רמבם, הלכות תשובה ד:ד
עֶשְׂרִים וְאַרְבָּעָה דְּבָרִים מְעַכְּבִין אֶת הַתְּשׁוּבָה...
וּמֵהֶן חֲמִשָּׁה דְּבָרִים הָעוֹשֶׂה אוֹתָן אֵין חֶזְקָתוֹ לָשׁוּב מֵהֶן, לְפִי שְׁהֶן דְּבָרִים קַלִּים בְּעֵינֵי רֹב הָאָדָם, וְנִמְצָא חוֹטֶא וְהוּא יְדַמֶּה שְׁאֵין זֶה חֵטְא; וְאֵלּוּ הֶן: (א) הָאוֹכֵל מִסְּעוּדָה שְׁאֵינָהּ מַסְפֶּקֶת לִבְעָלֶיהָ--שֶׁזֶּה אֲבַק גָּזֵל, וְהוּא מְדַמֶּה שֶׁלֹּא חָטָא וְיֹאמַר כְּלוּם אָכַלְתִּי אֵלָא בִּרְשׁוּתָן.
Twenty four things prevent repentance. ...
Among them are five of which, of one who does them, it is assumed they will not repent, since they are “light matters” in the eyes of most people, and the transgressor imagines that they are not transgressing.
1) One who eats from a meal that is not sufficient for its hosts – there is a hint of theft. And one imagines that one has not transgressed and says: “I ate nothing except with their permission.”
[translation by Hazon. Edited for gender neutrality]
Suggested Discussion Questions:
1. What is the transgression described by the Rambam? Why is it a transgression?
2. Taken in a global context, who are the hosts of our meals today? How does your understanding of this text change if you consider the “hosts” to be future generations
Time Period: Medieval (Geonim through the 16th Century)