A shiur is a study of Talmud and Mishnah interpretations of a biblical passage from the Torah, which is Judaism’s interactive way of interpreting God’s law. It is a vital part of Judaism, and writing a shiur or delivering it to the temple is important. Depending on the author’s final conclusions, a shiur can be conservative, Hasidic, orthodox, or progressive. It is a way for the modern Jew to keep close to God’s law in a modern world not provided for in the Torah.
Shiur is the Hebrew word for study. A shiur is the study of Talmud and Mishnah interpretations of a biblical passage from the Torah. The Torah is what Christians call the Old Testament.
A shiur is somewhat like literary criticism which takes into account all interpretations of a passage before writing a critique. Yet it has a much greater significance than literature criticism, for it is Judaism’s interactive way of interpreting God’s law. While many view Jewish law as static and antiquated, it is quite the opposite. The interpretation of the law is an ongoing process and a dialogue that has been going on for thousands of years.
In a yeshiva, a school focused on Torah interpretation, one learns both to study and to write a shiur, or shiurim, the pluralized form. The Torah and its commentaries are evaluated to approximate how Jewish law should best be interpreted and followed. Writing a shiur or delivering it to the temple is a vital part of Judaism, underscoring the many disputes and resolutions regarding Jewish law.
Some compose a weekly shiur to be delivered during the Temple, similar to the scriptural interpretation that forms the basis of a sermon. Other times a shiur may be much longer and more thorough with writing concluding with a personal position on Jewish law as it has been interpreted.
Sometimes a shiur can have a dramatic effect on the interpretation of the law, which has given rise to several sects of Judaism in the past. It all depends on which shiurim a person agrees with and how the leaders of a Jewish community interpret them.
For example, some use the past tense written shiurim to argue for various deviations from normally accepted Jewish law. A shiur about what type of work is allowed on Saturdays might conclude that some types of work, such as needing surgery, are permitted, while other types of work, such as working overtime at the grocery store, are not.
Many shiurim have been written on the subject of Kosher food law. Those who do not follow Kosher point to a progressive shiur or several progressive shiurim which suggest that the consumption of certain foods is not in fact a violation of the law. Interpretation allows one to find one’s place in the various sects of Judaism. So a shiur can be conservative, Hasidic, orthodox, or progressive depending on the author’s final conclusions.
Depending on the sect of Judaism, writing a progressive shiur to a yeshiva may cause concern among teachers. This is well illustrated in Chaim Potok’s novel The Chosen. The character Danny is often accused of studying Torah in a way that doesn’t align with the school’s ideals.
However, some yeshivas are open to the more progressive shiur, and indeed shiur is often used to determine how to apply God’s law in modern times. This negotiation with the law, as new circumstances arise to test it, is one of the main purposes of shiur. It is a quest for knowledge of God’s word and law, and a way for the modern Jew to keep close to God’s law in a modern world not provided for in the Torah.
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