Bibbia Ebraica
Bibbia Ebraica

Halakhah su Deuteronomio 1:16

וָאֲצַוֶּה֙ אֶת־שֹׁ֣פְטֵיכֶ֔ם בָּעֵ֥ת הַהִ֖וא לֵאמֹ֑ר שָׁמֹ֤עַ בֵּין־אֲחֵיכֶם֙ וּשְׁפַטְתֶּ֣ם צֶ֔דֶק בֵּֽין־אִ֥ישׁ וּבֵין־אָחִ֖יו וּבֵ֥ין גֵּרֽוֹ׃

E ho accusato i tuoi giudici in quel momento, dicendo: 'Ascolta le cause tra i tuoi fratelli e giudica giustamente tra un uomo e suo fratello e lo sconosciuto che è con lui.

Contemporary Halakhic Problems, Vol IV

But why is a Bet Din not empowered to review the action of another Bet Din? R. Dosa ben Horkanos declares that, if such review were to be undertaken, consistency would require examination of the actions of every Bet Din going back to the time of Moses. The Mishnah does not say that such review is precluded or prohibited. The phraseology of the Mishnah indicates only that such review is unnecessary and superfluous. That principle, however, entails postulation of a logically antecedent principle to the effect that a decision, once issued, acquires validity at least until such time as it is set aside. Only when reviewed and overturned is the previous decision nullified retroactively.52This analysis will serve to reinforce the difficulty in explaining why a blessing is not pronounced by the Bet Din upon issuing a judgment. Despite the fact that the Gemara, Ketubot 106a, indicates that issuance of a judgment constitutes the fulfillment of the commandment “With justice shall you judge your fellow” (Deuteronomy 1:16), there is no source indicating that the members of the Bet Din must pronounce a blessing before announcing their decision. Teshuvot ha-Rashba, no. 18, states that the Sages did not ordain that a blessing be pronounced upon issuance of a decision by a Bet Din because of a fear that the litigants might not accept the decision. See also Bi’ur ha-Gra, Oraḥ Ḥayyim 8:1. Teshuvot Ḥatam Sofer, Oraḥ Ḥayyim, no. 54, maintains that the normative rule is that, contrary to the position of the Palestinian Talmud, a blessing may be pronounced only upon completion of the miẓvah and such completion, he maintains, does not occur until judgment is actually executed.
On the basis of the foregoing it might be argued that, if an erroneous decision is effective and valid, it should follow that issuance of the decision itself constitutes fulfillment of the commandment whether or not it is actually implemented by the litigants.
For an analysis of the difficulties inherent in this position as well as for an alternative thesis explaining why blessings were not ordained prior to performance of certain miẓvot see R. Baruch ha-Levi Epstein, Tosefet Berakhah, Deuteronomy 1:16.
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