Volume 53 Number 08
Produced: Mon Nov 13 6:31:47 EST 2006
Subjects Discussed In This Issue:
Aruch Hashulchan on Hilchos Chanukkah, Megillah, Rosh Chodesh
[Dovi Jacobs]
Basis for Women's ring (2)
[Carl Singer, Mark Steiner]
Fish in Noah's ark (3)
[Ari Z. Zivotofsky, Mark Goldin, Ira Bauman]
Prayer for Women who have been Murdered by their Partners
[Yael Levine]
Throwing bread after the motzi to those sitting at the table.
[Arnold Marans]
Wait-listed for a Taglit-birthright israel trip?
[Nathan Hartman]
Walking down the Aisle
[Yisrael Medad]
windup LED flashlights and Rabbi Karelitz
[David Riceman]
----------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Dovi Jacobs <dovijacobs@...>
Date: Sun, 12 Nov 2006 02:51:39 -0800 (PST)
Subject: Aruch Hashulchan on Hilchos Chanukkah, Megillah, Rosh Chodesh
It will soon be Rosh Chodesh Kislev, and I am pleased to announce that
the Aruch HaShulchan on Hilchos Chanukkah (Orach Chaim simanim 670-685)
are now complete. In addition, Hilchos Megillah (simanim 686-697) and
Hilchos Rosh Chodesh (simanim 417-428) are also finished. This brings me
up to Hilchos Pesach, which I will be'ezras Hashem try to work on from
now until Pesach.
Besides my own contributions, a second contributor has begun working on
Hilchos Yom Tov. To make use of all this material for learning halachah,
go directly to the full Orach Chaim index found at this link:
http://he.wikisource.org/wiki/AHS:OCH
It would be wonderful if those who learn the halachos would use these
texts, not only for their own benefit, but also for the benefit of
others as errors are uncovered and corrected.
Many improvements can be made, of course, and the more these texts are
used the more they will be improved. In general, I think most people who
use this digital version will find that the quality of the work is
fairly high, and that it is probably the most user-friendly version
ever. Nevertheless, it is certainly not perfect. Most mistakes will
probably derive from my own learning: If I have sometimes misunderstood
a halochoh, this may also cause me to punctuate it incorrectly. If I
have failed to look up a gemora cited in the Aruch Hashulchon -- I have
not looked all of them up -- this may also cause misunderstanding and
mistakes. Nevertheless, despite the lack of perfection, I hope people
will be satisfied by the overall quality of the work. And if you find a
mistake --- fix it!!
*************************************************************
Basic information on the texts, as in previous posts:
These are typed digital versions of the simonim that may be copied,
pasted, printed, used or adapted freely for any purpose. They can be
used for personal study, chavrusah, halochoh shiurim and in schools.
You can call up one siman at a time, or view all of Hilchos Lulav (for
instance) together on a single page. There is even a "printer friendly"
version available by clicking on "girsah le-hadpasah" in the toolbox on
the right margin, so you can send the entire Hilchos Lulav to the
printer with a single click.
The online text is based on the old printed edition, but has new,
additional features:
* The abbreviations (roshei tevos) have been expanded;
* Full punctuation has been added;
* The text has been divided into smaller paragraphs (within the
se'ifim).
* Numerous links have been added.
* Texts appear in an extremely user-friendly format for easy
navigation.
http://he.wikisource.org/wiki/AHS:OCH
Along with using these texts, feel free to improve and correct them, and
even to add more simonim on your own. Two of the website's main
contributors have professional experience with editing Torah texts
and/or proofreading, and are happy to help.
Please be makdish your learning of the simanim from these texts in the
zechus of the wounded soldiers and civilians of Israel, of our captive
soldiers, and the strength and peace of all Israel.
Dovi
----------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Carl Singer <csngr@...>
Date: Sun, 12 Nov 2006 22:25:26 -0500
Subject: Basis for Women's ring
Seriously -- I believe it's what Eliezer gave Rivka on Yitzhak's behalf
(then again he gave her other items, too.) But rings may have been
selected as they may have been considered a standard "unit" of value or
currency.
