Arukh HaShulchan, Orach Chaim 246:3-10

Sugya Map

• Issue: Reconciling the prohibition of lo ta'aseh Torah kardum lachpor bo (Avot 4:5) with the practical necessity of supporting those who dedicate their lives to Torah study and dissemination.
• Nafka Mina: The halachic permissibility and communal obligation for salaries of rabbis, roshei yeshiva, and Torah educators, and the funding models for yeshivot.
• Primary Sources: Avot 4:5; BT Brachot 35b; Rambam, MT Talmud Torah 3:10; Arukh HaShulchan, Orach Chaim 246:6-8.

Text Snapshot

The Arukh HaShulchan precisely delineates the nuance:

• "ומה שאמרו לא תעשה עטרה להתגדל בה ולא קורדום לחפור בה, היינו כשעוסק בה לכתחלה כדי שיקבל שכר" (Arukh HaShulchan, Orach Chaim 246:6).
• "אבל אם אמנם אומנתו אומנות (ללמוד תורה) וממילא אין לו פנאי לעסוק במסחר או במלאכה, מותר לו לקבל שכר מן הצבור" (Arukh HaShulchan, Orach Chaim 246:7). The repeated phrase "אומנתו אומנות" (his profession is the profession) highlights the unique, non-commercial nature of Torah as a public service, not a private enterprise.

Readings

Rambam, MT Talmud Torah 3:10

The Rambam establishes that one who dedicates their life to Torah, like Levi, is supported by the community. This is not schar for Torah itself, but a communal obligation to enable the tzibbur to have Torah and its perpetuation.

Geonim (cited by Arukh HaShulchan 246:8)

The Geonim provided the foundational distinction: one cannot take a fixed salary for teaching Torah, but one can be supported so they can learn and thereby teach. The support is schar bitul melacha (compensation for nullifying work), not schar Torah (payment for Torah itself).

Friction

Kushya

If kardum lachpor bo is so stringent (Avot 4:5, "כל הנהנה מדברי תורה נוטל חייו מן העולם"), how can any professional Torah scholar or institution legitimately exist without fundamentally violating the spirit of Torah Lishma?

Terutz

The Arukh HaShulchan (246:7-8) and Rambam (MT Talmud Torah 3:10) resolve this by reframing the "payment." It's not a wage for Torah, but a stipend for the sustenance of one who dedicates their time to Torah, thereby benefiting the entire community. The community enables Torah to continue; the scholar is not "selling" it.

Intertext

• Mishnah Avot 4:5: "אל תעשם עטרה להתגדל בהם ולא קרדום לחפור בהם... וכל המנה ינה מדברי תורה נוטל חייו מן העולם." This is the foundational source for the prohibition.
• BT Nedarim 62a: Further discusses the prohibition of using Torah for personal gain, even for honor, stating "אין מקבלין שכר על דברי תורה."

Psak/Practice

The Arukh HaShulchan (246:7-8) provides the halachic basis for supporting modern rabbonim, roshei yeshiva, and magidei shiur. Their "salaries" are understood as enabling their full-time dedication to Torah for communal benefit, rather than direct payment for Torah content.

Takeaway

Halacha meticulously balances the ideal of Torah Lishma with the practical necessity of supporting scholars by distinguishing between profiting from Torah and enabling its study for the community.