(יחזקאל מד, לא) וכל נבלה וטרפה מן העוף ומן הבהמה לא יאכלו הכהנים כהנים הוא דלא יאכלו הא ישראל אכלי א"ר יוחנן פרשה זו אליהו עתיד לדורשה
“The priests shall not eat of anything that dies of itself, or is torn, whether it be fowl or beast” (Ezekiel 44:31). The Gemara asks: Is it only the priests who may not eat an unslaughtered animal carcass or an animal that was torn and now has a wound that will cause it to die within twelve months [tereifa], but an ordinary Jew may eat them? In fact, these items are prohibited for consumption by all. Rabbi Yochanan says: This passage is indeed difficult, but in the future Elijah the prophet will interpret it.
רבינא אמר כהנים איצטריך ליה ס"ד אמינא הואיל ואשתרי מליקה לגבייהו תשתרי נמי נבילה וטרפה קמ"ל
Ravina said that it was necessary for the verse to emphasize that these prohibitions apply to priests for the following reason: It might enter your mind to say that since "pinching" is permitted with regard to priests, therefore an animal carcass or a tereifa should also be permitted for them. A bird sin offering is killed by a priest pinching the nape of its neck. This is not a valid method of slaughter and would generally render a bird or animal an unslaughtered carcass, yet the priests are permitted to partake of the bird sin offering. Consequently, one might think that the prohibitions against eating an animal carcass or a tereifa in general do not apply to priests. Therefore, the verse teaches us that these prohibitions apply to priests as well. [Menachos 45a]
1] Why didn't R' Yochanan like Ravina's idea??
2] It would seem that מליקה per se doesn't permit the bird to be eaten but rather it is permitted b/c the עשה of אכילת קדשים is דוחה the לא תעשה of eating a נבילה?? So what is the הוה אמינא to permit a נבילה w/o an עשה??!
Asking for a Kohen friend. He USED to be a Catholic Priest but converted and became a Kohen. His book is called "From Priesthood To Priesthood". 🤣🤣
