Parsha Halacha – Parshat Mishpatim and Shekalim – Shabbat Mevorchim Adar
Owning Stocks in McDonald’s
and Other Bassar Bechalav Benefits
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The Torah portion of Mishpatim contains no less than 53 mitzvot (by the count of the Sefer HaChinuch). The 51st mitzvah is[1] “You shall not cook a kid in its mother’s milk.”
According to our sages,[2] this prohibition, which is repeated another two times in the Torah, includes cooking the meat of any domestic kosher animal with the milk of any such animal as well as eating or benefitting from such a dish.
The beginning of the verse talks about the mitzvah of bringing bikkurim (the first fruits) to the Beit HaMikdash. The commentaries give various explanations for this interesting juxtaposition.
● The Season
Ibn Ezra explains that the birth of baby animals happens at a similar time of year as the ripening of fruits. And since the Torah expresses the prohibition of meat and milk regarding baby animals (because that was the most common form of such consumption in those days), it mentions these mitzvot together.
● Blessings Come from Bikurim, Not from Pagan Practices
The Seforno says that the Torah is informing us that the way to merit a blessing in our crops is by bringing Bikurim to the Beit HaMikdash rather than by doing any of the foolish pagan practices such as cooking a kid in its mother’s milk which was thought to bring blessing to the crops. This explanation follows the opinion of the Rambam (Moreh Nevuchim 3:48) that the reason the Torah forbids milk and meat is that it was a pagan practice (see below).
● To Forbid Benefit
According to Rabbeinu Bachya the Torah writes the prohibition of meat and milk just after the mitzvah of Bikkurim to allude to the fact that just as it is forbidden to benefit from Bikkurim (for non-kohanim), so, too, one may not benefit from the forbidden mixture of meat and milk.
● Believe in Creation
The Ralbag explains that the mitzvah of Bikkurim is based upon the premise that G-d created the world and that He runs it. We are therefore obligated to show our appreciation for His blessings by bringing the first fruits to the Beit HaMikdash. The Torah instructs us to not take the wisdom that G-d has blessed us with and use it to come up with conclusions that deny the Divine. For example, the belief of the ancient Greek philosophers that the world has no creator and that it always existed.
In addition, we shouldn’t use the wealth bestowed upon us by the Almighty to become haughty and rebel against our creator. The mother’s milk represents the blessings bequeathed to us by the Almighty and cooking the kid goat in it represents misusing those blessings in a manner that is the opposite of their intended use. This is a possible reason for this mitzvah which also explains why it’s written near the mitzvah of Bikkurim.
The rest of this article will discuss the prohibition of benefiting from meat and milk that were cooked together.
Source of the Prohibition
There are various opinions as to the source of the prohibition to benefit from meat and milk that was cooked together.
● Three Times
Rabbi Yosef Karro writes in the Shulchan Aruch[3] that the Torah repeats the prohibition of meat and milk three times in order to teach us that it’s forbidden to cook, eat, or benefit from such a mixture. (It’s only forbidden to benefit from this mixture if they were cooked together. This is derived from the fact that the Torah expresses the prohibition using the word “cooking.”[4])
● Eating Includes Benefitting
Another opinion in the Talmud[5] is that whenever the Torah forbids eating, it also means that benefitting is forbidden unless the Torah explicitly permits such benefit. As such, since the Torah forbids one to eat meat and milk that were cooked together, it’s also forbidden to benefit from this mixture. The Rambam quotes this explanation in his Sefer Hamitzvot (Negative Mitzvah 187).
● Bikkurim
As mentioned above, Rabeinu Bachya learns this prohibition from the juxtaposition to the mitzvah of Bikkurim.
Reasons for the Prohibition to Benefit
The prohibition of meat and milk is considered a chok (a mitzvah that is beyond comprehension), as Rabbeinu Bachye says “It appears that these reasons are insufficient and are not the essential reason for the commandments; rather, they serve only to answer one who asks. This mitzvah belongs to the category of chukim like the red heifer (פרה אדומה) and the scapegoat (שעיר המשתלח). Thus, our Sages taught (in the Midrash) that in the future, the Holy One, blessed be He, will reveal to the Jewish people the true reason why the Torah commanded the prohibition of meat and milk, the red heifer, and the scapegoat.” Despite this the commentaries attempt to give some explanation for it. Some of those explanations will also help us understand why the Torah also forbade benefit from meat and milk.
● Related to Idol Worship
As mentioned above, the Rambam writes that it’s possible that cooking and eating milk and meat was a pagan practice. (Although the Rambam admits that he didn’t find this custom mentioned in the books about pagan worship, the Ralbag explains that this information may have gotten lost over time especially due to the Torah’s opposition to such practices.) As such, since it’s forbidden to benefit from matters relating to idol worship, it’s understandable why the Torah would also forbid benefiting from meat and milk.
● Mixing the Divine Energies
Rabbeinu Bachye and Kli Yakar write that, from a Kabbalistic perspective, mixing meat and milk can cause an improper mixing (dilution) of Divine energy. It’s possible that the spiritual damage caused by this mixing is so severe that the Torah also forbade benefitting from this mixture to ensure that no one would transgress this law.
● Other Reasons
There are several other reasons for this mitzvah offered by the commentaries which explain why it’s forbidden to cook (and eat) meat and milk together though they do not explain why it’s forbidden to benefit from such a mixture. Here are these explanations in an abbreviated form.
