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The Mitzvah To Write A Torah Scroll
The mitzvah to write a Torah scroll ( he, מצוות כתיבת ספר תורה) is the last mitzvah of the 613 Jewish commandments. It mandates Jews to write a Torah scroll for themselves. The source of the mitzvah is from what is said in Parashat Vayelech in Book of Deuteronomy: In the Oral Torah it is said that although according to the verse only the parasha "Hazinu" should be written, but since it is forbidden to write only one parsha from the Torah, necessarily the intention of the Torah in this mitzvah is to write the whole Torah. Purpose The mitzvah was given for two reasons, the first is that in writing the Torah in ink on the parchment there is a continuation of the tradition of Israel, and the passing on of the testimony of "the event of Mount Sinai". The second reason is so that Torah scrolls are in the hands of every person in Israel, and anyone who wants to study them will be able to do so. Laws Even a person who inherits a Torah scroll from their parents ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Writing A Torah
Writing is a medium of human communication which involves the representation of a language through a system of physically inscribed, mechanically transferred, or digitally represented symbols. Writing systems do not themselves constitute human languages (with the debatable exception of computer languages); they are a means of rendering language into a form that can be reconstructed by other humans separated by time and/or space. While not all languages use a writing system, those that do can complement and extend capacities of spoken language by creating durable forms of language that can be transmitted across space (e.g. written correspondence) and stored over time (e.g. libraries or other public records). It has also been observed that the activity of writing itself can have knowledge-transforming effects, since it allows humans to externalize their thinking in forms that are easier to reflect on, elaborate, reconsider, and revise. A system of writing relies on man ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sefer Ha-Chinuch
''Sefer ha-Chinuch'' ( he, ספר החינוך, "Book of Education") is a Jewish rabbinic text which systematically discusses the 613 commandments of the Torah. It was published anonymously in 13th-century Spain. History The work's enumeration of the commandments ( he, mitzvot; sing. ''mitzvah'') is based upon Maimonides' system of counting as per his Sefer Hamitzvot; each is listed according to its appearance in the weekly Torah portion and the work is structured correspondingly. The book separately discusses each of the 613 commandments, both from a legal and a moral perspective. For each, the Chinuch's discussion starts by linking the ''mitzvah'' to its Biblical source, and then addresses the philosophical underpinnings of the commandment (here, termed the "''shoresh''", or "root"). Following this, the ''Chinuch'' presents a brief overview of the ''halakha'' (practical Jewish law) governing its observance - usually based on Maimonides' ''Mishneh Torah'' - and closes with a sum ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Halakha
''Halakha'' (; he, הֲלָכָה, ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws which is derived from the written and Oral Torah. Halakha is based on biblical commandments ('' mitzvot''), subsequent Talmudic and rabbinic laws, and the customs and traditions which were compiled in the many books such as the ''Shulchan Aruch''. ''Halakha'' is often translated as "Jewish law", although a more literal translation of it might be "the way to behave" or "the way of walking". The word is derived from the root which means "to behave" (also "to go" or "to walk"). ''Halakha'' not only guides religious practices and beliefs, it also guides numerous aspects of day-to-day life. Historically, in the Jewish diaspora, ''halakha'' served many Jewish communities as an enforceable avenue of law – both civil and religious, since no differentiation of them exists in classical Judaism. Since the Jewish Enlightenment (''Hask ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peninei Halakha
