Level of Obligation of Halacha and Shulchan
Hello, Your Honor!
How are you?
Is the Shulchan Aruch directed towards all parts of the people? In other words, is there really a trend that the entire Jewish people, at all levels, will preserve all parts of the Halacha down to the smallest details? If there are no pretensions to applying all the details of the Halacha to all levels of the people, what is the different level for each person and how should he behave at different times in his life?
My question stems from:
1. There are laws in the Shulchan Arba that show that he was targeting the elite of the scholars of his generation: “They will appoint a person to the synagogue so that he may be numbered among the first ten,” and so on.
2. Those who actually read the Shulchan Arba, and it may be that the Shulchan Arba was only directed at them, were the scholars of the Sages, and he himself wrote that his task in writing the halakha in the book was to facilitate the task of ruling.
3. At different times in Jewish history, there were different levels of observance of the commandments, and not all people observed them all.
4. Each group of people has a different and unique character, and therefore there are different groups of people with different souls than another group for observing Halacha and a different level of intensity at different times in their lives. It seems that the expression “Torat Chaim” became an expression that speaks either of an ideal reality in the past (in the Jewish Era) or of a utopian-messianic reality in the future.
Thanks in advance!
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Rabbi, do you think it is realistic to demand that all parts of the people (at least today) observe all the details? Maybe even know all the details of the Shulchan Aruch?
In my opinion, this is a request that is not being fulfilled in practice, and therefore quite a few of the Jewish people today do not observe all the laws and their clauses.
In the introduction to the Shul, Rabbi Yosef Karo defines the purpose of his work:
In order that the Torah of God may be pure and in the mouth of every man of Israel. For when a scholar is asked a matter of Halacha, he will not stutter, having this book in his mouth, dividing it into thirty parts, studying a part of it every day, and it is found that every month he repeats his Talmud.
Moreover, the young students will always recite it and memorize its language by heart, and a well-organized version of the Halacha will be in their mouths from their infancy.
(The introduction is quoted in the article by Prof. Meir Benayahu, “Yosef Bechiri” on the life and work of Rabbi Yosef Karo, p. 1574).
Prof. Benayahu devoted an entire chapter in his aforementioned book to a discussion of the question “On what basis did the Maran compose the Shulchan Aruch and for whom did he compose it?”, Yosef Bechiri, p. 1576-1577.
On p. 1576 is a photocopy of the cover of the Shulchan Aruch edition printed during the author’s lifetime, in Venice in 1574. The title page states:
‘A Shulchan Aruch, for the benefit of old and young, in a small volume, so that they may carry it in their laps, to meditate on it at all times and in all places, when camping or traveling’
With greetings, S.C. Levinger, librarian ‘Yad Rabbi Nissim’
Thank you very much for the answer. The problem is that today reality operates in a completely different way. What is the leadership for today? This is the central question
It is completely realistic to demand but unrealistic to expect that the demand will be met. This is not the same thing. The demand sets a goal and an ideal, but it is still likely that not everyone will reach this ideal. We should not conclude from this that anyone who does not reach it is a slave, but it is still a reasonable expectation.
Incidentally, in order to fulfill the halacha, one does not need to know all the Shul. Education and social habit do most of the work. The cases in which special knowledge is required are rare, and then one can ask. Therefore, the failures expected even from someone who is a member of the Land (assuming one has had a religious education and a religious home) are not many.
What about the different and individual character of each group of Jewish people? Why is there no reference to this and the different levels of religious intensity?
I'm no longer following. If you want to discuss, you should bring an example and we'll talk about it.
To the fish: The level of obligation to pray several times a day (even individually) is different for each group of people at different times in their lives.
Why is there no reference to this in the halakha?
I didn't understand the question. What does it mean that the level of obligation is different? Do you mean that people feel different levels of obligation? So let them overcome. And if people want to overlap, should they be allowed to overlap? If people want to talk to the Lord or desecrate the Sabbath, then we will allow them to do so at any odd hour?
Is this a problem for the people of the Great Knesset? I don't really understand the discussion.
Everyone feels a great obligation to the Jewish tradition. The difference between them lies in their different personalities and their ability to cope with and embrace religiousness at intense levels. It is not easy to say that every Jew should be surrounded by the mitzvot 24/7.
Well, I don't understand what you're talking about. Who said 24/7? For my part, he should do it for 5 minutes a day. Every Jew is obligated to follow all the commandments. How much time does it take out of his day? I don't know, and it doesn't matter.
If you don't clarify your statement further, then we'll end it here. I simply can't understand what you're talking about here.
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