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A Gezerah

Question

What is a Gezerah?

Answer

A Gezerah is a Rabbinical prohibition. Any Rabbinical court can make a Gezerah for the people who accept its jurisdiction. If the court was in the time of the Talmud (or earlier), the Gezerah would be mentioned in the Talmud, and would usually be universally binding on Orthodox Jews; this would not always be the case for a Gezerah made by a later court.

A Gezerah is a prohibition, and a Takanah is a positive ordinance. The term “Gezerah” is also used for Divine decrees. The term “binding” isn’t appropriate for them; they are things that are destined to happen. But repentance often annuls a Divine Gezerah.

Follow-up question

Question

How do takanot and gezerot fit into the concept of not adding or subtracting to the mitzvot in the Torah?
Thanks!

Answer

The prohibition of adding or subtracting mitzvot from the Torah only applies when it is an actual addition to the laws of the Torah and treated with all the stringincies inherent in Torah law. The Rabbinical g’zeirot were always made in a manner which clearly indicated their non-Torah status. There are practical ramifications to this; mainly various leniencies which may apply to Rabbinic law but never to Torah law. In fact the Torah exhorts the Rabbinic leadership to make laws that will ensure the proper protection of the Torah laws. As the Torah writes explicitly in Vayikra (18:30) “u’Shemartem es mishmarti”, “Guard my laws.” Our Sages elucidate this further in “Pirkei Avos” — “Make a fence for the Torah”, i.e. make rules that ensure that the Jewish people don’t even come close to breaking any Torah prohibition.