This was only said to the masses, that they should not conjecture and theorise, and contrive laws according to their own conception, as the Karaites do. They were recommended to listen to the post-Mosaic prophets, the priests and judges, as it is written: 'I will raise them up a prophet . . . and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him' (Deuteronomy 18:18). With regard to the priests and judges it is said that their decisions are binding. The words: 'You shall not add,' etc., refer to 'that which I commanded you through Moses' and any 'prophet from among thy brethren' who fulfils the conditions of a prophet. They further refer to regulations laid down in common by priests and judges 'from the place which thy Lord shall choose.' For they have divine assistance, and would never, on account of their large number, concur in anything which contradicts the Law. Much less likelihood was there of erroneous views, because they had inherited vast learning, for the reception of which they were naturally endowed. The members of the Synhedrion, as is known by tradition, had to possess a thorough acquaintance with all branches of science Prophecy had scarcely ceased, or rather the Bath Qōl, which took its place. Now, suppose we allow the Karaite interpretation of the sentence 'From the morrow of the Sabbath till the morrow of the Sabbath' (Leviticus 23:11, Leviticus 23:15, Leviticus 23:16) to refer to the Sunday. But we reply that one of the judges, priests, or pious kings, in agreement with the Synhedrion and all Sages, found that this period was fixed with the intention of creating an interval of fifty days between 'the first fruits of the harvest of barley and the harvest of wheat,' and to observe 'seven weeks,' which are 'seven complete Sabbaths.' The first day of the week is only mentioned for argument's sake in the following manner: should the day of 'putting the sickle to the corn' be a Sunday, you count till Sunday. From this we conclude that should the beginning be on a Monday, we count till Monday. The date of putting the sickle, from which we count, is left for us to fix. This was fixed for the second day of Passover, which does not contradict the Tōrāh, since it originated with 'the place which the Lord shall choose' on the conditions discussed before. Perhaps this was done under the influence of divine inspiration. It was quite possible, and it saves us from the confusion of those who endeavour to cause confusion.

There are commandments that are clearly explained in the Torah, and there are commandments whose true interpretation we only know from the mouths of the holy scribes who received them from their fathers and learned teachers. Without the tradition, one would be able to interpret them differently. And there are commandments that we have received from them, yet they are not explicitly mentioned in the Torah. As a general rule, if not for the members of the Great Assembly, the Men of the Mishnah and the Talmud, the Torah of our God would have been forgotten and its memory lost, God forbid. It is they who established everything on its proper basis and clarified for us the commandments with great precision and all the laws as they received them. Some commandments have clear evidence from the Torah, while others require interpretation, and some rely on logical inference. Those who have understanding can discern when to apply interpretation and when to apply a literal understanding, for all their words are not in one mode. And the One who has granted them wisdom will grant them their deserved reward. In the book of Jeremiah (Jeremiah 17:22), it is written, "Do not carry a burden out of your houses on the Sabbath day." This is not explicitly mentioned in the Torah. There are many commandments that were received by the fathers and have a mention in the Torah, and there are others that do not have a mention. And I will mention some of these, such as the daily blessings, prayers, grace after meals, and Hallel. Rav says in his life that "He is your praise, and He is your God" (Deuteronomy 10:21). There's the recitation of the Shema, eruv, Kiddush, Havdalah, three meals, and some say the Shabbat candle. Similarly, the blowing of the Shofar on the Day of Remembrance, if not for the tradition, it would seem that it is on Rosh Chodesh Nissan, for it is the main day before the period of truth enters, and therefore it is said to be the Day of Judgment. And similarly, the Lulav, for it is not explicitly mentioned in the Torah, only "And you shall take for yourselves" (Leviticus 23:40), and if not for the tradition, it would have a different interpretation. And similarly, the counting of the Omer, for they distinguished between "And you shall count for yourselves" (Leviticus 23) and "And you shall count for her" (Leviticus 15). And similarly, the prohibition of eating a treifah, which has a respected reason from the wisdom of the heavens' generations. And similarly, the seven days of marriage celebration, mourning, visiting the sick, burying the dead, the Hanukkah candle, reading the Megillah, the four cups [of wine], and I have already explained that "And he shall possess her" (Numbers 27:11) is a general source for all these matters.