Abijah Wrote:It is difficult to follow the restrictions for non-Jews regarding Delving into Torah and "pilpul". I honestly have no idea what the words mean.

Quote:What is “delving into Torah”? It is learning only for the sake of acquiring the Torah knowledge itself (which is called “learning Torah for its own sake”). This means deep involvement in the study, and penetrating, investigative learning ("pilpul" in Hebrew [which is the Jewish style of learning Talmud]). This includes learning to deeply understand the detailed Torah laws, the deeper reasons for the commandments, or the depth of the intention of the words of Torah, and not for any other goal.*

Quote:*“Delving into Torah” refers here to learning Torah “for its own sake,” and delving into the reasons for the commandments. This is likewise implied from Meiri on Tractate Sanhedrin 59a: “if he is involved in Torah not for the sake of keeping the commandments, but only because he desires to fathom the wisdom of the [Written] Torah and Talmud.” ... for any Torah commandment that has a reason and benefit for a Gentile to perform, it is permitted for him to do, (and therefore he may also learn the details of its performance), and if it is a purely spiritual Jewish precept, it is prohibited for Gentiles to do.
Likewise in regard to learning Torah, one who learns to obtain a [practical] benefit, like one who wants to know the logical societal laws as the Torah gives them, is permitted to learn the parts of Torah which are connected to this, like the Book of Damages in the Mishnah, or the section Choshen Mishpat in the Code of Jewish Law (the Shulchan Aruch). Since he is learning this for his own [practical] benefit, and he is certainly not learning Torah “for its own sake,” this is not called “delving into Torah,” and it is permitted.
Therefore, anyone who wants to learn Torah in order to perform the logical commandments, such as honoring parents, returning lost objects, and giving charity, is not forbidden to do so, because he wants to perform these as righteous and upright actions, and not as spiritual statutes [examples of "spiritual statutes" which would be wearing special fringes on the corners of garment, or taking care to avoid eating a mixture of meat and dairy products].
... a Gentile who is involved in learning Torah for its own sake ... is adding another commandment onto the Seven Noahide Commandments, just like one who puts on tefillin, from which he has no personal benefit and therefore is doing it only as a commandment of G-d, or one who observes a sabbath for the sake of Heaven, or fasts on Yom Kippur as a Divine commandment; all such observances are forbidden for Gentiles.

... when a Gentile learns a part of Torah for the purpose of observing a Noahide commandment, he receives a reward, in addition to the reward for observing the Seven Noahide Commandments themselves. And even more so, since his learning Torah about the seven commandments is connected to the particular commandment that it relates to, the learning is a fulfillment of a directive from G-d. Therefore, learning about the Seven Noahide Commandments is called a permissible “involvement” in Torah study, and the reward for this learning and involvement in Torah is great.
In brief ...:
a) Learning Torah “for its own sake” ... is the aspect of Torah that is a betrothal and inheritance from G-d to the Jews alone, and is forbidden for Gentiles.
b) Deep learning of the Seven Noahide Commandments and the full breadth of the Noahide Code by pious Gentiles for the sake of observing their obligations [is permitted and encouraged]. Since a Gentile is commanded by G-d regarding the Noahide Code, and this includes the study of these precepts within Torah, the reward for this study is great; it is a spiritual reward that is like the reward for observing the Noahide commandments.
c) For other Torah study that is *permitted* for Gentiles but is not related to the observance of a [particular] obligatory precept [for example, learning to know the basic content of the Hebrew scriptures, and to know what are the commandments that are given to the Jews, and to know the Torah's advice for moral or healthy or civilized living], ... there is the reward of the benefit it provides for him, like the advantages he can derive from the Jewish precepts that are permissible for him [like honoring parents and giving proper charity], which may be performed by Gentiles for the sake of the practical benefit that will result [but not as if they were one's own Divine commandments].
... But [regarding] a Gentile who does not observe his seven commandments ... if he serves idols (or follows other paths of heresy), and nevertheless involves himself in Torah learning, he is liable [for this study.]