A sofer at work, Ein Bokek, IsraelA sofer sews together the pieces of parchment
A sofer, sopher, sofer SeTaM, or sofer ST"M (Hebrew: סופר סת״ם, "scribe"; plural soferim, סופרים) is a Jewish scribe who can transcribe Sifrei Kodesh (holy scrolls), tefillin (phylacteries), mezuzot (ST"M, סת״ם, is an abbreviation of these three terms) and other religious writings.
By simple definition, soferim are copyists, but their religious role in Judaism is much more. Besides sifrei Torah, tefillin, and mezuzot, scribes are necessary to write the Five Megillot (scrolls of the Song of Songs, Book of Ruth, Book of Esther, Ecclesiastes, and Book of Lamentations), Nevi'im (the books of the prophets, used for reading the haftarah), and for gittin, divorce documents. Many scribes also function as calligraphers—writing functional documents such as ketubot (marriage contracts), or ornamental and artistic renditions of religious texts, which do not require any scribal qualifications, and to which the rules on lettering and parchment specifications do not apply.
The major halakha pertaining to sofrut, the practice of scribal arts, is in the Talmud in the tractate "Maseket Sofrim". In the Torah's 613 commandments, the second to last[1] is that every Jew should write a sefer Torah before they die.[2]
Qualifications and education
A sofer must be religiously observant, of good character, and knowledgeable about the laws concerning sofrut. It is a common misconception that one has to be a rabbi in order to become a sofer.[3]
People who want to become ritual scribes usually learn from another expert scribe by undergoing shimush (apprenticeship), since it would be impossible for someone to be a scribe without any actual practice. Newly certified scribes write Megilat Esther scrolls.[4] The hardest part about learning to be a sofer is not the calligraphy, but, rather, remembering the thousands of laws that apply to sifrei Torah, tefillin, mezuzot, and all the other texts that are written on parchment.
Some people who want to become ritual scribes learn at the Vaad Mishmereth STaM, an international organization whose goal is to protect the halachic and artistic integrity of the scribal arts, located in Jerusalem and Bnei Brak in Israel, as well as in Brooklyn, New York, United States; studying comes with the option of receiving a certificate, though certification of this sort is not a halachic requirement, nor does it necessarily guarantee the quality of a particular sofer's work. This process does, however, ensure that a certified sofer has received the proper education and is a recognized expert in the field of sofrut.
The main texts from which Ashkenaz soferim learn the scribal art include the Keset Ha-Sofer, Chasdey David, Mishnah Berurah (24-45), Mishneh Torah (Hilchot Tefillin u'Mezuzah v'Sefer Torah, Hilchot Tzitzit), Mishnat Hasofer, Mishnat Sofrim, and the Likkut Sifrey Stam.[5]
Sephardic soferim rely, in addition to Mishneh Torah (Hilchot Tefillin u'Mezuzah v'Sefer Torah, Hilchot Tzitzit), on Arba'ah Turim, Beit Yosef on Tur, and Shulchan Arukh.[6]
Baladi Rite Yemenite (Teimani) scribes try to follow as closely as possible only the instruction of the Rambam, i.e. Mishneh Torah (Hilchot Tefillin u'Mezuzah v'Sefer Torah, Hilchot Tzitzit), though before Mishneh Torah, their standard was based on the Rama, i.e. Rabbi Meir ben Todros HaLevy Abulafia.[7]
Women and sofrut
Forming the basis for the discussion of women becoming soferim, Talmud Gittin 45b states, "Sifrei Torah, tefillin and mezuzot written by a heretic, a star-worshipper, a slave, a woman, a minor, a Cuthean, or an apostate Jew, are unfit for ritual use."[8] The rulings on mezuzot and tefillin are virtually undisputed among those who hold to the Talmud. While Arba'ah Turim does not include women in its list of those ineligible to write Sifrei Torah, some see this as proof that women are permitted to write a sefer Torah.[9] However, today, virtually all Orthodox (both Modern and Ultra) authorities contest the permissibility of a woman's writing a sefer Torah. Yet, women are permitted to inscribe Ketubot (marriage contracts), STaM not intended for ritual use, and other writings of sofrut beyond simple STaM. In 2003, Canadian Aviel Barclay became the world's first known, traditionally trained, soferet.[10][11]
Among non-Orthodox Jews, women have written Torah scrolls since the early 2000s. In 2007 Jen Taylor Friedman, a British woman, became the first woman to scribe a sefer Torah.[12] In 2010, the first sefer Torah scribed by a group of six women (from Brazil, Canada, Israel, and the United States) was completed;[13] this was known as the Women's Torah Project.[14] Since then, other women have written Torah scrolls.[15]As of 2014[update], there were an estimated 50 female sofers around the world.[16]
There are many rules concerning the proper formation of letters that must be followed if a written text is to be deemed religiously valid.[17] The Ashkenazi, Sefardi, Chabad (Lubavitch), and Mizrahi Jews each have their own script for forming the letters, though the same rules apply throughout the text. Generally, regarding sifrei Torah, none of these groups would consider that these differences would render a Torah posul (ritually unfit or invalid).
