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The merits of Torah scrolls in our time

שו”תCategory: HalachaThe merits of Torah scrolls in our time
asked 2 years ago

Hello, Honorable Rabbi, I recently became aware of the issue of the kashrut of Torah scrolls in our day. In short, according to most of the sages and the successors of their tradition, such as the Rif and the Maimonides, Torah scrolls in our day are invalid, both in terms of the process of processing them with lime rather than with aftzim, and in terms of writing on the wrong side by definition – the doxustus instead of the parchment…. and this is contrary to what was ruled in the Shulchan Aruch.
After studying as much as possible and hearing the common answers (such as local custom, Rambam’s questionable answer regarding the permission to recite a blessing over an invalid book, etc.), I came to the conclusion that I do not find permission to recite a blessing over most Torah scrolls today for fear of invalidating the blessing, with the exception of Torah scrolls, most of which are found in the Yemenite community, which are processed properly and made of givel or written on parchment.
Am I blind after all and am I just making things worse?
thanks


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מיכי Staff answered 2 years ago
I am not on the issue, but I do not think that the fact that the Rambam and the Rif or the Shula ruled in some way necessarily means that those who do not do as they do invalidate the books. So in this case they did not rule as they do. What is the problem with that? Where does it say that one must rule as they do? Just as those who used to rule as they do can choose not to do so. The mouth that forbade is the mouth that permitted.

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י׳ replied 2 years ago

Perhaps this is a more general question that pertains to other halakhic cases: What do we do when we study halakhic law and, with the help of the tools at our disposal, reach a conclusion that has undergone a real change due to a generational gap and disruptions in printing and the transmission of knowledge, rather than a disagreement between poskim from the same period?

מיכי Staff replied 2 years ago

I answered and I will answer again. The period has no significance. The Talmud has authority and the Sanhedrin had authority. After the Talmud, no one has formal authority (see at length in the First Sanhedrin, p. 66, the main points of his words were quoted in the second chapter). Therefore, even if we practice today not according to the Rambam or the Shul or the Riv, there is nothing in it. That is the issue of Da'alam.

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