Tuesday 9 March 2010

The Four Stated Goals of the Mishnah Brurah

What was the point for R Israel Meir Kagan Z"L for publishing the Mishnah Brurah?

Within his own Haqdamah he states 4 reasons


1 [starts with "ach"]The Shulchan Aruch w/o Tur is a Sefer Hatum. Thus his goal is to make the SA more intelligible.

2 [Sibba sh'niyya] Rabbu haDei'os in the SA. It is hard to pinpoint the correct p'saq given the diversity of opinions.

3 [Od Ra'itti v'hitbonanti] The Ba'er Heitev was out-of-date [obsolescent] and the Mishnah Brurah provided a more up-to-date version of the Ba'ir Hetev.

4 [Zot Od v'Acheret]People have to look hither, thither, and Yon amongst numerous acharonim to find the p'saq. The MB collates them for you providing an anthology of resources and coming to a conclusion.

One might say that #3 - viz. giving more sheetot - conflicts with #4 - I.E.. settling the issue.

If one's goal is to have a clear-cut answer, then a Kitzur SA, Chayei Adam approach is best, give a singular p'saq.

If one's goal is to have a menu from which to select, then a Beth Yosef survey approach is best.

I would think Posqim would prefer the latter. They need the flexibility to tailor a solution depending upon the circumstances.

And I would guess the average baal habayyit or student might prefer the former.

KT
RRW

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