The documents must be written on properly prepared parchment or vellum known as klaf.
Many scribes also function as calligraphers—writing functional documents like ketubot, or ornamental and artistic renditions of religious texts—which do not require any scribal qualifications, and to which the rules on lettering and parchment specifications do not apply.
↑ 82nd of the 613 commandments as enumerated by Rashi, and the second to final as it occurs in the text of the Torah, Book of Deuteronomy 31:19, the final being in Deuteronomy 32:38
Women in Judaism have affected the course of Judaism over millennia. Their role is reflected in the Hebrew Bible, the Oral Law, by custom, and by cultural factors. Although the Hebrew Bible and rabbinic literature present various female role models, religious law treats women in specific ways. According to a 2017 study by the Pew Research Center, women account for 52% of the worldwide Jewish population.
Tefillin, or phylacteries, are a set of small black leather boxes with leather straps containing scrolls of parchment inscribed with verses from the Torah. Tefillin are worn by adult Jews during weekday and Sunday morning prayers. In Orthodox and traditional communities, they are worn solely by men, while some Reform and Conservative (Masorti) communities allow them to be worn by Jewish adults regardless of gender. In Jewish law (halacha), women are exempt from most time-dependent positive commandments, which include tefillin, and unlike other time-dependent positive commandments, most halachic authorities prohibit them from fulfilling this commandment.
A mezuzah is a piece of parchment inscribed with specific Hebrew verses from the Torah, which Jews affix in a small case to the doorposts of their homes. These verses are the Biblical passages in which the use of a mezuzah is commanded ; they also form part of the Shema prayer.
Duchsustus is the name of a type of parchment used for religious writings in Judaism. It is originally a Greek word and one of three Talmudic names for animal skin. The other two are klaf and gevil. The meanings of these terms, however, are the subject of controversy in Jewish law.
A Torah scroll is a handwritten copy of the Torah, meaning the five books of Moses. The Torah scroll is mainly used in the ritual of Torah reading during Jewish prayers. At other times, it is stored in the holiest spot within a synagogue, the Torah ark, which is usually an ornate curtained-off cabinet or section of the synagogue built along the wall that most closely faces Jerusalem, the direction Jews face when praying.
Chumash is a Torah in printed in book bound form as opposed to a Torah scroll.
Klaf or Qelaf is the designation given a particular piece of skin. The Talmudic definition includes both the form of the skin and the way it is processed, in particular, that it must be tanned. Since the innovative ruling of Rabbeinu Tam it is primarily used to refer to parchment or vellum. It is one of the materials upon which a sofer writes certain Jewish liturgical and ritual documents.
Gevil or gewil or is a type of parchment made from full-grain animal hide that has been prepared as a writing material in Jewish scribal documents, in particular a Sefer Torah.
Shlach, Shelach, Sh'lah, Shlach Lecha, or Sh'lah L'kha is the 37th weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading and the fourth in the Book of Numbers. Its name comes from the first distinctive words in the parashah, in Numbers 13:2. Shelach is the sixth and lecha is the seventh word in the parashah. The parashah tells the story of the twelve spies sent to assess the promised land, commandments about offerings, the story of the Sabbath violator, and the commandment of the fringes.
Jewish heresy refers to those beliefs which contradict the traditional doctrines of Rabbinic Judaism, including theological beliefs and opinions about the practice of halakha. Jewish tradition contains a range of statements about heretics, including laws for how to deal with them in a communal context, and statements about the divine punishment they are expected to receive.
