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Klaff Tanning question:
By
Rabbi Eli Gutnick
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I received this question via email. I am not really a klaf expert, I was wondering if anyone could answer this question: Dear Rabbi Gutnick, I am writing to you because a good friend of mine has put the idea into my head that the klaf in my tefillin were not really tanned and therefore are not kosher. He referred me to Megilla 19a re diftera. From the research that I have done so far, it seems that the klaf that is used today is tanned only with a lime wash. On all of the tanning websites I’ve seen so far, they say that the lime doesn’t accomplish tanning but only the removal of the hair and some other pre-tanning effects. Would you be able to explain to me or refer me to a website that explains how the tanning process that is used today takes the hide out of the category of diftera? Thank you very much.
Rabbi Reuvain Mendlowitz clarifies his position on Ksav Chabad (and my final thoughts)
By
Rabbi Eli Gutnick
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Last week I posted some thoughts in response to a public lecture given by Rabbi Reuvain Mendlowitz regarding Ksav Chabad (the Alter Rebbe's ksav). I felt he did not represent the issue fairly, and since I had received questions about it from a number of people I felt it made sense to write a general response. After I posted my response on this forum, Rabbi Mendlowitz reached out to me by email and we ended up having a respectful and productive email exchange regarding the relevant issues surrounding Ksav Chabad. His position is a lot clearer to me now, and I think he also took certain things on board that I clarified with him. The purpose of the Stam Forum (at least back in it's heyday before all the whats app groups took over) was to connect sofrim from around the world, to promote achdus and build bridges, as well as to offer support and advice. In that spirit, I felt I should write a follow up post, to clarify some of the issues and misconception...

How can a person who looks religious defraud the public?
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if it is fraud since he is very open about his methods. He believes it is kosher. He tells people. I can't imagine he has too many takers for his megillos and sifrei Torah. Maybe for a ketores?
DeleteMuch worse are the many people doing this and many other fraudulent activities and disseminating them into the mass market by selling them to wholesalers and retailers but pretend they are written like regular Sta"m.
Please be aware that this method is approved of, and advocated by, HaRav Yitzchak Abadi of Lakewood. He has a detailed Teshuvah on it in his Ohr Yitzchak, Volume 1, Yoreh Deah 53.
DeleteYitzchak Abadi is famous for cooperating with this kind of crooks. Everyone prohibits printed STAM and nobody approves of it.
Deleteמזדעזע!!
ReplyDeleteI wrote the following about silk screen "Torahs" in my book, Sefer Torah: Divine Protection and Unity
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Printed and Silk Screened Torahs
"A Torah that was printed is invalid since it is not considered as a writing and the mitzvah is to write a Sefer Torah (like by all STa”M). Similarly, a Torah written using a silk screening process is invalid just like a printed Torah since a sofer did not write it by hand. A Sefer Torah written by a robot is similarly invalid."
For sources see:
Bnei Yonah (Yoreh Deah 271:6).See also Da’as Kedoshim (Yoreh Deah 271:9), Mikdash Me’at (271:45).