Blank Line Mid-Verse in Sefer Torah: Correction or Genizah

From: Rabbi Moshe Sofer

To: Rabbi Sinai

Description

A scribe left a blank line at the bottom of a column mid-verse, creating an unauthorized parsha pesuchah. The Chasam Sofer rules that while the usual erasure-and-rewrite remedy is unavailable when the break falls between verses (due to a halachic catch-22 involving ma'alin bakodesh), correction is permitted here precisely because the break falls in the middle of a verse — removing an invalid mid-verse break is itself an elevation in sanctity, satisfying even the Rambam's stringent standard.

Source: Shu"t Chasam Sofer YD §261

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