Q&A: Writing a Torah Scroll
Writing a Torah Scroll
Question
Am I obligated to learn scribal writing in order to write a Torah scroll? I have free time that I assume could be used, instead of various leisure activities, to learn the craft of writing. I assume this is the case for most people, if not everyone.
Do I have an obligation to begin a learning process at the end of which one would write a Torah scroll?
Answer
An interesting question. At first glance, yes. In practice, however, that is not the custom. People rely on the Rosh’s view that one can fulfill this with the purchase of books of the Oral Torah. Still, his words are quite novel, since it seems that he is interpreting the reason for the verse, and perhaps that is because the reason seemed entirely clear to him (in line with his approach in his Tosafot, Bava Metzia 90). With some difficulty, one could also say that if I do not have the time to learn this, I am considered coerced by circumstance, even though clearly this is not real coercion, since one could devote a great deal of time to it and learn it. But this involves a significant expenditure of money and major investments of time, and for a positive commandment one need not spend more than one-fifth of one’s assets, and perhaps it is possible that the same applies to one’s time. This consideration can be combined with the Rosh’s reasoning.
Discussion on Answer
First, that is not precise. The Sha’agat Aryeh discusses this and ties it to a dispute among the medieval authorities, whether “write for yourselves this song” refers to Ha’azinu (and the reason one writes the whole Torah is that one does not write the Torah in separate sections), or to the Torah itself.
But you are right that, with expository derivations, there is more room to interpret the reason for the verse. Still, the Rosh’s move is quite far-reaching, since he completely changed the definition of the commandment from what it originally was. This is not some detail or other within the commandment, but a total change. There are very few examples like this, if any.
As for what emerges from the plain sense of the Torah, you are right. But as a matter of Jewish law, it is accepted that this is a full-fledged commandment.
I did not write a scroll (but I did buy books of the Oral Torah 🙂 ).
I find it hard to accept the claim about one-fifth, especially regarding dedicating time,
because that is exactly what the commandment was said about. It is not as if there is someone who can write a Torah scroll in a few minutes. For everyone it would take a fifth of their time.
As for the monetary cost, is there not room to require setting aside a fifth of one’s disposable income over time, so that both laws are fulfilled together? That way we would fulfill the commandment and also not spend more than one-fifth.
All of these are only supplementary considerations. People also do not really have a place to keep such a scroll properly nowadays. Today people do not learn from such a scroll anyway, and in general only a minority of study is from the Torah itself (and that is why the Rosh’s reasoning applies).
Thank you very much!!
Regarding interpreting the reason for the verse, I remember that you said this rule applies only to commandments stated explicitly in the text, not to commandments derived through exposition. It seems that in this case the commandment is not stated explicitly in the text, because it speaks explicitly only about the Song of Ha’azinu (and extending it to the rest of the Torah is a kind of exposition). Also, from the plain sense of the text it seems there is no command here at all. And even in the Talmud itself it is not so clear whether there is an actual obligation here or whether it is in the category of a mitzvah in the sense of a good deed.
By the way, has the Rabbi fulfilled the commandment of writing a Torah scroll?