Jerusalem Kosher News

29 Kislev 5774

December 2, 2013

I would like to discuss a recent incident in which I was somewhat involved, in spite of it being only peripherally related to our regular area of discussion.

I received a phone call from a very learned, sincere fellow the other day. He wanted to know the exact halachic status of a particular misshapen letter discussed by the Mishnah Berurah. I replied that the halachah l’maissa (practical halachah) is that the letter is kosher b’dieved. He then asked if one receives an aliya and notices that the Sefer Torah has this issue throughout – should the Sefer Torah be returned to the Aron Kodesh right away?

I explained that we only return a Sefer Torah to the Aron when we are dealing with a pesul gomur (undisputed invalidation). However in a situation where there opinions on which to rely – and certainly when the letter is actually kosher b’dieved – we absolutely do not “embarrass” a Sefer Torah by returning it to the Aron Kodesh in middle of leining.

After persisting in his claims that perhaps the Sefer Torah should be “put back”, the real story came out. He himself had received an aliya. He recognized this issue. And he refused to make the second, after-berachah on this Sefer Torah. Instead he had them put it away (there was no Rav present at the time) and take out a new one.

When I realized that I was going to have a hard time getting any further, I suggested he call HaRav Mordechai Friedlander shlit”a, Posek of Mishmeres Sta”m in Yerushalayim, and ask him. Sure enough, shortly thereafter he called me back with the news that Rabbi Friedlander had echoed everything I had told him. I thought that would be the end of it. But he continued.

“Now I have a real problem”, he said dejectedly. “I was mevayesh (embarrassed) a Sefer Torah in public. How can I do teshuva for such an aveira?” I could hear in his voice that he was broken – crestfallen.

I told him that while I am not worthy to answer such a question, I can tell him what I had heard regarding similar cases from prominent Rabbanim. I know that one of today’s leading Rabbanim was asked about a case where one finds his tefillin to be pasul after years of use. A proper Tikkun, he said, would be to learn Hilchos Tefillin for 10 minutes daily from that day forward. Based on that I suggested that perhaps it would be appropriate for him to learn Hilchos Krias HaTorah for 10 minutes daily for the next year. (I understand there is a great difference between the cases, but that’s for a different discussion.)

He was very pleased with the idea and said that indeed he would do so. He hung up sounding as though he had the weight of the world lifted from his shoulders.

When I related this incident to a great Talmid Chochom he immediately criticized me for an error in judgment. My idea, he pointed out, was based on the understanding that the fellow’s error was borne out of a lack of sufficient halachic knowledge. This, he asserted, was incorrect. In reality, the root of the issue was the fact that this fellow was more concerned with his own honor (“what, I should make a berachah on such a letter?!”), then the honor of the Sefer Torah. One who was truly concerned with the honor of the Sefer Torah would have gone out of his way searching for a leniency on which to rely to avoid returning it to the Aron Kodesh in middle of Krias HaTorah.

Therefore, he concluded, a proper Tikkun for this fellow would be honoring the Sefer Torah in some way, such as purchasing a nice new Mantel (cover) for it, to be used daily or every Shabbos. (Other Rabbanim suggested accepting a resolution to honor Sifrei Torah by not talking at all, even in learning, when a Sefer Torah is in use.)

In this season of Chanukah, when the Greeks tried to break our eternal connection to the Torah, may we all merit to properly learn from, and honor the Torah to the best of our respective abilities.

A Feilichen Chanukah

Rabbi Reuvain Mendlowitz is a practicing magiah who lives in Ramat Beit Shemesh. He has certification from the Vaad Mishmeres Sta”m for Safrus and Hagahah. He has received Rabbinical semichah for psak in Sta”m from HaGaon HaRav Mordechai Friedlander, Posek for Mishmeres Sta”m in Yerushalayim and the Badatz Eidah HaChareidis Sta”m division. Rabbi Mendlowitz has authored the acclaimed sefer “Inside Sta”m, A Complete Buyer’s Guide” (Israel Bookshop 2012) and is in the process of preparing a Hebrew version for print. He lectures in Eretz Yisrael and the U.S. to raise consumer awareness in these areas.

 The Sta”m Chronicle is reprinted here on JKN with permission from the author.

Rabbi Reuvain Mendlowitz is a practicing magiah who lives in Ramat Beit Shemesh. He has certification from the Vaad Mishmeres Sta”m for Safrus and Hagahah. He has received Rabbinical semichah for psak in Sta”m from HaGaon HaRav Mordechai Friedlander, Posek for Mishmeres Sta”m in Yerushalayim and the Badatz Eidah HaChareidis Sta”m division. Rabbi Mendlowitz has authored the acclaimed sefer “Inside Sta”m, A Complete Buyer’s Guide” (Israel Bookshop 2012) and is in the process of preparing a Hebrew version for print. He lectures in Eretz Yisrael and the U.S. to raise consumer awareness in these areas. Rabbi Mendlowitz may be contacted at reuvainm@gmail.com

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