Volume 47 Number 95
Produced: Fri May 20 4:55:27 EDT 2005
Subjects Discussed In This Issue:
Birchat Hachama, the Moon, Planets and Zodiac
[Tom Rosenfeld]
Daylight Saving Time
[Ben Katz]
Developing (Evolving) Halacha
[Bernard Raab]
Eating by Others on Pesach
[Eli Turkel]
Interesting Letter From MiAvdut LeHerut-Kitniyot Project (3)
[Akiva Miller, Martin Stern, Bernard Raab]
Kaddish Pronunciation
[Martin Stern]
Purim Female Drunkeness
[Yisrael & Batya Medad]
Time of Reading Shiur Hashirim
[Alan Friedenberg]
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From: Tom Rosenfeld <trosen@...>
Date: Sat, 14 May 2005 22:34:58 +0300
Subject: Birchat Hachama, the Moon, Planets and Zodiac
A little while ago in Daf Yomi, someone pointed out to me gemara about
Birchat Hachama, the once in 28 year blessing we make on the Sun. I was
surprised to see that the gemara used similar language to say we make
the same Oseh Ma'aseh Bereshit blessing on similar configurations of the
Moon, Planets, and Zodiac. After a bit of research I see that both the
Rambam and Shulchan Aruch bring this down as halacha. However the Mishna
Brura adds that it is no longer our minhag to make the bracha except on
the Sun.
Does anyone know why we no longer make the other brachot? Are there
groups (e.g. Yemenites) that still follow the Rambam & Shulchan Aruch?
And if so when exactly do they make the bracha?
Tom Rosenfeld
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From: Ben Katz <bkatz@...>
Date: Fri, 13 May 2005 11:04:48 -0500
Subject: Daylight Saving Time
There was an article in Scientific American many years ago
discussing DST at great length. While one cannot change the number of
hours of daylight, it does not make sense to have daylight at 4 AM when
very few people use it. DST is logical and economical for most areas
where it is used. Other areas, which want to be in synch with major
population centers, sometimes pay a price.
Ben Z. Katz, M.D.
Children's Memorial Hospital, Division of Infectious Diseases
2300 Children's Plaza, Box # 20, Chicago, IL 60614
e-mail: <bkatz@...>
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From: Bernard Raab <beraab@...>
Date: Fri, 13 May 2005 18:56:30 -0400
Subject: Developing (Evolving) Halacha
>From: <bdcohen@...> (David I. Cohen)
>And if all the Poskim ruled that it was indeed forbidden to go to ball
>games, I assume that those who follow the halachic system would stop
>doing so. Certainly, in looking at the situation, any thorough Posek
>would look at the activity and the fact that many God fearing Jews did
>not at first blush percieve a problem with that activity ( i.e. any
>issur involved was not obvious). If that is what you are alluding to,
>then we agree. And if you are saying that Poskim do look for heterim in
>some circumstances ( and do look at the target audience of the psak)
>that too is within the frabric of the halachic decision process. But if
>you are saying, that Poskim bend the halacha to fit into what people are
>already doing, then I think you are going too far.
B"H, I think we are very close to an agreement here. If you read
carefully what I said, it is usually an iterative process, not one where
the olam goes off on some new practice and the rabbonim then come around.
Actually, I think in my example of the new-fangled refigerator replacing
the tried-and-true ice box, it probably was like that. But that is the
only such example that comes to mind. Each case that I think about is a
little different. But what they all have in common is change brought
about by lay-community pressure. Some observant Jews, usually out of dire
necessity, will read or hear about about a minority view which they
decide to rely upon. If this is more than some isolated incident, some
rabonnim will denounce it, others will endorse it, and eventually, after
some time and further iteration, if the need persists, change is
realized.
If you think about it, this is the only way it can work. You wouldn't
expect (or want) a Rav to say, in response to some odd request: "OK, what
we have been doing all these years is wrong, we have to change." The
Chacham Tsvi could take the stand he did because it was largely an
academic question. In the 18th century "nobody" travelled to Eretz
Yisroel for a casual vacation.
The issue of organ transplants which requires the definition of brain
death is still very controversial because it is still in the early phase
of this process. The issue of educating girls in Torah was at this stage
about 75 years ago, when Sara Schenirer organized the first Bais Yaakov
school in Krakow. Today it is (almost) universally accepted that girls
must learn Torah. The early years of controversy have been put behind
us.
