Volume 12 Number 94
Produced: Sun May 1 23:08:05 1994
Subjects Discussed In This Issue:
"Mitnaged"
[Gedalyah Berger]
Books on Prayer
[Anthony Fiorino]
Bracha for Solar Eclipse
[Jerrold Landau]
Counting sefirah via E-mail
[Aryeh Frimer]
Eating Meat
[Ari Kurtz]
Gott von Avrohom
[Lon Eisenberg]
Havdala and Shabbosdik
[Yosef Bechhofer]
Joseph and Interpreting Dreams
[David Sherman]
Misleading Fossils
[Yitzchok Adlerstein]
Origin of Phrase - "teshuat hashem keheref ayin"
[Michael Broyde]
Primers
[Yitzchok Adlerstein]
Rambam on Eretz Yisrael
[Steven Friedell]
Rav Moshe's ruling on Early Shabbat
[Michael Broyde]
Video Etc. On Shabbos
[Ari Shapiro]
Women in Prayer
[M. Milner]
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From: Gedalyah Berger <gberger@...>
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 1994 18:13:50 -0400
Subject: "Mitnaged"
> From: <david@...> (David Charlap)
>
> I've noticed a number of messages here that refer to people or
> organizations as "mitnagdim".I think this term is being used
> improperly, and it is insulting to the people it is used on.
> ...
> I do not think any of the people or organizations referred to here as
> "mitnagdim" are anti-Chasid.And as such, the term should not be used
> for them.
I think this is being overly sensitive; the word "mitnaged," in the last
couple of decades in America at least, has come to mean simply
non-Chasid. I know that I would not be insulted at all by being called
a mitnaged, even though on my mothers side I am descended from a
"rebbeshe mishpucha" (a family of Chassidic rebbes).
Gedalyah Berger
Yeshiva College / RIETS
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From: Anthony Fiorino <fiorino@...>
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 1994 12:16:55 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Books on Prayer
I don't know if this particular book has been mentioned before, but I
just purchased _The Encyclopedia of Jewish Prayer_ by Macy Nulman, the
former director of the Belz School of Jewish Music at YU. This is an
exhaustive historical survey of what sems to be every prayer, piyyut,
kinah, pizmon, zemer, and blessing that has been included in both
Ashkenazic and Sephardic traditions. I have only glanced through it
briefly, but it seems to be terrific.
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From: <LANDAU@...> (Jerrold Landau)
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 94 11:17:12 EDT
Subject: Bracha for Solar Eclipse
On May 10, there will be an annular solar eclipse over Toronto, and
parts of the northern United States. Is an eclipse an occasion for
making a beracha, such as 'oseh maaseh bereishit'? If so, what about in
places where the eclipse will be partial? If one does not see the
eclipse (which is usually the case, as it is dangerous unless one uses
special lenses), but does notice a darkening of the day, does one make
the beracha? What about if one watches a lunar eclipse?
Jerrold Landau
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From: Aryeh Frimer <F66235@...>
Date: Sat, 30 Apr 1994 15:24:45 -0400
Subject: Counting sefirah via E-mail
A Friend of mine recently sent me a bitnet message in which he included
a count of the sefira - and wanted to know whether he fulfilled his
obligation with this e-mail counting. This is what I responded:
I don't know whether you were serious or not about your "e-mail"
sefira counting Shaila. In any case the Halakha is that it doesn't
"count" (pun intended) and you have to recount with a Brakha. See
"Sefirat ha-Omer" by R. Tsvi Cohen who discusses writing the count &
brings all the relavent sources (perek Heh, se'if heh, ot yud). See for
example Arukh ha-Shulkhan se'if 9.
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From: Ari Kurtz <s1553072@...>
Date: Sat, 30 Apr 1994 23:15:57 +0300
Subject: Eating Meat
Regarding the letter from <harry.weiss@...> (Harry Weiss)
> 2. If the Jewish people would become vegetarians we would abandon
> various Mitzvot associated with Kashrut including Schitah and Kissui
> Hadam (covering of the blood).
Bad proof divorce is also a mitzvah in the Torah and I don't think
anyone would complain if things worked out with all couples and was
unnecessary not all Mitzvot have to be performed but are just guides
of what to do if a certain situation comes up . But one for your side
if I remember correctly the Rambam brings a list of Mitzvot that a
person today must perform sometime and I believe Shita is one of them .
Shalom
Ari Kurtz
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From: eisenbrg%<milcse@...> (Lon Eisenberg)
Date: Sun, 1 May 94 08:52:55 IDT
Subject: Gott von Avrohom
In response to Eli Turkel:
>I am curious if other women say this also on motzei shabbat.
My wife says it.
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From: <YOSEF_BECHHOFER@...> (Yosef Bechhofer)
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 1994 13:40:30 -0400
Subject: Havdala and Shabbosdik
In MJ 12:91 Fred Dweck quotes "many " Poskim who disallow the use of
electric candles for Havdala. Many allow it - including, Reb Chaim Ozer,
previously mentioned, Reb Chaim Brisker (Soloveitchik), and the
Rogatchover. See Shemiras Shabbos KeHilchasa 2:61:32 note 105, yet,
since there are several distinguished Poskim who disagree, Rabbi
Neuwirth himself inclines against making a bracha.
