Q&A: Appeal to Authority in Interpreting Jewish Law
Originally published:
This is an English translation (via GPT-5.4). Read the original Hebrew version.
Appeal to Authority in Interpreting Jewish Law
Question
In my most recent study session with a study partner, the question came up for me: when does relying on the words of the Sages cease to be a straightforward explanation and become a logical fallacy?
How, in Torah study, can one place a clear logical boundary between an appeal to authority that is not a logical fallacy and one that is?
Answer
There is no such boundary. The question is whether the interpretation is correct or not. You can be persuaded that an interpretation is correct by relying on someone’s wisdom or understanding. How much to rely on that, and how to assess wisdom, is up to each of us individually.