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Posek (Hebrew פוסק, IPA: [po·ˈseq], pl. Poskim, פוסקים) is the term in Jewish law for "decider" - a legal scholar who decides the Halakha in cases of law where previous authorities are inconclusive. Halakha ( הלכה; alternative transliterations include Halocho and Halacha) is the collective body of Jewish Religious law Halakha ( הלכה; alternative transliterations include Halocho and Halacha) is the collective body of Jewish Religious law

The decision of a posek is known as a psak din or psak halakha ("ruling of law"; pl. piskei din, piskei halakha) or simply a "psak". In Hebrew, פסק is the root implying to "stop" or "cease" - the posek brings the process of legal debate to finality. The root is the primary lexical unit of a Word, which carries the most significant aspects of semantic content and cannot be reduced into smaller constituents Piskei din are generally recorded in the responsa literature. Responsa ( Latin: plural of responsum, "answers" comprise a body of written decisions and rulings given by Legal scholars in response to questions

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Formulating a ruling (psak din)

In formulating a ruling, a posek will base the psak din on a careful analysis of the relevant underlying legal principles, as well as a careful study of the application of these principles. Legal doctrine is a framework set of rules procedural steps or test often established through Precedent in the Common law, through which judgments can be determined A Posek will therefore be thoroughly versed in rabbinic literature and must be a master Talmudist. Rabbinic literature, in its broadest sense can mean the entire spectrum of Rabbinic writings throughout Jewish history The Talmud ( Hebrew: he תַּלְמוּד is a record of Rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, customs and history

The analysis of the legal principles will entail:

  1. an initial study of the relevant Talmudic Sugyas with commentaries;
  2. tracing the development of all related material in the Rishonim (early Middle age rabbinic authorities, such as Maimonides or Rashi) through the Tur and Shulkhan Arukh (the "Code of Jewish Law");
  3. finally, a close analysis of the works of the Acharonim (rabbinic authorities from about the 1500s onwards) discussing the halakha as recorded in the Shulkhan Arukh. The Talmud ( Hebrew: he תַּלְמוּד is a record of Rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, customs and history The Gemara (also transliterated Gemora or less commonly Gemorra) (from Aramaic גמרא gamar; literally " study" Moses Maimonides ( March 30 1135 – December 13 1204) also known as the Rambam, was a Rabbi, Physician, and For the astrological concept see Rāshi (Jyotiṣa. Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, (רבי שלמה יצחקי better known by the acronym Rashi Arba'ah Turim (ארבעה טורים often called simply the Tur, is an important Halakhic code, composed by Yaakov ben Asher The Shulchan Aruch (שולחן ערוך literally " Set Table " (also Shulhan Aruch or Shulchan Arukh) is a Codification

The ruling itself - effectively an application of these principles - will also be consistent with all relevant legal precedents as recorded in the responsa literature, and with all relevant codified law with an emphasis on the Shulkhan Arukh. In Common law legal systems, a precedent or authority is a Legal case establishing a principle or rule that a Court or other judicial Responsa ( Latin: plural of responsum, "answers" comprise a body of written decisions and rulings given by Legal scholars in response to questions Halakha ( הלכה; alternative transliterations include Halocho and Halacha) is the collective body of Jewish Religious law The Shulchan Aruch (שולחן ערוך literally " Set Table " (also Shulhan Aruch or Shulchan Arukh) is a Codification

The role of the Posek

Orthodox Judaism

In Orthodox Judaism poskim will not overrule a specific law, unless based on an earlier authority: a posek will generally extend a law to new situations, but will not change the Halakhah; see further under Orthodox Judaism. Orthodox Judaism is the formulation of Judaism that adheres to a relatively strict interpretation and application of the laws and ethics first canonized Orthodox Judaism is the formulation of Judaism that adheres to a relatively strict interpretation and application of the laws and ethics first canonized Orthodox Judaism is the formulation of Judaism that adheres to a relatively strict interpretation and application of the laws and ethics first canonized (Thus for example, some Halakhic rulings related to electricity when it was new, were derived from rulings concerning another form of human-managed energy, "fire", but that view was subsequently modified as the nature of electricity was clarified when used as an electrical circuit. An electrical network is an interconnection of Electrical elements such as Resistors Inductors Capacitors Transmission lines Voltage )

