Chaim Sofer (also known as the Machne Chaim, the name of his

responsa ''Responsa'' (plural of Latin , 'answer') comprise a body of written decisions and rulings given by legal scholars in response to questions addressed to them. In the modern era, the term is used to describe decisions and rulings made by scholars i ...

) (September 29, 1821 – June 28, 1886) was a renowned Hungarian rabbi and "scholarly spokesperson for

Orthodox Judaism Orthodox Judaism is the collective term for the traditionalist and theologically conservative branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as revealed by God to Moses on M ...

during his time."

Biography

Chaim Sofer was born in Pressburg, Hungary (now

Bratislava Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approxim ...

, Slovakia) on September 29, 1821. His father was Mordechai Efraim Fischel. Sofer attended the famous ''

yeshiva A yeshiva (; he, ישיבה, , sitting; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are s ...

'' of Rabbi

Moses Sofer Moses Schreiber (1762–1839), known to his own community and Jewish posterity in the Hebrew translation as Moshe Sofer, also known by his main work ''Chatam Sofer'', ''Chasam Sofer'', or ''Hatam Sofer'' ( trans. ''Seal of the Scribe'', and acron ...

(no relation) in Pressburg, and was considered his "most distinguished student". He also attended the ''yeshiva'' of Rabbi

Meir Eisenstaedter Meir Eisenstaedter (Meir ben Judah Leib Eisenstädter, 1780-1852) was a Hungarian rabbi, Talmudist, and '' paytan'' (liturgic poet). He is best known as the author of ''Imre Esh'' (''Words of Fire''), the collection of his responsa published by ...

in Ungvar, Hungary (now

Uzhhorod Uzhhorod ( uk, У́жгород, , ; ) is a city and municipality on the river Uzh in western Ukraine, at the border with Slovakia and near the border with Hungary. The city is approximately equidistant from the Baltic, the Adriatic and the B ...

, Ukraine). In 1844, aged 23, he was hired to teach high-school students in a ''yeshiva'' in Mattersdorf, Hungary (now

Mattersburg Mattersburg (; formerly ''Mattersdorf'', hu, Nagymarton, Croatian: ''Matrštof'') is a town in Burgenland, Austria. It is the administrative center of the District of Mattersburg and was home to former Bundesliga football team, SV Mattersburg. ...

, Austria). He subsequently served as the rabbi of the Orthodox Jewish communities in

Gyömöre Gyömöre is a village in Győr-Moson-Sopron county, Hungary. It is around 20 km south of Győr. Notable residents * László Háry (1890-1953), major general, aviator and a Commander of the First Independent Hungarian Air Force * Chaim Sofe ...

, Hungary (1852)

Sajószentpéter Sajószentpéter (german: Sankt Peter; la, Villa Sancti Petri) is a town in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County, Northern Hungary. It lies in the Miskolc–Kazincbarcika agglomeration, 10 kilometres away from the county capital. History The town was m ...

, Hungary (1859) and Munkacs, Hungary (now

Mukachevo Mukachevo ( uk, Мукачево, ; hu, Munkács; see name section) is a city in the valley of the Latorica river in Zakarpattia Oblast (province), in Western Ukraine. Serving as the administrative center of Mukachevo Raion (district), the city ...

Ukraine (1868). While he was Chief Rabbi in Munkacs, Sofer was against introducing any "innovations" in Judaism. Nevertheless, he was not considered "conservative" enough and in 1879 was replaced by one of the Munkacs Hassidic rabbis. In 1879, he was chosen rabbi of the

Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pa ...

congregation in the newly merged city of

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

, Hungary where he officiated until his death. His position was replaced by Rabbi Koppel Reich. Sofer died in Budapest on June 28, 1886, and was buried in Pressburg, the city of his birth.

Notable rulings

*According to ''

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 commandm ...

'' (Jewish law), abortion is permitted when the life of the mother is in danger. Sofer ruled that once the baby is "partially born", one cannot even injure the baby to save the mother, unless non-interference will mean both mother and child die.

J. David Bleich Judah David Bleich (born August 24, 1936 in Tarrytown, New York) is an authority on Jewish law and ethics, including Jewish medical ethics. He is a professor of Talmud ( rosh yeshiva) at the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary, an affiliate o ...

, "Abortion in Halakhic Literature", ''

Tradition A tradition is a belief or behavior (folk custom) passed down within a group or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common examples include holidays or ...

'', 1968, 10(2), p. 101. According to

: :

Interpreted in a similar manner the further provision of the Mishnah. . . "but once the major portion has emerged one may not touch it" he fetusimplies that even the maiming of a partially born child or amputation of a limb is forbidden in order to save the mother. R. Chaim Sofer (''Machaneh Chaim, Choshen Mishpat'', no. 50) draws such an inference and indicates that the rationale motivating the decision is the fact that the physician "cannot guarantee with certainty" that the child will survive the surgical procedure. However, if non-interference will result in the loss of both mother and child, R. Sofer permits maiming of the child in an attempt to save the life of the mother.

Modernism

Sofer held that it was important that the

Yiddish language Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ver ...

be preserved and be established as a part of Jewish life. He was also opposed in general to the introduction of modern innovations to religious activity and services in the same vein as his mentor, Moses Sofer. His stance was in opposition to that of

Azriel Hildesheimer Azriel Hildesheimer (also Esriel and Israel, yi, עזריאל הילדעסהיימער; 11 May 1820 – 12 July 1899) was a German rabbi and leader of Orthodox Judaism. He is regarded as a pioneering moderniser of Orthodox Judaism in Germany an ...

who supported secular studies.

Works by Sofer

*''Peles Chaim'' (Pressburg, 1854) *''Machne Chaim'' (4 vols., 2 editions), a collection of responsa *''Chillul Shabbat'' (Sajószentpéter) *''Kol Sofer,'' a commentary on the ''

Mishnah The Mishnah or the Mishna (; he, מִשְׁנָה, "study by repetition", from the verb ''shanah'' , or "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first major written collection of the Jewish oral traditions which is known as the Oral Torah ...

'' *''Dibrei Sharei Chaim'' *''Sharei Chaim''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sofer, Chaim 1821 births 1886 deaths Hungarian Orthodox rabbis 19th-century Hungarian rabbis Rabbis from Bratislava