Giving a Levi precedence over a Yisrael when there is no Kohen

[1] (halacha 105)

Reading of the Torah []

Question: When there is no Kohen, is there value in calling up the Levi before the Yisrael for the reading of the Torah?

Answer: a. The Gemara in Gittin¹ states, 'Abaye said: We have a tradition that when there is no Kohen there, the bundle is dispersed.' The Rishonim disagree as to the meaning of his words, and as Rashi brings there², there are two approaches: some say that the Levi forfeits his privilege entirely and a Yisrael is called up rather than the Levi, and some say that although the Levi does not have a right of precedence, he is equal to a Yisrael and they may give it to whomever they wish. And the ruling of the Rosh³ is that when the Levi is greater than the Yisrael, or even equal to him in wisdom, he is given precedence, but if the Yisrael is greater than the Levi, the Yisrael is given precedence.

And in practice the Mechaber wrote in the Shulchan Aruch⁴ that when there is no Kohen, 'a Yisrael reads in the place of a Kohen,' and the Rema wrote on his words, 'but [the Levi] may be called up first.'

If so, by the letter of the law, when there is no Kohen there is no obligation to call up the Levi; rather they have the option to call up either a Levi or a Yisrael, unless the Yisrael is greater than the Levi in wisdom, as explained in the Acharonim⁵.

b. Now, we do not have this siman in the Shulchan Aruch of the Alter Rebbe; however, in the laws of Birkas HaMazon⁶ he wrote: 'And in a place where there is no Kohen, it is good to give precedence to the Levi over the Yisrael in all of these [i.e. in all the matters enumerated there, including calling him up to the Torah before the Yisrael⁷] if they are equal in wisdom (and one who does so prolongs his days. But there is no obligation in the matter, for "and you shall sanctify him" was said only regarding a Kohen, כי את לחם אלוקיך הוא מקריב וגו' ("for he offers the bread of your G-d," etc.).'

If so, we see in his words that there is value⁸ in giving precedence to a Levi who is equal in wisdom to the Yisrael, and this also confers the blessing of long life upon the one who gives the Levi precedence.

c. And so it has been brought in several places from our Rebbes, our leaders, concerning giving precedence to the Levi:

Concerning the Alter Rebbe it is related⁹ that it once happened that in the Alter Rebbe's minyan there was no Kohen, and they called up a Levi to the Torah in the place of a Kohen, and the Rebbe blessed him with long life.

Concerning the Tzemach Tzedek, Rav M. Sternbuch relates¹⁰: 'And I recall from the time of my studies in the yeshiva, that it once happened that there was a Torah reading and there was no Kohen there, and they were in doubt whether one must give precedence to the Levi to call him up first to the Torah, and Rav Dubov z"l (one of the prominent Chabad chassidim) was present there, who said that he heard from his father that he had a tradition that the Tzemach Tzedek said that if all are equal in wisdom they should call up the Levi to bring him up first to the Torah, for in the Shulchan Aruch of the Gaon Rav Zalman it is explicit that one who honors a Levi prolongs his days, and Rav Dubov z"l concluded: and who would not wish to merit such a blessing!

Concerning the Rashab, Rav Yaakov Landa z"l relates¹¹ that it once happened that the Rashab commanded that a Levi be called up in the place of a Kohen.

And indeed, some have written¹² that the practice is not actually to be particular about this, but in practice, since this is what we have seen with our Rebbes, our leaders, this is the proper way to conduct oneself: that when there is no Kohen and the two are equal, one should give precedence to the Levi over the Yisrael, and the one who gives precedence will merit long life.

¹ נט, א ↩

² בד"ה נתפרדה החבילה ↩

³ פ"ה סי' כ ↩

⁴ או"ח סי' קלה ס"ו (ונחלקו האחרונים בדבריו כיצד הכריע ואכמ"ל) ↩

⁵ מג"א ס"ק י, משנ"ב ס"ק כד ↩

⁶ סי' רא ס"ג ↩

⁷ המלך במסיבו ח"א ע' רסה, אגורה באהלך ח"ב סי' ו ע' 69 ↩

⁸ ובקצות השלחן סי' כה בבדה"ש אות טו כתב בשם המג"א דבשניהם שוים בתורה חייבים להעלות את הלוי קודם ↩

⁹ לקוטי סיפורים פרלוב אות פא ולהבנתו מדובר במקרה שהי' ישראל גדול בחכמה מהלוי ↩

¹⁰ תשובות והנהגות ח"ו סימן נא ↩

¹¹ כפ"ח גליון 986 ע' 35 ↩

¹² ילקוט מנהגים בחומש שבהוצאת חזק ע' א'שמג אות עח והערה 75 ↩

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