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How careful should we be when handling Torah materials? How often do we put away our Torah books with kavod (honor) and respect?

What are the DOs and DON'Ts? Find out here...

Source of this article is from Yad L'Achim Wall Calender Kislev 5767

1. Books or documents containing religious texts (sifrei kodesh) must be handled with respect. As Rabbi Yosei taught (Pirkei Avos 4:6): "He who honors the Torah will himself be honored by his fellowman, but whoever dishonors the Torah willl himself be dishonored by his fellowman." Such sifrei kodesh include volumes of the Chumash, Tanach, Mishnah, Gemorah, the Siddur , halacha, commentaries and responsa.

2. Do not throw sifrei kodesh, but place them down with respect. You may not place sifrei kodesh on the floor.

3. Sifrei kodesh are not to be placed upside down. This means

• standing upright on the shelf with the top of the book touching the shelf
• lying closed on the table with the back cover facing up
• lying open withthe pages facing the table and teh binding in the air

If you find an incorrectly placed sefer kodesh, pick it up and place it down correctly. Many kiss the volume when they put it down. If a group of sifrei kodeh falls on the floor, pick them up quickly and do not waste time kissing them until they are all back on the table.

4. Do not lean on a sefer or put it on your lap with your elbows resting on the volume.

5. It is not permitted to sit on a bench on which sifrei kodesh have been placed. Therefore, be careful not to put a sefer down on the bench where people are sitting.

6. You cannot use a sefer kodesh to protect yourself from the sun or use a sefer to push something or bang in a nail.

7. Do not sleep on a crate containing sifrei kodesh or put them in a storage drawer under the bed.

8. Do not put any everyday items - letters, stamps, photos -- in a sefer

9. It is not respectful to put a sefer kodesh under the sefer you are using in order to make it easier to read from. However, if a sefer is already on your table, you may put the other one on it. You may not put a sefer on top of one you are using in order to prevent the pages from being flipped by the wind.

10. You may not write everyday notes (for example, someone's telephone number) on the margins or the empty pages of a sefer kodesh.

11. When writing, do not place the paper on top of a sefer kodesh.

12. It is a serious violation of Jewish law to wrap an object or book in pages from sifrei kodesh or to use them for binding books.

13. Do not place a sefer of lesser stature atop one of greater stature. Thus, one does not put a book of the prophets on a Chumash, or a Gemorah on top of a book of the prophets. However, custom permits two such books to be bound together in a single volume (such as a Siddur having the Book of Tehilim in the back.)

14. It is forbidden to bring sifrei kodesh into the bathroom (W.C.) or a bathhouse.

15. It is forbidden to engage in disrespectful acts (such as changing clothing) in a room containing sifrei kodesh, unless the sifrei kodesh are covered by two wrappings or are in a closed closet or a partition (1 meter, 3 ft. high) is placed between the person and the seforim.

16. When a person passes by holding a Chumash there is no need to stand up, as one would if he were holding a Torah scroll. (Some show extra respect and do stand.)

17. When passing a sefer to another person, both of you should use your right hands.

18. Printed sifrei kodesh have the same holiness as if they had been written by hand.

19. It is forbidden to burn or throw out ripped or worn pages of sifrei kodesh, be they texts of the written or oral Torah or their commentaries. They must be put away in a special storage place (genizah) to ensure that they come to no disrespect.

20. It is not proper to embroider or print verses or blessings on a tallis. If you have a tallis with the blessing on its top edge, that piece of cloth should be removed and put in the genizah. You should not write any verse, quotation of the Talmudic Sages, or any other Torah matters in a place where they can be defiled.

21. Sifrei kodesh printed and distributed by missionary workers to influence Jews have no holiness whatsoever and must be destroyed and not be kept at home.

22. Do not wrap or cover sifrei kodesh in sheets of newspaper, which contain irrelevant, irreverent or even offensive material.

23. It is meritorius to purchase sifrei kodesh, study from them, and lend them out to others. As the Sages explained the verse "And his righteousness endures forever" (Tehilim 112:9) -- this refers to someone who writes (also buys) seforim and lends them to others.

Yad L'Achim Wall Calendar subscription office:

Yad L'achim, 579 Fifth avenue, room 1420, New York, NY 10017, Tel 1800 709 2005

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