I am unsure of the line in the Gemora( line 24) where the Gemora seems to be saying that to remove fat, he has to remove the tailbone. Then the Gemora mentions while doing this, he may be cutting the spinal cord. My question is, how would that be possible? Does the tail and the spinal cord connect, and how do you circumvent to avoid making the animal a Tereifah?
Nechemia Eliyahu, Baltimore USA
Shalom,
The Alyah is a piece of the animal from the kidneys down to and including the tail. The spinal cord runs down through the vertebrae contiguously into the tail. The Torah tells us to offer the entire piece on the Mizbe'ach, entailing cutting above the tail area, which is also an area where any cut would render the animal Tereifah. However, please keep in mind that this removal is done after the animal is slaughtered, so there is no problem of making the animal Tereifah. There is, however, a problem that after the removal it would (theoretically) be impossible to determine if the live animal was Tereifah, as the incision or removal would destroy any evidence that the animal was indeed Tereifah. Therefore, since the Torah commands us to offer the tail -- and to remove it in this specific fashion -- there is a proof that one need not determine that the animal was not Tereifah but that rather one may rely on the Rov that the animal was not Tereifah. The Gemara refutes this proof by saying that it is possible to inspect the Alyah and still remove it in the prescribed fashion. Please take another look at Rashi DH Chut and DH d'mi'Tata'i; the second Rashi is a bit long, but it is worth the time and effort to go through it carefully line by line.
I hope you find this helpful. You can always send us a followup question if necessary.
Shimon Brodie