Avodah Mailing List

Volume 14 : Number 008

Monday, October 4 2004

• Re: Sefer Zochiyos
• Re: Net year in Jerusalem
• Re: Torah as Allegory
• tombstones (matzeivos) with depictions of the deceased
• minhagim
• Dinosaurs = "ha'tanninim ha'gedolim"?
• Re: Mesorah
• Re: hachana mshabat lshabat
• Re: minhagim
• Re: Charcoal barbeque on Hag

R'SBA asked <<< What kind of bakosho is 'Kosveinu besefer Zochiyos'? If
you have done the right thing - mitzvos and maasim tovim - you will
definitely be in that sefer. But if not, how can you ask to be included?

My take is that there are many things which we do, which - depending
on the perspective - could be viewed either as a zechos or a chov. It
is for such things that we ask HaShem to view it in the positive light,
and consider it a zechus.

Akiva Miller

Which year???

Re: Rachel coming with the flock, R' Micha wrote: <<The first usage
was "BA'ah", with the stress on the first syllable, meaning "she is
coming". The second, "ba'AH" -- "she came".>>

Without interfering with what one learns from the proper accenting and
interpretation of L'shana haba'ah, R' Micha made a slight switching error.
The present tense is ba'AH and the past is BA'ah. The first time, when
she is one the way the word is ba'AH and after she arrived it is BA'ah.

I thought I was known as the one who writes before thinking and then has
to send a clarification when I wake up and realize my error. R' Micha,
welcome to the club.

Hag Sameach,
David

Micha Berger <micha@aishdas.org> wrote:
> My 11-yr-old son asked me if I thought dinosaurs were real....

> I answered that I have no idea, and it doesn't matter much. What's
> important is that Hashem created the world. My life is the same whether...

> My son was fine with that [non-]answer.

> Why pretend we have a final answer to a question far more informed and
> holy minds than our children's can't come to a consensus upon?

Your answers were fine for an eleven year old... even a bright one like
your son. They are also fine for those who aren't looking for answers
to contradictions between science and belief. But to those like me, who
seek to know reconcile seemomngly contradictory facts and beliefs, such
answers serve no purpose other than to reinforce belief. Reinforcement
of belief... in and of itself is fine, but unsatisfying to me. When I
see apparent contradictions between observable data and commonly held
beliefs... I need resolution. I may never get those answers but that
will not stop me from seeking them.

HM

There is a practice among some people (e.g. some Jews from the former
USSR/FSU) to have depictions of the deceased as part of / on a matzeiva.

What is the halacha about such a thing ? Are there any teshuvos about it ?
What should be the attitude toward it ?

Mordechai

From: "Zev Sero" <zev@sero.name>
<<Ashrei is the focus of the kaddish? I thought the kaddish is an intro
to selichot, and the Ashrei is there because kaddish can only be said
after a passuk.>>

Even the way you've stated it, the Ashrei is still the focus of the
kaddish, but you're suggesting bedi'eved alternatives. I'm not sure you
can just say a pasuk and then say kaddish as you suggest; at least saying
kaddish after Ashrei is well founded in daily mincha, etc.

RYBS did say that the Ashrei is an integral part of selichos, since
selichos are "imru lefanai seder tefila" i.e. 13 midos, so we say Ashrei,
chatzi kaddish, selichos, tachanun, kaddish tiskabel, for a complete
tzura of tefila.

Gershon
gershon.dubin@juno.com

Although Rashi (Breishit 1:21) explians "ha'tanninim ha'gedolim" as
"dagim gedolim", the Ramban there seems to indicate gigantic creatures
(ba'avur godel ha'nivra'im ha'eleh she'yesh mey'hem PARSA'OHT RABOT).
Could this refer to dinosaurs ? Why the nafka mina between this term
and the rest of the passuk ??? [it excludes: "nefesh chaya ha'romeset
asher shartzu ha'mayim" and only the next *day* (1:24) do we see that
"chaya l'mina, b'heima v'remes v'chayto eretz" was created].

Chag sameach

Josh

RMB: <<< The CC's cup wasn't large enough according to the MB. >>>

RGD: <<< While this notion is fairly well known, a family member of the
CC specifically told me it wasn't true. >>>

RMB: <<< I got word directly from the person with the chutzpah to measure
it. >>>

Ikar chasar min hasefer!

Maybe there are different ways of understanding the MB, and the person
who measured it held differently? Or perhaps, as we know, there are a
few things that the CC held personally differently than what he wrote,
which was intended for the masses.

This discussion is pointless without knowing how big it was when measured,
and why that person felt it was too small.

Akiva Miller

The Shmiras Shabbos K'hilchasa 28:69 says that hachana from one Shabbos
to the next is assur. Almost three lines of footnotes on it.

Akiva Miller

In a message dated 9/29/2004 11:38:43 AM EDT, gershon.dubin@juno.com writes:
> Even the way you've stated it, the Ashrei is still the focus of the
> kaddish, but you're suggesting bedi'eved alternatives. I'm not sure you
> can just say a pasuk and then say kaddish as you suggest; at least saying
> kaddish after Ashrei is well founded in daily mincha, etc.

> RYBS did say that the Ashrei is an integral part of selichos, since
> selichos are "imru lefanai seder tefila" i.e. 13 midos, so we say Ashrei,
> chatzi kaddish, selichos, tachanun, kaddish tiskabel, for a complete
> tzura of tefila.

The German Minhag does NOT have Ashrei but does have 1/2 Kaddish after
the first set of 13 Middos. The intro is El Erech apayim ata etc.

IIRC at KAJ The Shatz puts on his Tallis after the Kaddish, I asume this
had to do with the timing of Selichos in Ashmores haboker etc.

Gmar Chasima Tova!
Rich Wolpoe
Richard_Wolpoe@alumnimail.yu.edu

From: "Prof. Aryeh A. Frimer" <frimea@mail.biu.ac.il>
> Has anyone seen a discussion about using a charcoal barbeque on Hag?
> Someone indicated that it is Asur because you might fan the coals which
> are white causing them to flame and thus you would be creating fire
> as opposed to transferring. Is there anything to this? If the coal is
> not "boeres" inside how would it flame up? Is there anything to this?
> If the coal is not "boeres" inside how would it flame up? Do we make
> such a gezeira?

I just wanted to report that as far as I can see there is no problem at all
with a charcoal  barbeque on Hag.  And indeed it is widely practiced.  Pok
hazei mai ama dvar.  The Arukh haShulkhan [O.H. 502:5] discusses using a Fan
made from feathers to flame the coals and Matirs explicitly.   (I was
surprised when someone told me they heard a Shiur in which the speaker said
there  was a problem - that's why I asked this distinguished forum.)

        Moadim le-simhah
            Aryeh

********************


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