Become a Sofer – Study Online!

Study to Become a Sofer ONLINE!

It was taught in a Beraita:

Rabbi Meir said: When I came to Rabbi Yishmael, he said to me: My son, what work do you do? I said to him: I am a scribe. He said to me: My son, be careful with your work, because your work is the work of Heaven. Maybe you will leave out a letter, or add an additional letter and it will be that you destroy the entire world! (Eiruvin 13)

What is Sofrut All About?

The last of the 613 commandments of the Torah states that every Jewish male should write for himself a Sefer Torah during his lifetime – though in today’s times the Mitzvah is accepted as being fulfilled through the purchase of Torah books and building one’s own library – a home filled with books! A Sofer is a Jewish scribe who is involved in the Mitzvah of writing Sifrei Torah, Mezuzot, Tefillin and Megillot as well as other important Halachic documents.

All Jewish males over the age of 13 are commanded to fulfill the Mitzvah of wearing Tefillin every day of their lives (except for Shabbat and festivals.) All Jewish homes must have Mezuzot affixed to the right hand side of the doorposts of all rooms (except for bathrooms and various other rooms not included within this Mitzvah.) Every Shabbat, Monday and Thursday, festivals and various other days of the year – the Torah is read in public provided there are ten adult males over the age of 13 present. The Sefer Torah that is read from is the most basic foundation of all Jewish history and law. As the Zohar teaches, Israel, the Torah and G-d are all One. The Torah is the very essence of the life and soul of a Jew.

There are thousands of laws involved in the writing of a Torah and the other texts above – and it can take months and longer to become expert in these laws. In addition to the numerous laws, the Sofer (scribe) must learn how to write the letters in accordance with the various customs. This all takes hours and hours of intensive study. Many don’t realise that the writing of a Mezuzah can take as long as 8 hours to write! A Sefer Torah can take between one to one and a half years of full time writing!

In addition to the time taken to learn and to practise this specialised art, the Sofer must also be able to afford the costs of the parchment for writing on, an ergonomic desk to write on, as well as the other costs involved. He must learn about the various knots of the Tefillin and how to prepare his quill. (In today’s times there are a variety of ready made quills now available as well.)

Most importantly – above all this, he must be someone who is a Yirei Shamayim – someone who fears Heaven – after all, if he is going to be involved in such holy work, he must be someone who himself practises what it is that he is writing about!

Prepare for the Standard Examination of the
International Vaad Mishmeret Stam in Israel!

Have you wanted to become a Sofer – a Jewish scribe – but wondered how you could get started in learning? It’s not always easy to know what’s involved and how to go about things successfully.

The great news – is that Reb Eliyahu (a qualified Sofer from the Vaad Mishmeret Stam (Israel)) is now offering private and group lessons online! He’ll be taking you through all the material you’ll need to master – allowing you to prepare for the main examination administered by the Vaad Mishmeret Stam. There’s a lot of material to cover – but it’s really exciting! Read on and find out more about what Safrut is really all about!

Advantages of Learning Sofrut Online
With Reb Eliyahu

• Learn at times best suited to you! No need to feel you have to learn at a specific time and schedule only!
• Learn at your pace!
• Questions asked in the actual examination dealt with in the actual Shiurim!
• Get to improve your Hebrew reading and understanding – if you are still struggling!
• You can learn the Halachot – even if you don’t feel ready yet to actually obtain Kabbalah! Summarising at a later time will come that much easier!
• Shiurim can be continued to progress in other commentaries and books as necessary when necessary – even after covering the basic necessary material!
• Reb Eliyahu will share more about the books you’ll need to learn from as you progress – books which will help you for life in your career as a Sofer Stam!

Endorsements

Chessed Ve’Emet wishes Dr Dean Gersun Mazal Tov on his successful completion of the Sofrut course having obtained certification from the international organisation –Vaad Mishmeret Stam. This is a much sort after qualification and recognises the tremendous effort put into the learning necessary to qualify. All learning was done via the Internet with the final examination taking place in Jerusalem. Dr Dean is now officially a Sofer STa”M and is permitted to write Sifrei Torah, Tefillin and Mezuzot.

REQUIREMENTS
AND TERMS AND CONDITIONS
TO STUDY SOFRUT WITH RABBI ELIYAHU

Did you know? Sofrut is not just about writing letters. Sofrut is about studying the thousands upon thousands of laws necessary to write. But that’s not all! Being a Sofer means being responsible for the very lives of those whom one writes for. Many are the stories told about people having found Mezuzot that were not kosher on having checked them. Stories abound that sometimes people had difficulties walking, studying, talking and a variety of other conditions. Seeing the Mezuzot and the mistakes made (found) often points to a direct correlation between the problem and the faulty Mezuzah!

Indeed – to become a Sofer means being responsible for every letter written in the Tefillin, Mezuzot, Sifrei Torah or any other documents you may come to write.

It’s really much like a doctor! It’s one thing to learn about medicine. It’s quite another to actually take responsibility for the work performed. And for this reason, before becoming a doctor, one must swear the Hippocratic oath! Medicine isn’t just about playing with medications to come out with something that may work. Neither is it about just doing “business as usual!” Rather, medicine and being a doctor means being a moral and caring human being. It means valuing the patient and his/her needs. Well – everyone knows just how important good behaviour and responsibility is when one seeks a doctor suitable for one.

