Page 49 - EDOS Dinner Journal 2019_website

FESTSCHRIFT | 49

CELEBRATING THE GIFT OF TORAH:

THE CHARACTER OF BIRKHOT HA-TORAH*

By Jacob J. Schacter
Prof. of Jewish History and Jewish Thought, Yeshiva University

Before studying Torah there is a mitzvah to recite a blessing, acknowledging the cen-
tral importance and significance of Torah in the life of a Jew. But what is the status
or character of this brakhah? I believe that the answer to this question will yield very
important insights into the nature of the gift of Torah itself.

The Rambam rules that there is a mitzvat aseh for Jewish men to study Torah (“שיא לכ
הרות דומלתב בייח לארשימ”) . However, he does not consider the blessing recited prior
1
to talmud Torah to be a mitzvat aseh. The Ramban takes issue with this position and,

in his comments on the Sefer ha-Mitzvot of the Rambam, includes that brakhah in his
list of the 613 mitzvot. In the process of making this point, he states that “we are obli-
2
gated to express gratitude to His exalted Name (ךרבתי ומשל תודוהל וניוטצנש)every
moment we read Torah for the great good that He did for us (השעש הלודגה הבוטה לע
ונל) by giving us His Torah and informing us of those actions which are desirable for
Him, through which we will inherit eternal life.” And he goes on to parallel the obliga-
tion to recite this brakhah to the biblical obligation of birkhat ha-mazon, also a birkhat
hoda’ah, a blessing expressing thanksgiving to God.

But there are other ways to understand the nature of this blessing. The Shulchan Arukh
rules that women recite birkhot ha-Torah, and the Magen Avraham explains that
3
the reason is because, after all, they are obligated to learn the laws that are relevant

to them. However the Gaon of Vilna (Gra) takes issue with this reason because he
4
points out that women, unlike men, are not obligated in the mitzvah of talmud Torah.
How is it possible for a woman to recite a blessing that asserts that God “commanded

1 *In honor of Rabbi Daniel Rapp who has successfully transmitted the gift of Torah to thousands of students,
young and not so young alike. Mishneh Torah, Hil. Talmud Torah 1:8; Sefer ha-Mitzvot, Mitzvat Aseh #11. One
wonders why the Rambam does not begin Hil. Talmud Torah with this statement.
2 Ramban on Sefer ha-Mitzvot of the Rambam, #15.
3 Shulchan Arukh, Orach Chaim 47:14.
4 Magen Avraham, Orach Chaim 47:14.