Gittin 54 – To punish or not to punish

Earlier, we saw that the Sages sometimes added and at other times removed penalties. However, the logic depended on a particular situation. For example, if one plants a tree on Shabbat, then if he did it on purpose, he should uproot this tree, but if he did it by mistake, he can keep it. Compare this to planting on a Shmita year, when planting in Israel is generally forbidden: whether he does it on purpose or by mistake if he plants a tree on Shmita,
he has to uproot it.

Why the difference? – Jews were not suspected of violating Shabbat, so he who did it was probably a brazen violator who would not try to claim that he did it by mistake. Thus, there was no reason to penalize those who did it by mistake. Shmita was different: too many people regarded it lightly and violated it and would then claim that they did it by mistake; therefore, the Sages decreed that even he who plants a tree on Shmita by mistake must still uproot it.

Continuing with invisible damage, a Kohen who brings a sacrifice can easily ruin it with his thought: if he thinks, while doing the slaughter (shehitah) or while accepting blood, that he plans to eat it at the wrong time, the sacrifice is immediately invalid. This is similar to the cases discussed just above, and the rule is that if he did it on purpose, he is liable to repay the cost of the sacrifice. The Talmud then discusses why we believe the Kohen, who says that he ruined the sacrifice.

Art: Rabbi by Rembrandt Van Rijn