Carl
----------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Mark Steiner <marksa@...>
Date: Mon, 13 Nov 2006 09:04:34 +0200
Subject: RE: Basis for Women's ring
I believe that in Siddur R. Saadya Gaon, the hatan him made the beracha
vetzivano al ha-arayos etc. as is actually proper for any birkat
hamitzvah (our custom is that the rabbi discarges the hatan of this
beracha by making it himself, since perhaps some hatanim don't know how
to read). Then the kiddushin is made on the cup and the wine itself,
which he gives to the kallah as kiddushin. It is possible that the
hatan put a little gift in the "becher," it is been a while since I
looked at this. The gift might have been a ring, but the the word
"tabaat" is not mentioned in the harei at.
Again, this is all from memory.
Mark
----------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Ari Z. Zivotofsky <zivotoa@...>
Date: Wed, 08 Nov 2006 08:51:52 +0200
Subject: Fish in Noah's ark
> I find this "Ergo" and what follows [below] completely fallacious.
>Most see the eating of meat after the Flood as a condescension to man's
>frailty and sinfulness, which God is (kavyachol) coming to terms with;
>note how God makes almost the exact same declaration before and after
>the flood - ki lev ha-adam ra minurav. Rav Kook was a vegetarian and
>(while not one myself) it can be seen as the ideal state of man in gan
>eden to which we should aspire.
I missed the original posting of this comment. Rav Kook was NOT a
vegetarian. this has been confirmed by several independent sources.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Mark Goldin <goldinfamily@...>
Date: Tue, 7 Nov 2006 22:51:57 -0800
Subject: Fish in Noah's ark
>WADR, I stand by my position that carnivorous menu's are the ideal, at
>least until we have a revelation otherwise.
>Yossi Ginzberg
Although I cannot agree with you, if you at least said that a
carnivorous menu would be ideal under ideal circumstances I might have
some sympathy for your position. It is virtually impossible in the USA
today to eat meat without being involved in the infliction of extreme
suffering on the animal. This has been pointed out on this mailing list
before, as has the fact that there is "collateral damage" to the
environment, the workers and the health of your family. Unfortunately,
as most of our eggs and milk are also products of big-business factory
farming, even they should be off limits unless one is careful to
purchase only free range, organic from sustainable enterprises. Most
people I know are completely blind to these facts and have no desire to
be enlightened and have their enjoyment of meat impaired.
>Since NONE of them saw fit to do this, I must deduce that a single
>Torah giant being a vegetarian means absolutely nothing. Based on your
>standard, I could point to a certain Rabbi and claim that the "ideal"
>is to wear 100 pairs of tzitzis! There was another Gadol, a friend of
>Rav Kook, who was a nazir. Would you have it that this is now the
>standard to "aspire" to
As factory farming was unknown prior to the mid-20th century, it is
impossible to know how many Gedolim would have chosen to be vegetarians.
I would like to think that Rav Kook would have had company. A morsel of
meat is what differentiated Shabbos from the rest of the week for our
ancestors. We've lost that differentiation completely.
I would refer those interested to Richard Schwartz's excellent
website which can do a much better job than I can.
http://www.jewishveg.com/schwartz/index.html
Mark Goldin
Los Angeles
----------------------------------------------------------------------
From: <Yisyis@...> (Ira Bauman)
Date: Sun, 12 Nov 2006 13:25:32 EST
Subject: Re: Fish in Noah's ark
> As I have always understood the story from simple "p'shat", the deluge
> was a punishment and the direct result of immoral sexual behavior.
> If this is the case, fish would be exempt, since fish (in general)
> don't have sex in a way that could be improper- they discharge the
> eggs and sperm into the water, and the "parents" never even meet.
> This makes all the sexual violations irrelevant to that species
As I'm writing this, I can see my aquarium that has several pairs of
swordtails in it. These are fish that bear their young live after a
sexual union not unlike most other animals. Wagtails are a hybrid due
to the cross breeeding of platies and swordtails. Swordtails also can
change their gender if under stress, a quality rare even among fish.As I
look at the promiscuous transsexuals inhabiting my fishtank, I'm not
sure why they were saved.