>When I was a student in Israel (1969) I received a psak that since I
>would be there for a whole cycle of the regalim (holidays) and that I
>did not have a ticket to return to the States, I should keep 1 day. By
>the time Shavuot came and I had purchased a ticket back to the States, I
>was told to keep 2 days. So even 35+ years ago, the issue was not so
>black and white. The halacha does evolve as more and more poskim weigh
>in on an issue and over time a consensus develops (was the Chacham Tzvi
>ahead of his time? Only time will tell.) That's exactly what happenned
>with the Rashi vs. R. Tam tefillin controversy that eventually was
>resolved. that is the halachic process. But to say that the halacha
>will be decided by the pressure of people wanting to only keep one day,
>is to demean the process. And that's where we part company.
>(And thank you for the discussion --it has helped clarify my thinking on
>this topic)
Glad I could be of help!--But you realize that the psak that you were
given in 1969 was fully consistent with the overwhelming majority view
of the time. Your Rosh Yeshiva merely clarified his interpretation of
what is a visitor and what is a toshav. He seems to have relied on the
existence of a return ticket, and did not prefigure a change in basic
halacha. The approach which is represented as the view of the Rav
(Soloveitchik) which has come to be known as "day-and-a-half" is truly
an acceptance of change, closer to the view of the Chacham Tsvi,
IMHO. The so-called "half-day" is described as an effort to honor the
previous minhag, without actually observing a day of Y"T. This seems to
me to be a useful but probably a transitional solution.
b'shalom--Bernie R.
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From: Eli Turkel <eliturkel@...>
Date: Sat, 14 May 2005 21:45:21 +0200
Subject: Eating by Others on Pesach
<But more important. Pesach is a time when people are most cautious
about trusting the kashrut of others. If you want to find a way of
unifying the eidot, it's best to start smaller, with an easier issue.>
Funny, Pesach started out as eating the korban Pesach together with the
extended family. It was time of large groups eating together. Now its
become the time we don't trust the kashrut of one's cousin or in-laws.
kol tuv,
Eli Turkel
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From: <kennethgmiller@...> (Akiva Miller)
Date: Fri, 13 May 2005 10:19:05 -0400
Subject: Re: Interesting Letter From MiAvdut LeHerut-Kitniyot Project
Rabbi Fred Dweck wrote <<< Why would anyone take on a stringency which
by most accounts is a mistake? >>>
What calculation are you using to conclude "most"? If you mean most
Sephardic accounts, okay. But if you mean most halachic authorities in
general, I'd like to see names of non-Sephardim who say that kitniyos is
a "mistake".
<<< So given the above, and many more who hold the same opinion, and
given that the Sephardic communities have accepted R. Yosef Karo (the
author of Beit Yosef) as their final authority, why in the world would
Sephardim take on what is considered, by their accepted authorities, to
be an extreme stringency and a foolish custom. Certainly not to be just
like the Ashkenazim! >>>
I totally agree with this part, because it is from a Sephardic
perspective, and I do not know any reason why Sephardim should want "to
be just like the Ashkenazim". But that very paragraph concludes:
<<< Wouldn't it be the wiser course of action, in the name of unity, for
the Ashkenazic rabbinate to do away with this senseless custom? >>>
No, it would not be the wiser course of action, because it is a foolish
custom only from a Sephardic perspective. From an Ashkenazic perspective
it is not senseless at all. Rather, from an Ashkenazic perspective there
are many good reasons to avoid kitniyos, and just like the Sephardim
should not aspire to be Ashkenazim, so too should the Ashkenazim not
aspire to be Sephardim. There's plenty of room for unity in other areas,
without losing our individuality in these areas.
Akiva Miller
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From: Martin Stern <md.stern@...>
Date: Fri, 13 May 2005 11:05:35 +0100
Subject: Interesting Letter From MiAvdut LeHerut-Kitniyot Project
on 13/5/05 10:20 am, Fred Dweck <fredd@...> wrote:
> Martin Stern wrote: An alternative way to attain unity would be for
> Sephardim to take on the stringency of abstaining from kitniyot.
>
> I'm sure he must be joking! Why would anyone take on a stringency which
> by most accounts is a mistake? Does he really feel that the Ashkenazic
> way is the "better" way? There is no prohibition to eating kitniyot in
> the Mishna and Talmud.
> So given the above, and many more who hold the same opinion, and given
> that the Sephardic communities have accepted R. Yosef Karo (the author
> of Beit Yosef) as their final authority, why in the world would
> Sephardim take on what is considered, by their accepted authorities, to
> be an extreme stringency and a foolish custom. Certainly not to be just
> like the Ashkenazim! Wouldn't it be the wiser course of action, in the
> name of unity, for the Ashkenazic rabbinate to do away with this
> senseless custom?
