Q&A: A Jewish Law Book for Modern Religious People
A Jewish Law Book for Modern Religious People
Question
In your view, which you wrote about in the booklet, would it be appropriate to compose—or is there already—a Jewish law book, broad in scope and reasoned, that could guide a person who wants to know how to live according to this approach, not just in theory and not just through isolated halakhic rulings that are given?
Answer
No. There is no Jewish law book that defines this approach. It is an approach within which the halakhic discussion is conducted. And if a person wants to know how to live according to this approach, he has missed the whole point. He needs to decide for himself how to live according to his own outlook. If he has a question, I would be happy to help and advise.
Discussion on Answer
I explained. There is no such Jewish law book. If someone is not a halakhic decisor, he should ask and consult. My view is that there is no such thing as halakhic ruling, and I explained this in the third book of the trilogy. There is halakhic advice, but the decision is always the questioner’s. If it interests you, you can read it there.
If a person defines it for himself, that seems problematic:
A. He is not an expert in Jewish law.
B. The Torah ends up not being uniform for everyone.
If, as you wrote, one can ask you, then why not write an orderly and comprehensive Jewish law book?