Being a Sofer is no different. A Sofer needs above everything to be a God-fearing individual. This means someone who has committed himself to observing all 613 Mitzvot of the Torah. It is simply insufficient to say that one has mastered the material without being a God-fearing individual. How would a person be able to rely upon a person who must fulfill thousands of laws – if that person was not God-fearing?! Would the person tell the client if he had changed something forbidden to do – and if not, can we imagine the plethora of non-kosher sacred items we would find ourselves confronted with every day – without ever knowing it?!

Therefore, to those who wish to pursue the study of Sofrut – and to become qualified Sofrim, please note, that acceptance to learning means at the very minimum that:

1. The prospective student follows in the direction of mainstream Orthodox Judaism
2. The prospective student must be Shomer Shabbat
3. The prospective student must abide by the laws of Kashrut
4. The prospective student – if married – must fulfill the laws of Taharat HaMishpachah.
5. If the student is not yet following these laws or does not understand what they are all about yet – feel free to enquire first, just so that we both know that we are working on a path of growth together.
6. It is important that the student is able to submit a letter of reference from a competent Orthodox rabbi who already knows the student and can vouch for their commitment to authentic Torah Judaism.
7. If point 6 is not available – the student must be prepared to meet in a video conference so that we can discuss more about your Torah lifestyle.

When contacting Rav Eliyahu, please indicate in your email correspondence that you have read this page and are aware of the conditions for learning Sofrut. Those contacting Rav Eliyahu who do not fit these criteria and who do not accept the conditions of study will be turned away.

I look forward to hearing from you and learning more about who you are, what your Torah values are, your interest in learning Sofrut and whatever else you’d like to share about your commitment to a Torah path. Thanks for appreciating and understanding the importance of all these points. Together with the above points and a strong commitment to study the thousands of laws and put in the necessary time to learn them and to practise your writing, you will stand the best chance of being successful and bringing blessing to so many of the Jewish people in the future!

The Story
About My Own Sofer Teacher
The Last Soviet Sofer!

NOW – You Become the Sofer!

There’s a process to follow if you’re going to succeed!  You need to master the necessary material in the Shulchan Aruch, the Mishnah Berurah, the Biur Halachah and the Kesset HaSofer! You’ll need to learn to write the actual letters (for which in-person learning is essential and cannot be successfully learned online in totality.) You’ll need to prepare yourself by answering the selection of questions necessary to know – and understand!

But where does it all begin – and have you found anyone in your area ready to teach – and who is qualified to teach? From my own struggle at working through the material and finding the right people to learn from – I well know what’s needed – and I want to share that with you.

If you’re serious about becoming a  qualified Sofer – so that you can write your own Mezuzot, Tefillin, Megillot or even a Sefer Torah – whether to make a career from it, or just to write for yourself – book your lessons online TODAY with Reb Eliyahu and prepare yourself for one of the most exciting areas of the Shulchan Aruch!

Contact Rav Eliyahu
and find out more
about how the online lessons work!

While Rav Eliyahu is happy to teach the laws of Safrut, it is important to point out that not everyone who applies can be accepted to learn.

There are many important variables involved in becoming a Sofer.

Rav Eliyahu reserves the right to teach only those prepared to be interviewed and provide any necessary proof of Jewishness and letters of recommendation from rabbis who know the particular student in person.

Important Note
For Those Wishing to Study with Rabbi Eliyahu

It is important to point out that if you are interested in learning to become a Sofer, the greatest quality you will need is to have within you the fear of God. Included in this is the appreciation one has towards one’s teachers who will end up teaching you to become a Sofer. We – on this site – offer you the opportunity to learn from us. But because we are not a self-supporting organisation worth millions of dollars, we charge for the Shiurim we give. Payment for Shiurim is required before Shiurim begin and must be paid for in advance for a period of four Shiurim per period of our learning. Those wishing to learn for free or to trick us into promises of payment, gaining Shiurim for free without ever paying are not only violating some of the strongest prohibitions in the Torah, not only stealing the time we provide while teaching as well as the time spent in preparing Shiurim, but in addition show themselves to be not deserving of becoming God-fearing Sofrim. We ask you to please not be in touch with us to waste our time.

Sadly, numerous individuals have wasted our time asking dozens of questions regarding what one needs to become a Sofer, asking for advice and even going so far as booking sessions which they say they will pay for afterwards – and who never make payment. Naturally, they receive no further lessons. It is just disappointing that they have stolen from us in this way through a particular study of Torah that perhaps requires the greatest level of Kedushah and honesty. I shudder to think that we live in such a generation of Jews who are prepared to trick their fellow Jew into teaching them knowing full well the costs involved, only to end up not paying them (or even showing appreciation!)

As from the time that these few paragraphs have been added to this page, we will no longer be able to offer any time to those wishing to pursue their studies of Sofrut with us – without payment upfront before the very first lesson. This means that if you have any questions about learning, books required to obtain, materials or any other general questions, these questions will only be answered within the closure of the first lesson.

Please understand that we are not saying this because money is the only thing that concerns us. On the contrary, we would be delighted to do so much for free (having proved this already by the amount of time we have given in extra time going one-step above the letter of the law.) But our own situation in life is such that we ourselves lack the basics. We teach and engage in honest activities in order to try to get through each month. Those who cannot appreciate the needs of others in this way, are certainly not fitting to become Sofrim and we request you stay far from us.

Those who are sincere and wish to pursue their studies to become God-fearing Sofrim are welcome to find out more and prepare themselves for the holiest of professions. In addition, you stand the opportunity to take part in supporting another Sofer in being able to get through the most basic of monthly payments to remain alive.

We wish you good luck in whichever path you take – and present for you on this page the beauty of Sofrut, giving you the opportunity to gain from a life filled with holiness and a special connection to the Torah.