Ira Bauman
----------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Yael Levine <ylevine@...>
Date: Sun, 12 Nov 2006 20:51:50 +0200
Subject: Prayer for Women who have been Murdered by their Partners
Shabbat Parashat Toldot, November 25th, is the International Day for the
Elimination of Violence Against Women. This day has been marked in
recent years in shuls in Israel and abroad on the Shabbat nearest to
this date. In some shuls, the prayer I have composed "Tefillah al Benot
Yisrael she-Nirtzehu bi-yedei Benei Zugan" (A Prayer for Women who have
been Murdered by their Partners) is recited following the Prayer for the
Welfare of the State of Israel. The nusach of the tefilla may be
accessed at the following link on the Kolech website:
http://kolech.com/show.asp?id=12999
Yael Levine
----------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Arnold Marans <marans@...>
Date: Sun, 12 Nov 2006 21:15:30 -0500
Subject: Throwing bread after the motzi to those sitting at the table.
Can anyone direct me to a source that indicates it is preferable to
throw the motzi on shabbath than to hand the motzi to those sitting at
the table. I saw this minhag many times. I was told that it was based on
the need to differentiate between the Seudat Haavarah, where the motzi
is handed out, and the shabbath meal. In yiddish the expression was "tzu
a AVEL mir delangt a motzi un auf shabbes warft min der motzi." It is
common at a Rabbe's tisch.
Any sources?
Arnold Marans
----------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Nathan Hartman <nathanhartman@...>
Date: Wed, 08 Nov 2006 20:57:27 -0800
Subject: Wait-listed for a Taglit-birthright israel trip?
Hi everyone,
Do you know someone who signed up for 'Taglit-birthright israel' but was
wait-listed by their trip organizer?
If so, please let them know that Sachlav has room for them! Those who
are currently registered for this winter's upcoming trips to Israel can
switch to Sachlav and get on a trip -- if they act quickly! There are 8
spaces available and they will fill up.
Please have them contact:
<info@...>
or call 1-877-SACHLAV (1-877-722-4528), 9am-5pm Eastern, Sunday through
Thursday
Room is available on trips departing New York for Israel on January 1st
and January 4th, 2007.
For those unfamiliar with Taglit-birthright israel, please visit
www.birthrightisrael.com to learn more about the gift of a free,
first-time, educational trip to Israel for Jewish young adults ages 18
to 26.
To find out more about Sachlav, please ask me. I am one of Sachlav's
councelors and I'll be happy to tell you what makes Sachlav the best
trip organizer.
Thanks,
Nathan Hartman
----------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Yisrael Medad <ybmedad@...>
Date: Mon, 13 Nov 2006 07:54:31 +0200
Subject: Walking down the Aisle
>From: Ben Katz <bkatz@...>
>>What is the basis for walking down the aisle? Seems to me that it might
>>have (shudder) came from the host culture.
Of course, one could ask another question: how does one arrive at the
Chuppah except by walking to it? And it evolved that the chatan and
kallah were accompanied to the chuppah and, lo and behold, we have a
custom of walking down the aisle.
The other question is: whose custom preceded whose? Maybe the goyim
copied ours?
Yisrael medad
----------------------------------------------------------------------
From: David Riceman <driceman@...>
Date: Sun, 12 Nov 2006 14:33:01 -0500
Subject: Re: windup LED flashlights and Rabbi Karelitz
> From: Aryeh Gielchinsky <agielchinsky@...>
> Turning an electric generator will cause a circuit to be opened and
> closed. In a simple generator that happens twice per revolution.
> http://www.wvic.com/how-gen-works.htm
I didn't see this in the page you cited, nor do I think it's true.
Perhaps one of the physicists on the list will comment. If it is true,
however, how is one to make sense of the claim that closing a circuit is
boneh [constructing] and opening it is soter [razing]?
David Riceman
----------------------------------------------------------------------
End of Volume 53 Issue 8
