The Obligation Of Beracha

This post is piggybacking off a post of my father's from years ago about the Gemarah (35b) א"ר חנינא בר פפא כל הנהנה מן העוה"ז בלא ברכה כאילו גוזל להקב"ה וכנסת ישראל שנא' (משלי כח, כד) גוזל אביו ואמו ואומר אין פשע חבר הוא לאיש משחית ואין אביו אלא הקב"ה שנא' (דברים לב, ו) הלא הוא אביך קנך ואין אמו אלא כנסת ישראל שנא' (משלי א, ח) שמע בני מוסר אביך ואל תטוש תורת אמך מאי חבר הוא לאיש משחית א"ר חנינא בר פפא חבר הוא לירבעם בן נבט שהשחית את ישראל לאביהם שבשמים.  

I would just add a few points.  The Peshat of the Maharal is said by the Maharsha in Berachot as well that אילו גוזל להקב"ה means one is stealing the food from Hashem.  

The peshat of the Ramban that omitting the beracha leads to a lack of the presence of the Shechina would align with how the Nefesh HaChayim and Chassidus explains based upon the Rashba that a beracha brings shefa, additional felt presence of the Shechina in the world as acknowledged by the Kabbalists. 

The nature of the translation of the Gemarah as to what is being stolen may be a reflection of the understanding of the nature of the obligation of berachot.  Rashi says the sevarah that the Gemarah says (35a) that one must say a beracha is דכיון דנהנה צריך להודות למי שבראם, one must give thanks to Hashem for the food that he is benefiting from.  One owes Hashem gratitude and when one doesn't give thanks, he has stolen the gratitude owed to Hashem.  The approach of the Maharsha and Maharal is reflective of the way the Ritva learns the sevarah which is that must must get permission to take from the world which belongs to Hashem.  According to that approach the act of theft is taking from the world without permission.  The Ritva לשיטתו holds that the sevarah the Gemarah says only applies to ברכה ראשונה for it is only before eating that one asks for permission to benefit from the food.  However, the Rashba says the sevarah of the Gemarah applies to ברכה אחרונה as well for he understands the sevarah is like Rashi that one must give thanks to Hashem and that applies after eating as well.  

This debate as to what the theft of eating without a beracha is and what the nature of the sevarah of the Gemarah goes to the nature of the obligation of beracha.  The Ritva views as a beracha as a מתיר.  Everything belongs to Hashem would be forbidden to man and it is the beracha which removes the issur.  That is why the Ritva is Shabbas (23) is of the opinion that when is stuck in a situation of safek berachot that one can't benefit because there is nothing to be מתיר the issur.  The Rashba and Rashi view beracha as a positive activity that one must do as an act of saying thanks but there is no issur to eat without a beracha (see this issues raised by Rav Asher Weiss.)  [Rav Shlomo Zalman had a third middle approach which is not that there is an intrinsic issur to eat without a beracha but Chazal put a chiuv beracha in place and from that obligation emanates an issur to eat without a beracha.  He brings proof to this from the laws where there is no obligation of beracha such as an אונן there is no issur to eat because there is no obligation of beracha on the other hand the Gemarah does say there is an issur to eat without a beracha.]