Q&A: The Authority of the Talmud
The Authority of the Talmud
Question
How are you, Rabbi? I’ve found myself thinking about this recently and haven’t found a satisfactory answer…
Why does the fact that the Jewish people accepted the Talmud as the interpretation of the Mishnah (which is the most reliable source we have for summarizing the Oral Torah that interprets the Written Torah) obligate me as an individual human being who wants to do what is true?
And regarding the point that the Talmud is the closest interpretation we have to the Mishnah—fine, I’ll use it to understand the Mishnah. But why, if there is some interpretation / reasoning / halakhic ruling that is not logical or not suited to our generation, do I have to accept their authority?
Thank you, Rabbi
Answer
Why does the Revelation at Mount Sinai obligate me? I wasn’t there. Because the Jewish people accepted it upon themselves. Why does the law obligate me if it was legislated a hundred years ago? Because the people accepted it upon themselves.
In our case there is a question whether this indeed is the law, since one could argue that the law is God’s will and not the interpretation of the sages. But His will is that we follow the interpretation of the sages, at least those who are authorized (the Sanhedrin or the Talmud). And the Ran already wrote in his homilies that the transgression and the blemish to the soul involved in disobeying the sages is no less than the blemish involved in the transgression itself.
Discussion on Answer
A. Indeed. It is not necessarily a moral obligation. You are part of the society, and therefore its commitments apply to you as well.
B. Not necessarily. They did not accept it upon themselves. They disagree with it and deviate from its rulings from time to time. And certainly when you have a different position, there is no reason to follow its approach. Maybe in the absence of your own position.
A. Isn’t this deriving a normative conclusion from a factual premise? Is there some further a priori assumption in the background that it is morally wrong to violate what the people accepted upon themselves? And is every obligation grounded in a moral foundation?
B. Does the Shulchan Arukh obligate me because I am Sephardi, since the Sephardim accepted it upon themselves?