Jen Taylor Friedman is a soferet. On September 9, 2007, she became the first woman known to have completed a Torah scroll. Taylor Friedman's sefer Torah was commissioned by United Hebrew Congregation, a Reform temple in St. Louis, Missouri.
Masekhet Soferim, the "Tractate of the Scribes", is a non-canonical Talmudic tractate dealing especially with the rules relating to the preparation of holy books, as well as with the laws of Torah reading. One of the minor tractates, it is generally thought to have originated in eighth-century Land of Israel. Being of late and uncertain date, it is now generally printed as Talmudic addenda.
A tag is a decoration drawn over some Hebrew letters in the Jewish scrolls of Sifrei Kodesh, Tefillin and Mezuzot. The Hebrew name for this scribal feature is kether (כתר). Tag and kether mean 'crown' in Aramaic and Hebrew respectively.
Ktav Ashuri also (Ktav) Ashurit, is the traditional Hebrew language name of the Hebrew alphabet, used to write both Hebrew and Jewish Babylonian Aramaic. It is often referred to as (the) Square script. The names "Ashuri" (Assyrian) or "square script" are used to distinguish it from the Paleo-Hebrew script.
Ktav Stam is the specific Jewish traditional writing with which holy scrolls, tefillin and mezuzot are written. Stam is a Hebrew acronym denoting these writings, as indicated by the gershayim punctuation mark. One who writes such articles is called a sofer stam. The writing is done by means of a feather and ink onto special parchment called klaf. There exist two primary traditions in respect to the formation of the letters, Ktav HaAshkenazi and Ktav HaSefardi, however the differences between them are slight.
Tiqqūn sōferīm is a term from rabbinic literature meaning "correction/emendation of the scribes" or "scribal correction" and refers to a change of wording in the Tanakh in order to preserve the honor of God or for a similar reason. Today, the phrase Tiqqun Soferim can also refer to a copy of the Five Books of Moses that is used to copy therefrom the Torah scroll.
Aviel Barclay is a Canadian soferet. On October 6, 2003, she became the first woman to be traditionally trained and certified as a Jewish scribe, an occupation held by men in the Orthodox tradition. She completed her first Torah scroll in fall 2010 under the auspices of the Kadima Women's Torah Project in Seattle, Washington. She is the subject of the 2005 television documentary Soferet.
Yemenite scrolls of the Law containing the Five Books of Moses represent one of three authoritative scribal traditions for the transmission of the Torah, the other two being the Ashkenazi and Sephardic traditions that slightly differ. While all three traditions purport to follow the Masoretic traditions of Aaron ben Moses ben Asher, slight differences between the three major traditions have developed over the years. Biblical texts proofread by ben Asher survive in two extant codices, the latter said to have only been patterned after texts proofread by Ben Asher. The former work, although more precise, was partially lost following its removal from Aleppo in 1947.
Objects used in Jewish rituals are known collectively as Judaica. The conservation and restoration of Judaica takes into account the collective body of Jewish religious laws derived from the written and oral Torah known as halacha in order to properly care for these materials. This work involves identifying these objects and therefore knowing how any of these objects are traditionally handled, stored, exhibited, and generally cared for based on their use and significance.
Rabbi Samson ben Eliezer was a 14th-century German sofer (scribe); better known as Barukh She'amar, from the initial words of the blessing which he recited joyfully, even in boyhood, at the shacharit (morning) service. He was born in Saxony, but later went with his parents to Prague. Orphaned when eight years old, he was adopted by R. Issachar, a learned scribe, who taught him to write tefillin, mezuzot, and Torah scrolls. Samson apparently traveled through Austria, Poland, Lusatia, Thuringia, and Bavaria, and finally went to Israel to study the work of the soferim of the Holy Land. There, he discovered that the majority of the soferim were ignorant of the correct halacha and tradition about the letters. He endeavored to correct this in his book "Barukh She'amar", which contains a treatise by R. Abraham of Sinzheim, a pupil of Meïr of Rothenburg, on the making and writing of tefillin, together with Samson's own notes from the "Halakot Gedolot,""SMaG," "Sefer HaTerumah," "Sefer HaRoḳeaḥ," and other works.
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