Thread by @JoshuaCypess

1/ #ReshetKeshet #Passover2022
I was asked a question about autistic food sensitivities and #Pesach and I've been able to present the issue to one of my poskim and I want to detail the answer, in basic terms, for public consumption (no pun intended)

https://twitter.com/pphone/status/1507151333488566283

2/ This is part of my larger project of translating disability issues into halakhic language. IMO there are so many people in needless pain. Yet knowledgeable Orthodox Jews will understand that Jewish law is broad, deep & rich to accommodate any issue.

https://twitter.com/JoshuaCypess/status/1365335606012837900

3/ I am not a posek, I am operating as a "halakhist" - basically a legal scholar with an expertise in medical issues (among others) - and IMO while invisible disabilities lack overt signs, they can be "translated" by seeing the behavior surrounding them.

4/ My shyla text, in part: "'[food] Aversion' is shorthand for something that causes him so much pain that he would actually not eat any food rather than the foods to which he's averse. In my mind, if [subject] would starve rather than eat, then that's a very high level of pain."

5/ Shyla text cont.: "And since the pain will prevent him from eating, as well as triggering other autistic responses, then he can be considered a 'choleh she-yeish bo sakkana' because refusing to eat, starving, and likely throwing the food up are all dangerous conditions."

6/ In order to eat, this young man would need a kitniyot food. I added that allowing it would add to the Simchat Yom Tov (for the whole family) and Shalom Bayit. I asked as well about using the family's flatware in order to maintain his dignity.

7/ The latter question is a familiar one from those who share meals with pro and anti-gebrox (and, of course, Ashkenazi/Sefardi) that can be answered by your local rabbi.

My posek agreed that the food aversion qualifies as "pain" for halakhic purposes which makes him a "choleh."

8/ A "choleh" (sick person) is allowed to eat kitniyot as part of their treatment. This is understood when the kitniyot is medicine & that's why I thought it should be applied to food aversions.

Look at the behavior & you can see the pain; it's as real as seeing a cast or scar.

9/ This is the framework I would recommend to anyone asking their own local rabbi. Describe the behavior; and know that halakha is meant to be "darkhei noam" - pleasant, accommodating, reflecting shalom.

Note: I'm a non-mystic & that's why I find no value in asceticism or pain.

10/ I was also asked abt how much matzah does a choleh need to eat on Seder night. The mitzvah requires a "kazayit" (the size of an olive).

Rabbi Dr. Slifkin has been banging the drum for years that a kazayit is literally that.
rationalistjudaism.com/2010/03/evolut…
rationalistjudaism.com/2014/04/its-kr…

11/ I recommend reading Slifkin's sources and reasoning but he's pretty confident that only an olive sized piece of matzah is enough.

OTOH, Rav Moshe Feinstein, the gold standard psak, is machmir about the size.

But again, we're talking about a choleh which calls for leniency.

12/ Above all, in those two questions and any more in the future, I implore poskim to look beyond the surface. Pain is not visible to the eye, so look at how the person behaves to avoid an activity. And pain = sickness in halakha. And, please, show compassion. It's Torat Chesed.

13/ DMs are open for other questions. I cannot promise answers, let alone answers you'd like, but I hope to help translate your problems into halakhic language and - when needed - to instruct you and others about how the Torah understands these issues.

14/ Bottom line, though, especially for disability: we're responsible for fulfilling the commandments but only to our physical, mental, and emotional abilities. I'm working against the cruel POV that thinks if it's "all in your head" that means it's a matter of choice. It's not.

15/ It's aggressive and dangerous nonsense to think pain or disability can be "efforted" away.

Moreover, I believe pain should be taken as a person's testimony and responsibility. So if they lie to me then it's their own guilt.

But I don't have a right to coerce them.

16/ This is a paradigm difference between Modern vs. Charedi Orthodoxy. I think it's only right, in recognizing a persons autonomy and dignity, to allow people to make decisions about how they want to live. Because denying their autonomy requires coercion & force, aka violence.

17/ Force is permitted only if all parties accept its legitimacy as part of a social contract. In my understanding, that allowance is given to leadership mainly for preserving public safety. But not to prevent an individual from choosing to sin. (Yes, this is a matter of dispute)

18/ So if someone wants to sin, it's not my responsibility to stop their behavior if they are lying to me. I'll be responsible if I lead them to sin, but that's what all rabbis need to accept as a burden.

This adds to why I'm not quick to dismiss someone's claim of disability.

19/ Lastly, I implore rabbis to see everyone's "tzelem Elokim" - that they're in the image of God. If they have free will, see above about coercion & choice. If they don't have free will, then why force them into further pain? Ultimately, treat people as people. And equals.

20/ #ChagSameach everyone. #Pesach #DisabilityHalakha

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