A Weekly Mitzvah
Why do we need a minyan?
Parshat Miketz 5767
Genesis
41:1 - 44:17
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Joseph’s ascent to power and the years of plenty in Egypt are followed by famine when Joseph’s strategic and economic planning pays off. Joseph’s brothers are among those who come to Egypt seeking food for their family. For the first time in the Torah we find the family of Jacob is referred to as the B’nai Yisrael, the children of Israel. This marks an important milestone in the transformation of the patriarchal family into a nation. Because the B’nai Yisrael who went down to Egypt would have been made up of the ten brothers, the Talmud associates this reference with the practice of having a prayer quorum of ten. There are, however, other ways through which the sages derived this practice.
Genesis
42:5 |
Etz Hayim Commentary Genesis 42:5
This is the first mention of the people Israel (B’nai Yisrael) in
the Bible. (The translation reads “the sons of Israel” because
Israel is another name for Jacob.)
Mishnah, Megillah Chapter 1
The introduction to the Shema is not repeated, nor does one pass before
the ark (recite the Amida), nor do the priests lift up their hands
(and recite the priestly benediction), nor is the Torah read (publicly),
nor the Haftorah read from the prophet….nor is the name of God
mentioned in the invitation (Rabbotai Nivarech) to say the
grace except in the presence of ten.
The Talmud, Steinsaltz Edition, A Reference Guide Page 150
Gezerah Shava: is a verbal analogy, a fundamental Talmudic
principle of biblical interpretation. If the same word or phrase appears
in two places in the Torah and a certain law is explicitly stated in
one of these place we may infer on the basis of verbal analogy the
same law must apply to the other place as well…
Jerusalem Talmud Berachot Chapter
7:3
From where do we learn that a prayer community is made up of ten….Rabbi
Simon said: It says here (in Leviticus 22:32) “among,” (“That
I may be sanctified among the children of Israel…”) and
it is written there (in Genesis 42:5) “among those who came to
procure rations…” Just as “among” there (in
Genesis) concerns ten (sons of Jacob) so the ten here (in Leviticus,
which speaks about sanctifying the name of God) must also be ten. Note
the verbal analogy, or gezerah shavah. Since both verses contain
the word ‘among’ we can assume that one must have at least
ten (the number of sons referred to in the verse as “the sons of Israel’)
in order to sanctify the name of God.
Babylonian Talmud Megillah 23b
Whence these rules? Rabbi Hiyya bar Abba said in the name of Rabbi Yohanan:
Because scripture says, “But I will be hallowed among the children
of Israel.” Every act of sanctification requires not less than
ten. How does this verse denote this? Rabbi Hiyya taught: We explain
the word among here with reference to its use in another place. It
is written here: “But I will be hallowed among the children of
Israel (Leviticus 22:32), and it is written elsewhere, “Separate
yourself from among this congregation (Numbers 16:21), and we further
explain the word congregation hereby reference to what is written in
another place, “How long must I bear this evil community” (Numbers
14:27). Just as there, ten are indicated, so too here. Note: This
is a double gezerah shavah. First we connect the verse regarding sanctifying
God’s name with the verse containing the word community. Then
we connect the verse containing community with the story of the spies
in which the ten spies are referred to as’ an evil community.’ Therefore
community must equal ten people!
Torah Temimah
The codifiers of Jewish law explain that these ten must be Jewish, male,
and of adult age….
Rabbi David Fine Women and Minyan,
2002 Responsa of the Committeee on Jewish Law and Standards
Conservative rabbis who permit women to count in the Minyan and serve
as shaliach tzibbur, a prayer leader, argue such by various and opposing
argumentations, either by reading the classical halachic sources as obligating
women to prayer equally with men and thereby permitting them to have
equal liturgical status, or by understanding the classical halachic sources
as not mandating the liturgical inequality of women, or by accepting
the legislative authority of the 1973 decree, or by recognizing that
women in the Conservative movement have, as a general class, accepted
upon themselves the equal obligation to prayer with men. Conclusion: Women
may count in a Minyan and may serve as shaliach tzibbur, a prayer leader
Questions to Ponder |
|
| 1. | The Babylonian and Jerusalem Talmud each offer a different argument to prove that a Minyan must be made up of ten people. How are the similar to and different from one another? Which one is more convincing to you? What other reasons can you think of why a Minyan should be made up of ten people? |
| 2. | A frequent misconception is that the Minyan is base on Abraham’s argument with God on behalf of Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham stops short of arguing with God once God says that he will even spare Sodom and Gomorrah if there are ten righteous people in them. Why don’t the sages resort to this passage as a way of proving that a Minyan should be made up of ten people? |
| 3. | Both arguments for a Minyan resort to a gezerah shavah, a verbal analogy. Does such an argument make sense? How could this tool of interpretation be misused? |
| 4. | Rabbi Fine offers several arguments for counting women in the Minyan and allowing them to serve as prayer leader. You may want to go back and read the entire responsa – it is available on the Rabbinical Assembly web site. Which argument do you find most convincing and why. See rabbinicalassembly.org/teshuvot/docs/19912000/oh_55_1_2002.pdf |
| 5. | What should a child do when the parent makes demands that would cause the child to transgress other mitzvot in the Torah? |
“All it takes to study Torah is an open heart, a
curious mind and a desire to grow a Jewish soul.”
Copyright 2006 Rabbi Mark B Greenspan
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