Shabbos Rosh Chodesh Chanukah

Q. This Chanukah, Rosh Chodesh falls on Shabbos, and we read from three Sifrei Torah: the first is used to read Mikeitz, the weekly portion, from the second we read the Rosh Chodesh portion in Parashas Pinchas, and the third is used for the Chanukah reading in Parashas Nasso. What should be done if a shul only has two Sifrei Torah? What if there is only one Sefer Torah?

A. Ordinarily, when there are three Sifrei Torah, we follow this sequence of reading: Mikeitz (weekly portion), Pinchas (Rosh Chodesh) and Nasso (Chanukah). This order is based on the principle of tadir vi’sheino tadir, tadir kodem, which means that common mitzvos take precedence over less common mitzvos. Therefore, the weekly portion comes first, then the Rosh Chodesh reading, which is a monthly occurrence, and finally, the Chanukah section, which is a yearly event.

The Rama 669:1 ruled that if there are only two Sefrei Torah, the first is used to read Mikeitz, and the second is used for Rosh Chodesh. While the second Sefer is read, the first Sefer is rolled to Nasso for the Chanukah portion. What should be done if the reading of the Rosh Chodesh in the 2nd Sefer Torah was completed before the first Sefer Torah was rolled to Nasso? This is a matter of dispute. The Chofetz Chaim (Bi’ur Halacha, 669 s.v. Ve’chozrin) maintains that in this instance the second Sefer that is on the shulchan should be rolled to Nasso. However, the Ishei Yisrael (47: fn 113) infers from the Oruch Hashulchan that two consecutive portions should not be read from one Torah under any circumstance. In the latter situation, the second Sefer Torah is removed from the shulchan, and the first is placed on the shulchan and rolled to Nasso. Perhaps the reason for this last position is that reading two sections from the same Sefer Torah gives the impression that both readings are one extended portion, and it must be avoided in all circumstances.

When there is only one Sefer Torah, Rav Efraim Zalman Margolis (Sha’arei Efraim 8:75) maintains that the same sequence is followed. However, Rav Eliyahu David Rabinowitz Tumim, otherwise known by the Hebrew acronym of Aderes, takes a novel position (Over Orach 684:3). He rules that when there is only one Sefer Torah, the order of reading on Shabbos Rosh Chodesh Chanukah is changed to Mikeitz (weekly portion), Nasso (Chanukah) and Pinchas (Rosh Chodesh). This is because another halachic principle is operative: ain ma’avirin al ha’mitzvos, we don’t pass over one mitzvah to do another. Since there is only one Sefer Torah, the reading must follow the order of the Parshiyos in the Torah scroll, to avoid rolling the Torah past one reading to reach another. Thus, the order of reading on Shabbos Rosh Chodesh Chanukah, if there is only one Sefer Torah, is Mikeitz, Nasso, then Pinchas.

Perhaps Rav Efraim Zalman Margolis is not concerned with ain ma’avirin al hamitzvos because he views the three readings as one mitzvah of Torah readings for Shabbos Rosh Chodesh Chanukah. Ain ma’avirin al hamitzvos applies when one skips one mitzvah in favor of another. By passing over a mitzvah, there is an implication that the skipped mitzvah is less significant. This is not the case when one mitzvah has multiple components that have a logical sequence. For that reason, Rav Efraim Zalman Margolis maintains the same sequence of Torah reading for Shabbos Rosh Chodesh Chanukah, even when there is only one Sefer Torah available.

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The Gerald & Karin Feldhamer OU Kosher Halacha Yomis is dedicated to the memory of Rav Yisroel Belsky, zt"l, who served as halachic consultant for OU Kosher for more than 28 years; many of the responses in Halacha Yomis are based on the rulings of Rabbi Belsky. Subscribe to the Halacha Yomis daily email here.