Poskim play an integral role in Haredi Judaism and Orthodox Judaism. Haredi or Chareidi Judaism is the most theologically conservative form of Orthodox Judaism. Orthodox Judaism is the formulation of Judaism that adheres to a relatively strict interpretation and application of the laws and ethics first canonized Particularly in the Haredi world, each community will regard one of its poskim as its Posek HaDor ("Posek of the present Generation"). For Lithuanian-style Haredi world it is probably Rabbi Yosef Shalom Eliashiv. Lithuanian Jews (known in Yiddish and Yeshivish as Litvish (adjective or Litvaks (noun are Ashkenazi Jews with roots in the Haredi or Chareidi Judaism is the most theologically conservative form of Orthodox Judaism. Rabbi Yosef Sholom Elyashiv (יוסף שלום אלישיב (born April 19 1910 is a Haredi Rabbi and Posek (arbiter of Jewish law For the Sephardi Jews it is probably Rabbi Ovadia Yosef. Sephardi Jews ( Hebrew: ספרדי, Standard Səfardi Tiberian Səp̄arədî; plural Rabbi Ovadia Yossef ( עובדיה יוסף) (born in 1920 in Basra, Iraq) is a Haredi Rabbi, Talmudic scholar a recognized Hasidic Jews rely on their own Rebbes or leading posek recommended by their Rebbes. Hasidic Judaism (also Chasidic, etc from the Hebrew: he '''''חסידות''''', Chassidus, meaning "piety" from the Hebrew Rebbe (רבי (pronounced in English which means master teacher or mentor is a Yiddish word derived from the identical Hebrew word Rabbi Modern Orthodox Jews may select a posek on a more individual rather than a communal basis, although customs vary. Modern Orthodox Judaism (or Modern Orthodox or Modern Orthodoxy) is a movement within Orthodox Judaism that attempts to synthesize traditional observance


Conservative Judaism

Conservative Judaism and Masorti Judaism may re-interpret or even change a law through a formal argument. Conservative Judaism (also known as Masorti Judaism in Israel and Europe) is a modern stream of Judaism that arose out The Masorti movement is the name given to Conservative Judaism in the State of Israel. There are a some poskim in the Conservative movement, e. g. Rabbis Louis Ginzberg, David Golinkin, and Joel Roth. Rabbi Louis Ginzberg was one of the outstanding Talmudists of the twentieth century David Golinkin is a Rabbi, author and President and Rector of the Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies, Israel Joel Roth is a prominent American Rabbi in the Rabbinical Assembly, which is the rabbinical body of Conservative Judaism. In addition, the Conservative movement's Rabbinical Assembly maintains a Committee on Jewish Law and Standards, whose decisions are accepted as authoritative within the Conservative movement. The Rabbinical Assembly (RA is the international association of Conservative Rabbis The RA was founded in 1901 to shape the ideology programs and practices of the The Committee on Jewish Law and Standards is the central authority on Halakha (Jewish law and tradition within Conservative Judaism; it is one of the most active The rulings of any one individual rabbi are considered less binding than a consensus ruling.

Reform and Reconstructionist Judaism

Poskim are not found in Reform Judaism and Reconstructionist Judaism, as these movements stress individual autonomy for interpretation of biblical and oral law. Hi and welcome to Wikipedia! Please understand that this article is frequently subjected to vandalism and the insertion of personal opinions Reconstructionist Judaism is a modern American-based Jewish movement based on the ideas of the late Mordecai Kaplan (1881 – 1983 Nevertheless, since these movements consider Jewish law for various decisions, responsa on halakhah have been written by some Reform Rabbis, including Solomon Freehof and Walter Jacob. Solomon Bennett Freehof ( August 8, 1892 &ndash 1990 was a prominent Reform rabbi Posek, and scholar Full text collections of Reform responsa are available on the movement's website.

List of Orthodox poskim and major works

Poskim of past years

Living Poskim

For a listing of major works of responsa by author, see the Bar Ilan University Responsa project website [1].

See also

References

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