Mishnah
Mishnah

Halakhah sur Berakhot 2:3

הַקּוֹרֵא אֶת שְׁמַע וְלֹא הִשְׁמִיעַ לְאָזְנוֹ, יָצָא. רַבִּי יוֹסֵי אוֹמֵר, לֹא יָצָא. קָרָא וְלֹא דִקְדֵּק בְּאוֹתִיּוֹתֶיהָ, רַבִּי יוֹסֵי אוֹמֵר יָצָא, רַבִּי יְהוּדָה אוֹמֵר לֹא יָצָא. הַקּוֹרֵא לְמַפְרֵעַ, לֹא יָצָא. קָרָא וְטָעָה, יַחֲזֹר לְמָקוֹם שֶׁטָּעָה:

Celui qui récite le Shema sans se faire entendre remplit l'obligation. R. Yossi dit: Il ne remplit pas l'obligation. [Car il est écrit (Deutéronome 6: 4): "Écoutez"—Laissez votre oreille entendre ce que votre bouche dit. Et le premier tanna tient: "Hear"—dans n'importe quelle langue que vous avez l'habitude d'entendre. Et la halakha est selon le premier tanna.] S'il la récitait sans être précis avec ses lettres [pour les énoncer clairement, dans une instance de deux mots où le deuxième mot commence par la même lettre avec laquelle la première lettre se termine, comme dans «al levavcha», «esev besadecha», «va'avadetem meherah». S'il ne laisse pas d'espace entre eux pour les séparer, on dirait qu'il prononce deux lettres comme une seule.]—R. Yossi dit: Il a rempli son obligation. [Et la halakha est selon R. Yossi. Cependant, ab initio, il doit énoncer les lettres. De même, il doit veiller à ne pas reposer le sheva mobile et à ne pas déplacer le quiescent, et à ne pas affaiblir (en prononçant sans dagesh) une forme forte et à ne pas renforcer une forme faible. Et il doit accentuer le zayin de «tizkeru», pour qu'il ne sonne pas comme «tiskeru», c'est-à-dire «pour que vous amassiez une récompense». Car il ne convient pas de servir le Maître pour la récompense.] R. Yehudah dit: Il n'a pas rempli son obligation. Si on le récite dans l'ordre inversé [s'il récite le troisième verset avant le second, le second avant le premier, etc.], il n'a pas rempli son obligation [étant écrit (Deutéronome 6: 6): "et ces mots doit être"—ils resteront dans leur forme originale, c'est-à-dire comme ils sont ordonnés dans la Torah. Cependant, s'il avance la section, récitant vayomer avant vehaya im shamoa et vehaya im shamoa avant Shema, il semblerait que cela ne soit pas considéré comme «inversé», et il remplit son obligation; car ils ne sont pas ainsi arrangés, l'un après l'autre, dans la Torah.] S'il l'a récité et s'est trompé, il revient au point de l'erreur. [S'il a erré entre une section et une autre, ne sachant pas avec quelle section il s'est arrêté et au début de quelle section il doit revenir, il revient au premier couplet, vehaya im shamoa. (Rambam dit: Veahavta eth Hashem.) Et s'il s'arrêtait au milieu d'une section, sachant quelle section, mais ne sachant pas où dans cette section il s'était arrêté, il revenait au début de cette section. S'il récitait «uchethavtam», mais ne savait pas s'il s'agissait de celui de Shema ou de celui de vehaya im shamoa, il retourne à l '«uchethavtam» de Shema. Et s'il avait un doute après avoir commencé le leman yirbu, il ne revient pas, car il peut se fier à «l'habitude de sa langue»].

Peninei Halakhah, Women's Prayer

There are women who are not meticulous about the laws of tzni’ut and many other mitzvot, but they wish to boast by wearing talit and tefilin. One should object to their agenda of turning the Torah and mitzvot into a site of social conflicts, as mitzvot should be performed for God’s sake, not as a tool to advance interests of one sort or another.1The mishna on Berakhot 20a states that women are exempt from tefilin but does not clarify whether women who want to wear tefilin may do so just as they may perform other positive time-bound mitzvot like lulav and shofar. Eruvin 96a cites a beraita that states that Michal, the daughter of King Shaul, wore tefilin and that the Sages did not object. Tosafot (ad loc.) state in the name of Pesikta that the Sages indeed objected. Similarly, y. Berakhot 2:3 first cites an anonymous opinion that the Sages did not object and then cites R. Ḥizkiya to the effect that the Sages did, in fact, object. Tosafot state that according to the opinion that the Sages objected even though they did not object to women performing other time-bound positive mitzvot, it is because “tefilin require a clean body, and women are not zealously careful.” (It seems that the concern is that they may not wear tefilin while menstruating – see Rema 88:1 – and since they do not normally study laws that do not pertain to their obligations, they will not be careful about this. Perhaps there is also concern that they will handle a soiled diaper or another filthy household item.) Kol Bo also states in the name of Maharam that one should object to women who wish to wear tefilin because “they do not know how to keep themselves clean.” Beit Yosef cites this, and SA 38:3 rules: “Women and slaves are exempt from tefilin as it is a time-bound positive mitzva. Rema: If women wish to be stringent upon themselves, we object (Kol Bo).”
MA explains that if women had been obligated by the Torah to wear tefilin, the rationale that they are not careful about cleanliness would not exempt them from the mitzva. However, since they are exempt and there is a concern about cleanliness, their wearing tefilin is objectionable. Along these lines, AHS states that really men have the same problem; tefilin require a clean body. However, since men are obligated, they wear tefilin for Shema and prayers while being as careful as possible. Women, though, are exempt, and should not subject themselves to this serious concern. For them, the time of prayer and reciting Shema are the equivalent of the rest of the day for men. We therefore do not allow them to wear tefilin. Even though Michal wore tefilin and the Sages did not object, this case is not instructive. Presumably, they knew that she was completely righteous and knew how to take the proper precautions. Similarly, Kaf Ha-ḥayim 38:9 states in the name of Birkei Yosef and other Aḥaronim that one should object to women wearing tefilin and cites esoteric reasons for this as well.
Yet there are Rishonim who say that one should not object. Indeed, Orḥot Ḥayim challenges Maharam’s strict ruling (cited in Kol Bo) based on the opinion that the Sages did not object to Michal wearing tefilin. This is cited in Beit Yosef, which answers that Kol Bo relied on the view that the Sages indeed object to Michal. Olat Tamid (an early commentary on Shulḥan Arukh) 38:3 rejects Maharam’s view: if the prohibition on women wearing tefilin is based on cleanliness, why does Berakhot 20a state that they are exempt because it is a time-bound positive mitzva? Moreover, Michal wore tefilin and the Sages did not object. Therefore, Olat Tamid concludes: “We do not object to an old woman who we know is capable of guarding herself, and it is sort of case that they are discussing there [ in reference to Michal.” It is also said of several righteous women from early and later generations – including the wife of R. Ḥayim ibn Atar – that they wore tefilin.
The practical ruling is that a woman should not wear tefilin, and many authorities – including Rema, Kaf Ha-ḥayim, MB, and many others – state that objections should be raised against women who wish to wear tefilin. Nevertheless, a woman who wishes to wear tefilin has authorities to rely upon – Orḥot Ḥayim and Olat Tamid – and AHS also concludes that one should not object to one who is renowned as a righteous woman. Therefore, in practice, one should not object to this practice. However, a woman who wear tefilin should take care not to wear them while menstruating (though she may wear tefilin while counting her clean days) and should make sure to wear them in private, so that it is clear that she is wearing them for God’s sake and so that she does not advertise when she is menstruating.
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