Eliezer Melamed ( he, אליעזר מלמד, born 28 June 1961) is an Israeli Orthodox Zionist rabbi and the rosh yeshiva of Yeshivat Har Bracha, rabbi of the community Har Bracha, and author of the book series ''Peninei Halakha''. Biography Eliezer Melamed is the son of Rabbi Zalman Baruch Melamed, a student of Rabbi Zvi Yehuda Kook. Melamed's first name is the result of a dream Kook had on the occasion of his birth. Melamed attended classes given by Kook from age fifteen to twenty, and, like his father, considers Kook to be his most significant rabbi. Melamed is married to Inbal, daughter of the artist Tuvia Katz, and has thirteen children. Rabbinic and teaching career Melamed taught Talmud and Halakha in the Kollel of Rabbi Deutsch in Mea Shearim for half a year. The Kollel was headed by Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburg, which gave Melamed the chance of learning as a Chevruta with Ginsburg and hearing many of his classes. Later on, he taught Talmud, and Emuna (Jewish philosophy) in par ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eliezer Melamed
Eliezer Melamed ( he, אליעזר מלמד, born 28 June 1961) is an Israeli Orthodox Zionist rabbi and the rosh yeshiva of Yeshivat Har Bracha, rabbi of the community Har Bracha, and author of the book series ''Peninei Halakha''. Biography Eliezer Melamed is the son of Rabbi Zalman Baruch Melamed, a student of Rabbi Zvi Yehuda Kook. Melamed's first name is the result of a dream Kook had on the occasion of his birth. Melamed attended classes given by Kook from age fifteen to twenty, and, like his father, considers Kook to be his most significant rabbi. Melamed is married to Inbal, daughter of the artist Tuvia Katz, and has thirteen children. Rabbinic and teaching career Melamed taught Talmud and Halakha in the Kollel of Rabbi Deutsch in Mea Shearim for half a year. The Kollel was headed by Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburg, which gave Melamed the chance of learning as a Chevruta with Ginsburg and hearing many of his classes. Later on, he taught Talmud, and Emuna (Jewish philosophy) in par ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Posek
In Jewish law, a ''Posek'' ( he, פוסק , pl. ''poskim'', ) is a legal scholar who determines the position of ''halakha'', the Jewish religious laws derived from the written and Oral Torah in cases of Jewish law where previous authorities are inconclusive, or in those situations where no clear ''halakhic'' precedent exists. The decision of a posek is known as a ''psak halakha'' ("ruling of law"; pl. ''piskei halakha'') or simply a "psak". ''Piskei halakha'' are generally recorded in the responsa literature. Orthodox Judaism Poskim play an integral role in Orthodox Judaism. * Generally, each community will regard one of its ''poskim'' as its ''Posek HaDor'' ("Posek of the present Generation"). * Most rely on the rav in their community (in Hasidic communities, sometimes the rebbe) or the leading posek. Poskim will generally not overrule a specific law unless based on an earlier authority: a posek will generally extend a law to new situations but will not ''change'' the H ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Birkot HaTorah
Birkot HaTorah ( he, ברכות התורה, The blessings of the Torah) are blessings in Jewish law concerning the giving of the Torah from God to Israel and to the study of Torah. According to Jewish law, the blessings are obligatory to bless before Torah study (including the Talmud), and it is customary to bless them every morning prior to any Torah study that will be taught that day. The order of the blessings The system of Torah blessings is structured as a series of three sections: # In the first part, we bless according to the regular wording of the blessing of the mitzvos: we bless Hashem who sanctified us with His mitzvot and commanded us to occupy ourselves with the study of Torah. # Then we add a request for success in Torah study: we request that the Torah, which Hashem taught His nation Israel, be pleasant to us, that we merit learning it with desire, and that we and our offspring have the privilege of understanding the depth of its content. # After the request, another ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aryeh Leib Ben Asher Gunzberg
Aryeh Leib ben Asher Ginzburg (or Wallerstein) ( he, אריה ליב גינסבורג) ( 1695 – June 23, 1785), also known as the Shaagas Aryeh, was a Lithuanian rabbi and author. Life Born in Lithuania, c. 1695, he was a Rabbinical casuist. At one time Ginsburg was rabbi in Pinsk, and then later founded a yeshivah in Minsk. Here however he engaged in hostile dispute with the Gaon Yechiel Halpern, whose supporters eventually drove Ginsburg from the city. Legend has it that the Shaagas Aryeh was run out of the city of Minsk on an oxen cart. Due to the insult, as he left the city he remarked "What, Minsk isn't burning yet?" For years, fires that broke out were attributed by the Jews of Minsk to the curse of the Shaagas Aryeh. His most famous book ''Shaagas Aryeh'' (Hebrew, שאגת אריה, for 'Roar of the Lion'), a collection of responsa, was first published in Frankfurt am Main in 1755 and is still frequently quoted in rabbinical debate, as are many of his responsa. After ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Talmud Torah