- Ibn Ezra writes that cooking a baby animal in its mother’s milk is particularly cruel.
- The simple explanation offered by Rabbeinu Bachye is that cooking meat in milk causes the milk to revert to having the characteristics of blood which is forbidden. (The mammary glands turn blood into milk whereas cooking red meat in milk causes the milk to regress to its former state.)
- The Rambam says that meat cooked in milk is a very unhealthy food.
The Details
Here are some details of the prohibition to benefit from meat cooked with dairy:
● Chicken with Dairy
The prohibition of eating chicken (rather than meat) with dairy is of Rabbinic origin and only applies to eating. One may benefit from such a mixture.[6]
● Non-Kosher Animals or Milk of a Non-Kosher Animal
One may benefit from meat of a non-kosher animal which was cooked with milk or from meat of a kosher animal that was cooked in the milk of a non-kosher animal. Although it’s (obviously) forbidden to eat such a mixture, it doesn’t fall under the prohibition of meat and milk per se since this meat (or milk) isn’t similar to the meat and milk which the Torah speaks about (that of a kid goat and its mother).[7]
● Meat of a Kosher Animal that Was Not Shechted (Slaughtered in a Ritual Manner)
According to the Rambam,[8] the prohibition of benefitting from meat and milk doesn’t apply to meat that wasn’t shechted (slaughtered according to Jewish law). This is because of the rule that a prohibition cannot be added to something that is already forbidden (אין איסור חל על איסור).[9] Others disagree.[10] In practice some say that one can rely on the Rambam in a case of financial loss.[11]
● Only When Cooked
Since the Torah prohibition of meat and milk only applies when they are cooked together, if meat and milk are mixed in any other way, one may benefit from this mixture.
● Roasting
Some say that roasting on a grill is defined as cooking[12] while others say that it’s not considered cooking.[13] As such, if a piece of meat were heated on a grill with a piece of cheese on it, some would say that one may not benefit from these mixtures while others would permit benefit. In practice one may rely on the lenient opinion in a case of need or great financial loss.[14]
● Placing on Hot Meat Which Is Off the Fire
Placing a piece of cheese on top of a piece of hamburger which was heated on the grill and then removed isn’t considered “cooking” for the purposes of bassar bechalav as this isn’t a usual way to cook. As such, it’s not forbidden to benefit from such a dish.[15]
Dog Food
Practically, one may not use dog food that is made with beef and whey (a dairy product) as one may not benefit from such a product.
Owning Stock in McDonalds
Based on the above, we can discuss the permissibility of owning stock in McDonald’s. The reason to be strict is that one is benefitting (to a small degree) from the cheeseburgers which are a mixture of meat and milk. It would seem, however that there is room for lenient in this regard, for the following reasons:
● According to the Rambam, there is no prohibition to benefit since the meat wasn’t slaughtered according to Jewish Law.
● Some say that roasting isn’t considered cooking.
● Since (I think) the cheese is added when the meat is off the grill, it’s not “a way of cooking.”
● Some say that one who owns a small percentage of stock in a company isn’t considered to be an “owner” by Torah law since he has no way to exercise his ownership and have a say in the company’s decisions.[16]
On the other hand, some consider a stockholder to be an owner of the company[17] and as such would forbid owning (and thereby benefitting from) stocks in a company that deals with bassar bechalav products. Although this may not apply to McDonald’s, it may apply to companies that manufacture dogfood and other such products. One should discuss this with a competent authority.
May we Merit to Soon Bring Bikkurim to the Beit HaMikdash!
[2] Chullin 113a and 115b and Rashi on the verse.
[3] Y.D. 87:1 based on Kiddushin 57b.
[6] Y.D. 87:3. But see Shach 4 (by Rabbi Shabetai Cohen) that the Rashal rules (based on Tosfot Chullin 104b D.H. Ohf and Tosfot Chullin 113a D.H Bassar) that the mixture of chicken and milk is a Torah violation and that, as such, it would also be forbidden to benefit from this mixture. The Shach, however, concurs with the Shulchan Aruch that it’s a Rabbinic law.
[8] Cited in Dagul Mervava on Y.D. ibid.
[9] I.e., since the meat is already forbidden to eat as a neveilah (un-slaughtered carcass), it cannot become doubly forbidden as bassar bechalav. And since the prohibition of benefitting stems from the prohibition of eating (see above), that prohibition doesn’t take effect.
[10] Rashba on Chullin 113a. The Rashba explains that when an additional prohibition is added (איסור מוסיף), the rule of אין איסור חל על איסור doesn’t apply. As such, since the prohibition of benefitting is added when meat is cooked with milk, the prohibitions of meat and milk take effect.
[11] Dagul Merivava ibid. See also responsa Chatam Sofer Y.D. 92.
[12] Pri Chadash quoted in Rabbi Akiva Eiger on Y.D. 87:1.
[13] Chavot Da’at 87:1 and Aruch HaShulchan Y.D. 87:11.
[15] See Responsa Chatam Sofer, Y.D. 95.
[16] Rabbi Shaul Weingart, quoted in Minchat Yitzchak, 3:1.
[17] See Minchat Yitzchak ibid. and Mishnah Halachot 5:116.
Wishing you a Shabbat Shalom Umevorach and a Chodesh Tov V’Same’ach!