Making a Profit From an Aliya

There was once an individual in a certain community who was very particular to receive a specific aliya every year. This aliya was the one in Parshat Nasso in which the Kohanim are commanded to bless the Jewish people with the Birkat Kohanim. He believed that there was some kind of segula in receiving this aliya. So every year, when Parshat Nasso was read, he would be sure to purchase that Aliya. Indeed, it is customary in many congregations to sell or auction off the various Aliyot and honors that are awarded in the course of the service. In some congregations it is a daily event while in others it is only done when there is a Torah reading. In some congregations such auctions are held only on Shabbat and Yom Tov.

One year, however, this individual missed the auction and someone else purchased that Aliya instead. When he discovered what had happened, he hurried to the fellow who purchased the Aliya and begged him to sell it to him. He explained that for years he has been receiving this Aliya and that he did not want to break his tradition. Although the new proprietor was willing to oblige, he demanded an outrageous sum of money for it – many times more than what he paid. Rav Yitzchak Zilberstein was asked whether the conduct of the new owner of the Aliya was proper and in the spirit of the Torah.^[1]

In answering the question, Rav Zilberstein cited a precedent ruling, where it was written that if someone purchased the rights to a certain aliya in the synagogue for an entire year – but dies within that year – the inheritors of the deceased are required to continue the payments owing towards that Aliya for the rest of the year. They are, however, entitled to sell the honor to another congregant.[2]

There is some dispute, however, as to what should be done if a profit is made in the course of selling the Aliya in question to another congregant. According to some authorities, the inheritors of the deceased, who sold the Aliyah for a profit, are entitled to keep the money. Other authorities, however, insist that although they may recover the money they spent on the Aliya, they must turn over all profits to the synagogue. There is also an opinion that the inheritors need only give a token percentage of the profits to the synagogue while the rest of the profits can be kept for themselves. The requirement for a token donation to the synagogue is intended to be in recognition and appreciation of the fact that the profits were only possible thanks to the synagogue.

The halacha is generally in accordance with the view that it is permitted to sell and even profit from Aliyot should one choose to do commerce with such things. Indeed, the Talmud records that there was only one family that possessed the closely guarded secret on how the lechem hapanim, the showbreads, in the Beit Hamikdash were made. Not only did they refuse to share the secret with others, but they even walked off the job when the rabbis tried to coerce them into revealing the secret! They only returned to work when their wages were doubled.[3] Nevertheless, in our case of the “favorite Aliya,” as well as in the case of the family with the secret recipe to the lechem hapanim, even though profiting from such mitzvot may be permissible, it is deemed to be a distasteful and unbecoming thing to do.

[1] This episode is cited in Veharev Na, Vol. I, Nasso. See there for further discussion and sources.

[2] Olat Tamid 144:6.

[3] Yoma 38a. See Maharsha.