Q&A: Following the Majority — Democracy
Following the Majority — Democracy
Question
Hello Rabbi!
I just saw on YouTube the lesson on “A Philosophical Look at Dispute.”
The Rabbi says there that a majority always needs the agreement of the majority—the agreement given when both sides entered the game…..
Is that also true in the Sanhedrin, where we “follow the majority”? Or does the Torah there say that the correct logic is to go after the majority? And if so, maybe here too, even if there is no agreement from the minority to follow the majority in its views, because they do not agree to the rules of the game, the minority would still have to be dragged along after the majority…
Despite this, the words of the logical paradox between the House of Shammai and the House of Hillel would remain problematic.
Thank you very much!
Answer
I devoted column 69 to explaining why a democratic majority is different from a majority in a religious court. See there.