Everything about Responsa totally explained
Responsa (
Latin: plural of
responsum, "answers") comprise a body of written decisions and rulings given by
legal scholars in response to questions addressed to them.
In Judaism
In
rabbinic literature, the
Responsa are known as
She'elot u-Teshuvot (
Hebrew:
שאלות ותשובות "questions and answers") and comprise the body of written decisions and rulings given by
poskim ("decisors of Jewish law").
Judaism's responsa constitute a special class of
rabbinic literature, to be distinguished from the
commentaries (
meforshim) - devoted to the exegesis of the
Hebrew Bible, the
Mishnah, the
Talmud - and from
the codes of law which delineate the rules for ordinary incidents of life.
The responsa literature covers a period of 1,700 years - the mode, style and subject matter have changed as a function of the travels of the Jewish people and of the development of other halakhic literature, particularly the codes. See
History of Responsa.
Responsa play a particularly important role in
Jewish law. The questions forwarded are usually practical, and often concerned with new contingencies for which no provision has been made in the
codes of law, and the responsa thus supplement the codes. They therefore function as a source of law, almost as
legal precedent, in that they're consulted by later
decisors in their rulings; they're also, in turn, incorporated into subsequent
codes. See
Posek;
The sources and process of Halakha.
In addition to requests for
Halakhic rulings, many of the questions addressed were theoretical in character, particularly amongst the earlier responsa. The responsa accordingly contain rulings on
ethics,
business ethics, the
philosophy of religion,
astronomy,
mathematics,
history,
geography, as well as interpretations of passages in the
Bible, the
Mishnah, the
Talmud and the
Midrash. Thus, while early
Jewish literature has few historical works, many notes on the
history of Judaism have been introduced into the responsa.
Responsa contain valuable information about the
culture of the Jews and the people among whom they lived. Information may also be gleaned about the moral and social relations of the times, occupations, the household,
customs, expressions of joy and of sorrow, and recreations and even games. Older responsa are also important for readings and emendations of the
Mishnah and the
Talmud.
In Islam
A similar use of responsa (Ar. fatwā, pl. fatāwā) is found in
Islam. Here the
mufti (from the same root as fatwā) is a member of the Islamic scholarly class ('ulamā', sg. 'ālim) who form the Muslim religious establishment. In Islam, the term muftī is largely restricted to Sunnism, and has both a formal and informal use, the former for state-appointed officials who gave rulings on matters concerning the state or the public, the latter for individuals shaykh who respond to their followers or to others.
Nowadays, questions can be asked via the Internet, where numerous sites have sprung up offering legal rulings and advice.
In Shi'ism, fatwa is also used. There personal devotion to specific clergy is mandatory for believers. High-ranking members of the '
ulama' class achieve the status of marja' al-taqlīd (pl. marāji'), that is, 'the point to which imitation returns': in other words, they pronounce on religious matters, especially legal ones, and the rest of mankind are muqallid or imitators, who do nothing without the mandate of their specific marja'. There are very few marāji' at any time, though on a number of occasions since the 19th century, the title has come to rest on a single individual for the entire Shi'i world. There are larger numbers of Shi'i clergy with the rank of mujtahid, who are empowered to give independent opinions on religious matters. Traditionally, as in Judaism, the answers of marāji' and mujtahids are collected in a compilation called Risāla-yi su'āl va javāb (Pers.) or 'Epistle of Questions and Answers).
There is generally greater latitude for Shi'i 'ulamā', insofar as the principle of independent reasoning (ijtihād, from the same root as mujtahid)) in matters of religious law remains valid in Shi'i jurisprudence, whereas it's deemed to have ended in Sunnism as far back as the 10th century (though it's now reckoned that this perception of the desuetude or 'closing of the door' of ijtihad didn't always apply).
Further Information
Get more info on 'Responsa'.
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