Why is it necessary to ask a Rabbi?

Question

In various places on this site, including the FAQ, we have the following disclaimer:

Like Wikipedia, this site makes no guarantee of validity, and does not offer professional (particularly rabbinic) advice. Treat information from this site like it came from a crowd of your friends.

As discussed here and here, this disclaimer is motivated by the concern that people might consult this site for personal advice about what Judaism says they should do instead of consulting their own Rabbi. Along similar lines, many people here include in answers about Jewish practice a recommendation that the reader consult their own Rabbi.

What is the reason for this concern?

Why is it so important to speak, in particular, to a Rabbi (and especially to "your local" one)?

What would be so wrong with simply using good-looking information from a site like this one that we need disclaimers all over the place and constant warnings?

Answer 1

We are concerned with being the cause of somebody else erring. Parshat Kedoshim tells us "do not place a stumbling-block before the blind", which is interpreted to mean not only what it plainly says but also "don't be an enabler for a bad outcome". Causing somebody else to unknowingly transgress what God wants us to do is a pretty serious "bad outcome".

In order to become a rabbi one must study halacha and the sources that inform it in depth. Non-rabbis can also be serious scholars and I wouldn't write off a lay person who is, but most people don't know one.

As for "local", I think this is shorthand for "consult someone who will be your rabbi". Pirke Avot tells us "make for yourself a rav"; this is because most questions are not so clear-cut, and individual circumstances can bear on the answer. The rav needs to know not only the specific question but what is causing you to ask it. For example (and I'm just making this up here; I am not a posek etc), if you ask the generic question "can I go to a church service?" the answer is generally going to be "no". If you ask "can I go to the wedding of the sibling I've just recently reconciled with, who is marrying out, but not showing up could undo that reconcilliation?", the answer might be different. Your rav should be someone who knows you and ideally you should be having these conversations face-to-face, hence "local".

Answer 2

Here are a few, off the top of my head:

1. Often there are factors that you may not think are relevant when asking your question, but could certainly be. You may have looked up some kosher-kitchen question about vegetables, not knowing that onions have very different laws than potatoes.

2. There are plenty of gray areas in halacha where the conclusion may be something like "it's best not to do such-and-such, but it's allowable in cases of great need"; if every Tom, Dick, and Harry would go around deciding for themselves what's great need, X% of the population will (wrongly) do it all the time, and Y% will (wrongly) refrain even when it's life-and-death.

3. Someone other than yourself may be the best judge of the situation. You may say "it's not a great need", but a good rabbi may hear the anxiety in your voice that implies otherwise. Or the question may involve other human factors, where knowledge of the people involved is important.

4. It provides a good "checkup opportunity" for all sorts of related issues. If a married couple brings a personal question to their rabbi, he can see if the interactions between them look healthy. If a man needs to shed his yarmulka or eat fruit at a non-kosher restaurant because of his job, it's important to make sure he isn't feeling alienated from Judaism.

Answer 3

Many times practical halacha could be affected by something mentioned in passing in another source. A Rav has learned these things, is aware of them, and will adjust his ruling accordingly. A lay person may have learned the issue well but may be unaware of these modifiers.

Answer 4

Specifically for the laws of bruchot, which are very complicated, it is stated (Bruchos 35a), that since it is assur (forbidden) to get pleasure from this world without saying a brucha you should consult a Scholar and learn the laws of bruchot from him, so you should not make a mistake and commit sacrilege. (Also, don't stop learning them from him so you don't forget them.) Any halachot that are assur to break, you are obliged to learn the halachot from a Scholar before you break them - specifically for bruchot though, you need to continue to learn them so you don't forget them.

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This it's also an extention of "Cleaving to Hashem".

(Devarim 10:20) Hashem, your G-d, shall you fear, Him shall you serve, to Him shall you cleave, and in His Name shall you swear.

(Devarim 11:22) For if you will observe this entire mitzvah that I command you, to perform it, to love Hashem, your G-d, to walk in His ways and to cleave to Him.

We are supposed to cling to Hashem, but that's physically impossible. Instead, Kesuvos 11b, Berachot 10b, Pesachim 22b, say we should cleave to a Chacham by including them in all of our affairs, and listening to their opinions. Rambam says "cleaving to Hashem" is achieved by striving to know Hashem, which is achieved by knowing those that know Hashem, or learning torah from the Scholar.

Cleaving to one Rabbi is then also a reflection that Hashem is one.

Answer 5

Aside from all the halachic considerations related to needing to ask your Local Rabbi (eg. knowing the nuance of your situation, taking all things into consideration, knowing the various sources relating to the issue, our desire not to cause others to make mistakes in Jewish law) there are two additional areas that add to the need to consult with your Local Rabbi:

1. Some rabbis (called Poskim) have the ability to issue halachic rulings (called psak) which actually creates 'new' halachot that did not exist in a written source before. This is based on their knowledge and understanding of the existing body of halacha, the underlying motivations of that halacha, the intentions of Chazal (Talmudic Sages) and the current situation. This is not something that we have the power to do on this site, even if we have the requisite knowledge and understanding.
2. Asking a question to your Rabbi is an excuse to develop a relationship with him and this is a very important part of growing as a Jewish person. Pirkei Avot (1:6) implores us to "עשה לך רב, וקנה לך חבר - make for yourself a Rabbi and acquire for yourself a friend" these two are listed in one breath to indicate to us that they are both about building relationships. It is crucial that a Jewish individual have and develop a relationship with a Rabbi that understands him and his situation, not merely so that said Rabbi can answer the individuals questions with ease, but, far more importantly, so that the individual becomes a part of the Jewish community, the Jewish chain of tradition and because having a relationship with a holy person brings one closer to God. It is crucial that we have role models in our life and not just those which sit on-high, but those who dwell among us and are involved in every aspect of our lives. This, and only this, is the type of relationship that helps us grow as a Jewish individual, as a person and as a servant of God.

For more on what the role of a Local Rabbi is (as viewed by everyday people), see the comments on this post. [Full disclosure: That post is from my personal blog]