The Yated had an interesting piece today with an interesting psak from Rav Elyashiv.
The Admor of Sanz was visiting Rav Elyashiv. During the discussion the issue of the financial crisis of yeshivas and kollels, and the great mitzva to support Torah learning was raised. The Admor asked Rav Elyashiv what has priority - supporting avreichim or writing a sefer torah.
Rav Elyashiv's answer was that the mitzva of supporting avreichim to learn Torah has priority over the writing of a sefer torah. Rav Elyashiv added that supporting the learning of avreichim has inherent within it the supporting of limud torah, which presumably is the reason for the mitzva of writing a sefer torah.
I don't think you need a godol to work that one out - support people rather than glorifying God with another sefer Torah. I personally would add that supporting working people should come before the avreichim...
ReplyDeleteThink this one was a no-brainer.
ReplyDeleteI am not aware of any mitzvah to support avreichim?? Please enlighten me with the source.
ReplyDeleteit could be under tzedaka (supporting torah learning is part of tzedaka, supporting the poor - many avreichim are poor), it could be under writing a torah, or maybe under some other mitzva.
ReplyDeletethis is actually why I thought the psak, while not really a chiddush, was interesting. Writing a torah is pushed off nowadays by minor excuses. writing seforim, buying seforim, and other things are often considered in place of writing a torah. So, while easy to absolve oneself of the mitzva of writing a torah, Rav Elyashiv is still saying that an unspecified miztva has priority over a specified mitzva.
I am not sure that is what Rav Elyashiv meant at all.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if it was framed as question of charity vs Ksivat Sefer Torah if the answer would be the same. What if money U give goes for paying rent of the Kolel or some other admin cost that is not for the poor yet I am sure Rav Elyashiv would still give the same answer.
This is an ideologically driven psak as far as I can tell.