Talmud Torah ( he, תלמוד תורה, lit. 'Study of the Torah') schools were created in the Jewish world, both Ashkenazic and Sephardic, as a form of religious school for boys of modest backgrounds, where they were given an elementary education in Hebrew, the scriptures (especially the Torah), and the Talmud (and ''halakha''). This was meant to prepare them for ''yeshiva'' or, particularly in the movement's modern form, for Jewish education at a high school level. The Talmud Torah was modeled after the ''cheder'', a traditional form of schooling whose essential elements it incorporated, with changes appropriate to its public form rather than the ''cheder's'' private financing through less formal or institutionalized mechanisms, including tuition fees and donations. In the United States, the term ''Talmud Torah'' refers to the afternoon program for boys and girls after attending public school. This form of Jewish education was prevalent from the mid–19th century through "the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Igros Moshe
''Igros Moshe'' ( he, אגרות משה, , Epistles of Moses; Israeli/Sephardic pronunciation: ''Igrot Moshe'') is a nine-volume series of ''halakhic'' responsa by Rabbi Moshe Feinstein. The first seven volumes were published during Rabbi Feinstein's lifetime, while the remaining two were published posthumously in Jerusalem. Overview Rabbi Moshe Feinstein was recognized during his lifetime as the ''posek hador'', the final decisor in ''halakhic'' queries, by much of the world's Orthodox Jewish community, due to his reputation as a ''talmid chacham'' with profound knowledge in all areas of Torah. The most difficult questions were often mailed to him. In 1959, a compilation of these questions related to the laws of ''Orach Chaim'' were printed in the first volume of ''Igros Moshe''. Later volumes were printed over the next twenty five years, with the publishing of the sixth volume in c. 1985. The remaining two volumes were published posthumously, largely based on manuscripts, with ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mitzvah
In its primary meaning, the Hebrew word (; he, מִצְוָה, ''mīṣvā'' , plural ''mīṣvōt'' ; "commandment") refers to a commandment commanded by God to be performed as a religious duty. Jewish law () in large part consists of discussion of these commandments. According to religious tradition, there are 613 such commandments. In its secondary meaning, the word ''mitzvah'' refers to a deed performed in order to fulfill such a commandment. As such, the term ''mitzvah'' has also come to express an individual act of human kindness in keeping with the law. The expression includes a sense of heartfelt sentiment beyond mere legal duty, as "you shall love your neighbor as yourself" (Leviticus 19:18). The opinions of the Talmudic rabbis are divided between those who seek the purpose of the ''mitzvot'' and those who do not question them. The latter argue that if the reason for each ''mitzvah'' could be determined, people might try to achieve what they see as the purpose of t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Moshe Feinstein
Moshe Feinstein ( he, משה פײַנשטיין; Lithuanian pronunciation: ''Moshe Faynshteyn''; en, Moses Feinstein; March 3, 1895 – March 23, 1986) was an American Orthodox rabbi, scholar, and ''posek'' (authority on ''halakha''—Jewish law). He has been called the most famous Orthodox Jewish legal authority of the twentieth century and his rulings are often referenced in contemporary rabbinic literature. Feinstein served as president of the Union of Orthodox Rabbis, Chairman of the Council of the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah of the Agudath Israel of America, and head of Mesivtha Tifereth Jerusalem in New York. Widely acclaimed in the Orthodox world for his gentleness and compassion, Feinstein is commonly referred to simply as ''"Reb Moshe"'' (or ''"Rav Moshe"''). Biography Moshe Feinstein was born, according to the Hebrew calendar, on the 7th day of Adar, 5655 (traditionally the date of birth and death of the biblical Moshe) in Uzda, near Minsk, Belarus, then part of t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