In the same response, Fred Dweck side steps the Chazon Ish I cited about
public Shabbos atmosphere and then states that while Oneg Shabbos and
Simchas Yom Tov are emotional, they stem from Halachic considerations. I
do not understand. The Chazon Ish clearly meant that Halacha takes into
account the human element of emotional sensitivity to sight (and sound -
the Halachic factor of "avasha milsa") in determining public policy, and
the Shabbos milieu is tailor made for such a suitable Shabbos experience
of sublime rest. Surely Oneg Shabbos and Kedushas Yom Tov are expressly
based on human emotion - indeed, the Chinuch says that the reason for
the mitzva of Simchas Yom Tov is that humans need occasion to rejoice -
emotionally. These halachos take into account and are defined by human
emotional tendencies.
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From: <dave@...> (David Sherman)
Date: Sun, 1 May 94 2:18:17 EDT
Subject: Re: Joseph and Interpreting Dreams
Sam Gamoran writes:
> It appears that the two extra years in prison taught the appropriate
> lesson to Joseph because when he was hauled out of prison to interpret
> Pharoah's dreams he ex-plains that "Elokim ya'aneh shlom Paraoh" God,
> not Joseph alone will interpret the dreams.
I don't buy it. What did Joseph say when the butler and baker first
came to him and said they's had dreams that no-one could interpret?
"Ha'lo l'elokim pisronim, sapru-na li." [Are not all interpretations
from [belonging to] Hashem; tell me (the dreams).] In other words,
he said the same then as he did two years later.
David Sherman
Toronto
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From: Yitzchok Adlerstein <ny000594@...>
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 21:27:14 -0800
Subject: Misleading Fossils
Micha Berger cites the opinion of some that the apparent antiquity of
dinosaur fossils must be a misleading clue placed by HKBH to indicate an
earth much older than the approximately 6000 they believe it to have
been around, and thus test our faith.
I would like to relate my own experience, while preparing a shiur on
approaches to "conflicts" between science and Torah, for presentation at
the AJOP (Association fo Jewish Outreach Professionals) convention a few
years ago. I tested the waters with a prominent Rosh Yeshiva, who will
have to go nameless. When I asked him about including the approach that
Micha mentioned (which I had always found distasteful), he responded,
"Chas V'Shalom to say such a thing about our Ribbono Shel Olam!!!"
He was so vocal and animated in saying this, that I literally had to remove
the phone receiver from my ear while he exploded.
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From: Michael Broyde <RELMB@...>
Date: Sun, 1 May 1994 19:19:20 -0400
Subject: Origin of Phrase - "teshuat hashem keheref ayin"
Does anyone know of the earlest reference to the common rabbinic phrase
"teshuat hashem keheref ayin" (or sometimes "leyeshuat hashem ...").
I can trace it only as far back as a teshuva of the chatam sofer.
(I am not looking for the origins of the concept, rather for the phrase
itself. I have checked the various common medrashim on the Bar-Ilan
CD with no luck.) Thank you very much.
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From: Yitzchok Adlerstein <ny000594@...>
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 94 14:31:20 -0800
Subject: Primers
An oft-neglected but gem of a book of introduction to Judaism for the
thinking person is "On Being a Jew" by James Kugel of Harvard.
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From: Steven Friedell <friedell@...>
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 15:05:49 EDT
Subject: Rambam on Eretz Yisrael
A friend of mine who is not on the Net asked me about a tradition he had
heard that the Rambam is reputed to have written somewhere that everyday he
regrets 3 things (or maybe 7 things)--that among them are that he lives in
Egypt and that he doesn't live in Eretz Yisrael. Neither of us has found a
place where the Rambam said this. Does anyone know? Thanks.
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From: Michael Broyde <RELMB@...>
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 1994 12:32:42 -0400
Subject: Re: Rav Moshe's ruling on Early Shabbat
One of the writers states that Rav Moshe Feinsteins rules that when the
community accepts early shabbat as a conveinince, and is inconsistent as
to its year round practice (ie, early shabbat in the summer) one is not
obligated to follow the community. This reference is not correct. In
Iggrot Moshe OC 3:38, Rav Moshe speculates that maybe that line of
reasoning is correct; he does not accept that conclusion as proper
lehalacha, but leaves it as a tzarich iyun. Perhaps there are poskim
who accpted that line of reasoning as proper, but Rav Moshe in the
teshuvot is not one of them.
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From: <m-as4153@...> (Ari Shapiro)
Date: Sat, 30 Apr 94 22:53:20 -0400
Subject: Video Etc. On Shabbos
> On my walk home from Shul we pass homes which have security
>floodlights controlled by motion detectors. Our LOR (who walks the
>same direction) ruled that it was psik reisha d'lo ichpat lei and it
>was permissible to walk past those homes.
I don't understand this p'sak as according to most Rishonima psik reshah
d'lo ichpat lei is prohibited m'drabanan(see Tosafos Shabbos 103A, Biur
Halacha Siman 320 Sif 18, Chazon Ish 51,14) and in this situation you are
causing an incandescent bulb to go on which is a melacha doraysa.
Ari Shapiro
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From: M. Milner <hmrcelec@...>
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 15:31:42 -0400
Subject: Women in Prayer
I think it is important to point out that regardless of when, or
even whether, a woman prays it is forbidden to eat prior to prayer.
This prohibition is probably an issur deoita (a prohibition derived
from the pentateuch) as it is derived from "lo tokhlu al hadam" and
should apply to men and women equally. It is unclear to me, however,
how much prayer is required before one is permitted to eat.
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End of Volume 12 Issue 94
