Halakhah Study Group 003

2:
The order of precedence established is that the first to be called to read from the Torah be a Kohen, if one be present. The Kohen is to be followed by a Levi, and the Levi by an Israel. (When more than three people are to be called to the Torah the rest are all Israels.)

3:
Someone who is neither a Kohen or a Levi is an Israel, which means that this person belongs to the most populous part of the Jewish people. A Levi is someone who is a linear descendant of all those male members of Moses' extended family who were not descendants of his brother Aaron.

4:
The Kohen is a linear descendant through the male line of the first ordained priest, Aaron, the elder brother of Moses and Miriam. The Hebrew word Kohen is always translated as 'Priest', though nowadays, of course, its function is to indicate a member of the priestly caste, since with the destruction of the Bet Mikdash more than nineteen centuries ago almost all the priestly functions have become obsolete. The only two meaningful functions left to the priestly caste in modern times are the mitzvah of invoking God's blessing on the people at certain points during the liturgy and assisting at a Pidyon ha-Ben, Redemption of a Son. (The first son naturally-born to a woman who is not the daughter of a Kohen or of a Levi and whose husband – the biological father of the child- is neither a Kohen or a Levi must be redeemed in a ceremony to be held on the thirtieth day of the child's life.)

5:
In Temple times the pedigree of the priests (and Levites) was carefully recorded and checked to make sure that only those whose pedigree could be certainly established would be permitted to serve as Temple functionaries. Nowadays, however, priests and Levites are so considered on the basis of family tradition: fathers tell their sons that they are a Kohen or a Levi as they have been so told by their father, and so on down the ages. (As noted above this descent is always through the male line.) If you are interested in the genetic implications of this caste structure click here. As long as the distinction given to the Kohen (or Levi) is for honorific purposes only there is no great harm done by the lack of a recorded and verifiable pedigree.

6:
The decision to give precedence to the Kohen in the matter of Reading from the Torah was one of convenience, in order to avoid quarrels among the worshippers as to who should have the honour of being the first to read from the Torah. The Mishnah [Gittin 5:8] reads as follows:

7:
Some Conservative synagogues now accord the privileges of priesthood (in connection with Torah Reading) also to women who are the daughters of priests or Levites. A responsum published by the Law Committee of the Rabbinical Assembly in Israel decided that this was not halakhically acceptable, because the daughters of priests never played a ritual role when the Bet Mikdash was in existence. Other Conservative synagogues have abolished the privileges of the Kohen in connection with Torah Reading. It seems to me, following the logical trend of the mishnah quoted above, that this would be the more sensible thing to do in congregations where maintaining priestly privileges would cause friction.

Josh Greenfield writes:

The only instance I can think of where we do not follow this rule (when following the annual cycle of Torah reading) is in the reading for fast days (where an entire chapter is skipped between the 2nd and 3rd aliyot). Do any commentators note this discrepancy and try to explain it? Or are Torah readings for special days in the calendar not included in this rule?

I respond:

The fact that the special reading from the Torah for fast days does permit selective reading in fact serves to highlight the general rule. As Josh himself seems to understand intuitively, there is no need for the "no skipping" rule on special days. You will recall that the reason for the rule was so that Israel may be taught the Torah in the proper order. The reading of the Torah on Shabbat mornings must be consecutive in order to present the Torah as a consistent document in which, according to rabbinic understanding, there is meaning in the chronological sequence (and also in the instances where they note that the chronology is not consecutive). This necessity obviously does not apply on festive days and special days, when the selected reading is not part of the consecutive lectionary in any case.

In connection with the reconstructed triennial system of ancient Israel, proposed in a responsum of mine, I wrote: I understand that one congregation in the suburbs of Washington DC in the USA has adopted this system with considerable success.

Albert Ringer writes:

What does the community in Washington DC, that uses the correct (I fully agree with you) triennial cycle with Simchat Torah?

I respond:

I dealt with this matter in my original responsum. The festival of Simĥat Torah, as celebrating the conclusion of the annual cycle, is hardly 1000 years old; in fact it is a very late introduction indeed. However, it is now a firmly established part of the celebratory ethos of the Jewish people. Therefore, I see no reason to deny the full celebration of Simĥat Torah to any congregation that decides to adopt the ancient triennial system. However, if they should so choose, they could observe these celebrations only once every three years. On the other two years of the cycle the day we call Simĥat Torah would simply be Shemini Atzeret (or the second day of Shemini Atzeret).

In connection with the same topic Steven Spronz writes:

I am interested in following up on Rabbi Meir's tradition as that appears to be what I grew up with in my home Shul: On Shabbat Mincha the new parasha was begun and we read until Shayni. On Monday we read to Shleeshi, on Thursday to Revi'i, and on Shabbat morning from Revi'i to the end of the parasha. Is it the "Rabbi Meir tradition" that I am reciting or is it something else? Is there any other Mishnaic/Talmudic evidence or approval for the form of Torah reading that I grew up with?

I respond:

I recall that this method was proposed by at least one of the rabbis responding when the question of the shortening of the Torah reading was originally discussed by the Committee for Jewish Law and Standards in New York. While this proposal was not accepted it may well have been adopted in several congregations either before or after that discussion. The problem with this system is that it is specifically rejected by the Mishnah. Furthermore, since comparatively few people (!) actually hear the reading from the Torah on Shabbat afternoons and Monday and Thursday mornings it would mean that the vast majority of the people would not be taught the Torah in a consecutive fashion – which is the basic requirement of the sages.