[Avodah] Rav Shimon Schwab on Women Learning Torah

[Akiva Miller via Avodah]

R"n Chana Luntz wrote:

> Rav Schwab however seems from this piece to hold that learning
> does not constitute any form of mitzvah for a woman.  In this
> regard, however, there is no reason to make a distinction between
> learning and any of the other mitzvos from which women are
> exempt, such as shofar and lulav, and hence he would presumably
> hold, against Rav Moshe and the others who follow the Ran etc
> that there is nothing of value in women performing lulav or
> shofar either.

I will agree that this seems to represent Rav Schwab's position on this
issue.

My problem is in the phrase "nothing of value". If Rav Schwab would say
that women get no *mitzvah* from doing these things that are not required,
it would be logical. But that's not what he said. It's not merely the
zechus of the mitzvah that women don't get, but they get absolutely nothing
at all, in his view. In his own words:

> it still would not make her one iota better than she
> is. It would have no influence on her relationship
> with Hakadosh Baruch Hu.

He seems to be saying that studying the Torah would not affect her Yiras
Shamayim any more than studying a mathematics book would. But to me that is
absurd. To give just two examples, study the emunah of the Avos, or the
mussar of the neviim -- why does Rav Schwab think that this "would have no
influence on her relationship with Hakadosh Baruch Hu"?

Akiva Miller
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