Q&A: Obligation to Follow an Erroneous Ruling
Originally published:
This is an English translation (via GPT-5.4). Read the original Hebrew version.
Obligation to Follow an Erroneous Ruling
Question
An innocent question. The Great Court has formal authority. If so, why is an individual—specifically, a Torah scholar—who acted in accordance with the mistaken ruling of the court required to bring a sacrifice for his inadvertent transgression, as explained in the first Mishnah of Horayot? After all, he is obligated to follow their ruling even though he knows they are mistaken.
Answer
The Talmud there discusses someone who errs regarding the commandment to heed the words of the sages. This is a complex topic: when there is an obligation to obey them and when there is not. The commentators dispute this and offer several approaches, but it is clear that there are situations in which there is no obligation to obey them.