Tosafot d"h Met Mitzvah Adif, the second one, I understand the question from Hara"r Elchanan, but the answer is unclear to me. Please help me understand the answer, thank you
Stephan Azra, Brooklyn, NY USA
Tosfos ask that if one negates communal Torah-study (which is stringent) in order to bury a Jew, then how much more so must one negate the Avodah (which is lenient). In that case, it is obvious that one must negate it for a Mes Mitzvah, and why does Rava require a Pasuk for this.
And they answer that one only negates Torah-study for the burial of someone who has at least studied Chumash and Mishnah, but not for the burial of an Am ha'Aretz (see Rashi in Kesuvos top of 17b). And since this Sugya is talking about such an Am ha'Aretz, we need a Pasuk to teach us that even though one does not negate Avodah for him, one does do so on behalf of a Mes Mitzvah.
be'Virchas Kol Tuv
Eliezer Chrysler