Perhaps I should clarify that my suggestion was not meant to be taken
seriously, only to point out the stupidity of trying to 'iron out' the
variant customs of different groups within Torah Jewry. As I wrote
previously, the pigments on an artist's palette can only be used to paint a
beautiful picture if they are kept distinct; if they are mixed together,
only a useless dull muddy brown results. Unity does not imply uniformity:
let a thousand flowers blossom and not be treated as weeds.
Martin Stern
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From: Bernard Raab <beraab@...>
Date: Fri, 13 May 2005 17:06:12 -0400
Subject: Interesting Letter From MiAvdut LeHerut-Kitniyot Project
>From: Fred Dweck <fredd@...>
>So given the above, and many more who hold the same opinion, and given
>that the Sephardic communities have accepted R. Yosef Karo (the author
>of Beit Yosef) as their final authority, why in the world would
>Sephardim take on what is considered, by their accepted authorities, to
>be an extreme stringency and a foolish custom. Certainly not to be just
>like the Ashkenazim! Wouldn't it be the wiser course of action, in the
>name of unity, for the Ashkenazic rabbinate to do away with this
>senseless custom?
As I have posited in our discussion on changing (better: evolving)
halacha, it is unrealistic to expect any rabbi of some authority to
stick his neck out and "do away with" a long-standing practise. He will
surely be asking for "decapitation". Which is precisely where sincere,
committed, Torah-loving lay leadership can do what the rabbinate
cannot. A hearty yasher-koach to the MiAvdut LeHerut-Kitniyot Project.
b'shalom--Bernie R.
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From: Martin Stern <md.stern@...>
Date: Wed, 11 May 2005 14:22:52 +0100
Subject: Kaddish Pronunciation
on 11/5/05 4:05 am, Orrin Tilevitz <tilevitzo@...> wrote:
> A couple of weeks ago someone said that he knew of no siddur that
> punctuated the second paragraph of kaddish with a tzeire (e.g.,
> yitbareich). The siddur edited by A. Hyman Charlap, first published in
> the U.S. about 90 years ago, and in wide use in Young Israel-type shuls
> (at least pre Art-Scroll) in the original or pirated versions, has, for
> selected kaddishim only, "yitbareich veyishtabach veyitpa'eir
> veyitromeim".
>
> Incidentally, in the Kol Bo machzorim originally published decades ago
> by Hebrew Publishing Co. and in wide circulation, the second paragraph
> after hotza'at hatorah reads "al hakol yitgadal veyitkadash veyishtabach
> vetyitpa'eir veyitromeim"
Unfortunately most printers were not great scholars and did not check
that every letter was correct. They were more interested in the
commercial success of their venture and, as far as siddurim and
machzorim are concerned, they were not aiming at a particularly learned
market. Only those produced by recognised scholars can therefore really
be used as evidence.
Even Artscroll, which is generally much more carefully edited, has
several errors, some having been accepted by the general public because
previous editions have carelessly printed them.
Just because something has been printed does not make it correct, or
even acceptable!
Martin Stern
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From: Yisrael & Batya Medad <ybmedad@...>
Date: Sun, 15 May 2005 19:47:12 +0200
Subject: Purim Female Drunkeness
I caught the finale of a discussion in Shaul Schiff's column in HaTzofe
on the issue of girls at Midrashot getting drunk on Purim. It seems
they demanded for themselves the same status as the boys.
The column (in Hebrew) of last Friday is here:
http://www.hazofe.co.il/web/katava6.asp?Modul=24&id=32864&Word=&gilayon=2367&mador=
I found Rav Yair Shachor's response to Schiff's earlier comment here:
http://www.hazofe.co.il/web/katava6.asp?Modul=24&id=32373&Word=&gilayon=2349&mador=
but could not locate Schiff opening salvo.
Is anyone aware of similar egalitarian customs elsewhere?
Yisrael Medad
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From: Alan Friedenberg <elshpen@...>
Date: Thu, 12 May 2005 09:10:50 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: Time of Reading Shiur Hashirim
Back when I was a teenager I used to daven at a shule that davened
nusach sefard. They read Shiur Hashirim (and Rut, and Kohelet) after
davening.
Alan Friedenberg
Baltimore MD
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End of Volume 47 Issue 95
