Critical Notes on al-Fāsī

Samuel ben Meir (Rashbam)

Critical Notes on al-Fāsī Gittin 5 § 496 (b. Gittin 59b)

Early 12th Century

Al-Fāsī

Abbaye said: We have a tradition that if no priest is there, the package is separated [i.e., the order of Torah readers no longer has to be a priest, then a Levite, then Israelites].

Rashbam

I, Samuel, heard that this means only that the fixed order may be separated, but a Levite may read like an Israelite.

However, there have been great disputes in Ashkenaz over this, as some explain that a Levite may not read the Torah at all since no priest is available to be the first reader. They cite a proof from a passage: “I presume that this individual is a priest. What is the proof? That a Levite reads after him” [b. Ketubbot 25b]. This implies that a Levite may read only when he follows a priest. However, this is not a decisive proof, as it might be said that there were other priests in that synagogue, and if that man [who was reading] had read in the place of the priests [despite not being a priest] due to his great stature, a Levite would not have read after him [instead, a priest would have read next], since other priests were present.

Translated by Avi Steinhart.

Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 3: Encountering Christianity and Islam.

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Samuel ben Meir was perhaps the first northern European to compose critical notes (hasagot) to al-Fāsī’s The Book of Laws. Samuel often cited Rashi, his grandfather, or noted local traditions, as is the case here. In this text, on al-Fāsī Gittin 5 § 496 (b. Gittin 59b), he analyzes Torah reading practices. Normally the first two readings would be given to a priest and a Levite respectively and the rest to regular Israelites. Different customs arose as to what to do in the absence of a priest, not an uncommon occurrence in the small Jewish settlements of northern Europe.

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Creator Bio

Samuel ben Meir (Rashbam)

ca. 1085–ca. 1158

Very little is known of the life of Samuel ben Meir, known as Rashbam. He seems to have lived in France (Caen, Rouen) and supported himself as a sheep farmer. He distinguished himself in several intellectual fields, including Hebrew grammar, scriptural exegesis, talmudic commentary, piyyut, and halakhic responsa. Having studied in his youth with his grandfather Rashi and other leading figures, Samuel famously wrote that his exegesis sought to adhere to the peshat (plain sense) of scripture rather than Rashi’s more midrashic interpretations. The precise scope of his talmudic commentary, and even his biblical commentary, remains a matter of dispute. In his grammatical writings, Samuel frequently worked with earlier Andalusi sources.

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