[NFBJ] Misleading information--Hebrew Braille Torah scrolls do not qualify as a Torah from which to read for a congregation

Sat Jun 21 01:47:03 UTC 2025

Reading the haftorah (sp?) which is usually what's read  by a bar or bat mitzvah  is not the same as reading from the Torah. It's a portion from another part of the Tanach/bible  and can be read from any accurate book. Under traditional halacha, a torah portion must be read from the Torah scroll and cannot therefore be read by a Bllind person  
I was trying to find a reference to a story I heard somewhere about a Torah reader in Sfat who went Blind and was asked to still read, because he had such a beautiful voice, to chant from memory, which he was capable of but he refused, even though he lamented not being able to, because the mandate is that it be read  by seeing it, not just from memory. So, I tried using Chat GPT to find more about that Blind man, I think he was a Rabbi, because Chat GPT  can sometimes find things I wouldn't expect, and it didn't find it,but did find a reference to communities making an exception for Blind people, possibly reading from Braille, but only where someone was reading from the scroll and they repeated after them.
It should also be mentioned that it's possible that in a Reform or Reconstructionist or other similar congregation where they don't hold by traditional halacha, that it's possible a Blind person could be chanting the portion or reading from Braille. I doubt they would use this particular Braille scroll because it's less convenient than just using a regular Braille Chumash or even just a printout of a single portion. Since they wouldn't be going by Halacha anyway, there's no reason to do it from Braille in scroll form. 

On Jun 18, 2025, at 6:45 PM, Ricky Lomey via NFBJ <nfbj at nfbnet.org> wrote:

I remember reading an article in the Times of Israel some years ago that a girl in a women's Torah reading at a modern Orthodox congregation in Washington DC read her Bat Mitzvah portion also in Hebrew braille using a cantillation or trop which had been devised and I found this to be rather strange in view of Rabbi Levy's below and wondered if it would have been allowed if one knew Hebrew braille for a Barmy and also was under the impression that it would not have been.

Ricky Lomey

-----Original Message-----
From: NFBJ <nfbj-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of mlevy--- via NFBJ
Sent: Wednesday, 18 June 2025 12:18
To: Stewart Prost <sprost82 at gmail.com>; NFB in Judaism <nfbj at nfbnet.org>; Tracy Soforenko <tracy.soforenko at gmail.com>; Rachel Balali <rahel.Balali0863 at gmail.com>; Dale HELTZER <deheltzer at msn.com>; Rachel Bodek <rybodek at gmail.com>; Rabbi Lenny Sarko <rabbi at rabbisarko.org>; Tracy Cady <tracy.swidler at gmail.com>
Cc: mlevy at verse-onality.com
Subject: [NFBJ] Misleading information--Hebrew Braille Torah scrolls do not qualify as a Torah from which to read for a congregation

A Torah must be read from a parchment.  There are no legitimate sources which permit the reading of the Torah from material other than a parchment.

Rabbi Michael Levy
Yad Hachazakah
www.yadempowers.org<http://www.yadempowers.org>

516-295-89999

www.yadempowers.org<http://www.yadempowers.org>

516-295-8999
Sharon Shapiro Lacks, Board Chairman
From: Stewart Prost <sprost82 at gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, June 17, 2025 9:52 PM
To: NFB in Judaism <nfbj at nfbnet.org>; Tracy Soforenko <tracy.soforenko at gmail.com>; Rachel Balali <rahel.Balali0863 at gmail.com>; Dale HELTZER <deheltzer at msn.com>; Rachel Bodek <rybodek at gmail.com>; Rabbi Lenny Sarko <rabbi at rabbisarko.org>; Tracy Cady <tracy.swidler at gmail.com>; mlevy at verse-onality.com
Subject: Information from Rabbi Lenny Sarko

Greetings all,
Please see the attached information from Rabbi Lenny Sarko.

--
Stewart Prost, Chair, NFB in Judaism Group
Phone: 757-572-6891
Fax: 757-210-7504
Email: sprost82 at gmail.com<mailto:sprost82 at gmail.com>
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