How do I repeal rabbinic laws? Who to contact? What is the process? Please give me specific names and direct contact information. I need real decision makers who can really change the laws. Online or phone # would be great. PM me if it is private. I would rather contact them than write my questions here on this forum. This would really help me out. Thanks.
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3Rabbinic laws cannot be repealed the way you seem to think they can, (and fire on shabbos is actually a torah prohibition....). I'm still not sure what you're trying to ask --how could you repeal a law that applies to everyone?– andrewmh20Jan 17, 2016 at 23:07
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5In general, any rabbinic enactment can be repealed by any court which is larger and wiser than the court which enacted the enactment. This principle is found in the Mishnah Eduyot 1:5.– Double AA ♦Jan 17, 2016 at 23:10
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3@AleksandrSigalov There is nobody in the rabbinic system who can change the rule about fire on Shabbat. That is a law from the Torah.– DanielJan 17, 2016 at 23:25
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5If you want to start yet another movement based on aspects of Judaism, you don't need any action from rabbis. If you want to engage with traditional Judaism and make changes within it, I recommend that you study traditional Judaism thoroughly first, so that you can best understand what changes are possible, and how.– Isaac Moses ♦Jan 18, 2016 at 13:40
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5This question is written from a point of view of not knowing how traditional Judaism functions. My previous comment addresses that point of view.– Isaac Moses ♦Jan 18, 2016 at 17:00
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2 Answers
As far as I know there are currently no rabbis who are actively involved in legislating rabbinc-level laws. Those laws were set in stone centuries ago. As DoubleAA mentioned in the comments on your question, rabbinic laws could theoretically be repealed by a court under certain circumstances; however, there is not currently a court as great as the Sanhedrin in order to do this.
As far as modern decision-making goes, current rabbis are not determining new laws. Modern rabbis simply interpret the laws that have been in place for a long time in a modern context. There are a few great rabbis who answer the most difficult questions; however, most scenarios that you will encounter in a day-to-day context are unlikely to be so complex that such a great rabbi must be contacted. Usually your local Orthodox rabbi will be sufficient to tell you what you should do in a given circumstance. He will not be creating the law; he will just be telling you the law that is already on the books, and he doesn't have the power to change it.
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Fire on Shabbat. I want to change that first :) Is my local orthodox rabbi sufficient for that? Jan 17, 2016 at 23:24
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3@AleksandrSigalov Your local orthodox rabbi is always a good first point of contact. If he feels he doesn't have the knowledge or authority to handle the situation, he'll refer you up to someone more knowledgeable or authoritative. (In the case I suspect you won't find anyone alive who feels they have the authority to overturn the laws you refer to.)– Double AA ♦Jan 17, 2016 at 23:26
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@AleksandrSigalov No your local Orthodox rabbis is not sufficient for that. That is something which cannot be done even by the greatest court.– DanielJan 17, 2016 at 23:26
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2@AleksandrSigalov Some things can be changed. It is extremely unlikely that fire on Shabbat will ever be changed... probably even after Moshiach comes. But I don't think we're "screwed." We just won't light fires on Shabbat and everything will be ok.– DanielJan 17, 2016 at 23:28
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4@AleksandrSigalov Things enacted by those wiser than us do not get changed merely because of our logical reasoning, because we trust those who enacted it knew what they were talking about better than we do (since they were wiser than we are).– Double AA ♦Jan 17, 2016 at 23:28
Orthodox Jews live their lives based on rules explained/instituted by great Rabbis many years ago.
Throughout the generations many learned people have continued to interpret and apply those laws. While in theory anyone could say anything they want today, people would only listen if you are learned, serious and respect precedent.
While nowadays there is no central leader that everyone accepts, there is often consensus on the much earlier Rabbi’s decisions.
It is practically impossible to overturn actual rabbinic laws today until the Jewish people get it together enough to institute a court greater than the one at the time when the oral law was finalized in written form.
Without one communal leader, each community has a Rabbi or Rabbis that help lead their community and make small decisions about applying laws to their community. That is probably who you would want to find and talk to, and if necessary they can point you to an appropriate Rabbi who is an expert in more specific fields.
answered Jan 17, 2016 at 23:17
