Q&A: Rabbi's Authority
Rabbi's Authority
Question
Previously I understood the authority of the Talmud as arising from below, meaning by way of acceptance by the public. And likewise, a rabbi's authority over his community comes from below.
So now: does it follow that it is forbidden to disagree with the rabbi in a community?!
A. One could say that disagreement is possible, because we accepted the rabbi upon ourselves only in cases of doubt, not in matters of settled Jewish law. Is there any source for this distinction?
B. It is forbidden. But if someone wants to disagree, must he leave the community? What does that mean? To stop going to events? Not to receive subsidized discounts?
What do you think?
Answer
Indeed, it is forbidden. That does not mean you have to do everything he says, since his authority extends only to the sphere of public conduct.
I do not think that on the private level you are obligated to act in accordance with his rulings. However, when there is a public implication to it (for example, if it is forbidden to keep a television, that is indeed a personal matter, but it has an effect on the other members of the community—such as their children coming to play at your house, etc.).
Discussion on Answer
There can't really be a source for this, because almost all the laws of the local halakhic authority are custom, inventions, and reasoning. You can discuss Rabbi Yosei's place, where they ate poultry with milk and the like (a personal matter), but the reasoning points otherwise. It seems to me that Rabbi Yosei had ordination, and therefore had authority beyond that of today's local halakhic authority. And go and see that people do not necessarily follow the rabbi's practice at home.
According to you, we accepted the rabbi's authority regarding the character of the community? Something like that? Do you perhaps have a source for this, or is it simply your own straightforward reasoning?