Avodah Mailing List

Volume 35: Number 62

Fri, 12 May 2017

• 1. Re: The relevance of the middle perakim of Bava Basra today (Micha Berger)
• 2. Emor (Cantor Wolberg)
• 3. Kedoshim (Cantor Wolberg)
• 4. candles and fire safety (Michael Poppers)
• 5. Re: candles and fire safety (Rich, Joel)
• 6. Lo Taamod (Rich, Joel)
• 7. Local Government (Rich, Joel)
• 8. Tahor App (Micha Berger)
• 9. Re: Tahor App (Zev Sero)

On Mon, May 08, 2017 at 03:32:57PM +0300, Marty Bluke via Avodah wrote:
: Perakim 4-7 of Bava Basra (which Daf Yomi has been learning) deal with the
: sale of various things, what is included and what is not. The common
: denominator seems to be that these are seemingly solely based on the
: accepted business practice during the time of Chazal and what people expect
: to get when they consumate a deal...

: Given the above, are these at all relevant today? ...

First reaction: They would be relevant to a poseiq trying to learn how
to determine which of today's expectations have halachic import. It
would require doing the saqme kind of mapping of market norms to law
that chazal did, so the poseiq could learn from example.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

?And you shall count unto you from the morrow after the day of rest from the day
that you bring the omer of the wave-offering; seven complete weeks shall there be.? 
(Vayikra 23:15)
The Rambam included the counting of the Omer as Mitzvah 161 in his Sefer Hamitzvot.
Those Rishonim who disagree, do count it as a mitzvah d?rabbanan and therefore, when
we conclude the counting each night we pray: ?May the merciful One bring back to us the
Temple service to its place speedily in our days, Amen, selah.? 
So the question has been asked why we do not say a ?sheheheyanu? when we first count
the Omer on the second night of Pesach. The Rashba answers that according to most
Rishonim who disagree with the Rambam, the counting is connected intricately with 
ktzirat ha?omer, harvesting the omer, ha?va-at ha?omer, the bringing of the omer and
hakravat ha?omer, the offering of the omer as a sacrifice (Vayikra 23:10&16). So since
these mitzvot are obviously inapplicable today it pains us to remember what we are 
missing when we count the omer. Therefore, the rabbis say, we pronounce no 
sheheheyanu which is said only when we experience joy.


When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around.  
Willie Nelson

It was brought to my attention that I hadn?t sent out a commentary on Parashas Kedoshim.
Here is a belated d?var.

?In the presence of an old person you shall rise and you shall honor the presence of a sage
and you shall revere your God ? I am Hashem.?  (Vayikra 19:32)

This verse is so rich with interpretation. According to Rashi, following one view in Kidudushin 32b,
the two halves of the pasuk explain each other, i.e., the mitzvah is to rise and honor a sage who is
both elderly and learned. Others hold that these are two separate mitzvot: to rise for anyone over
the age of 70 and to rise for a learned righteous man, even if he is below the age of 70. The
halacha follows the latter view, the rationale being that anyone can reach the age of 70 but it 
takes blood, sweat and tears to achieve scholarship and righteousness. I recall as a youngster
being in awe when everyone in the beis medrash would stop what they were doing and a hush  
fell over the crowd as everyone rose immediately as soon as the Rosh Yeshiva entered the hall.

There comes to mind the famous saying in Makkoth 22b: ?How foolish are those people who stand
up when the Torah is carried by, but do not stand up when a scholar walks by,? indicating that greater
than a piece of parchment upon which the Torah is written, is a human being who has put his whole
life into learning and struggling in order to acquire a knowledge of Torah, and who in his personal life
is a living embodiment of what the Torah teaches and represents.

Along similar lines is the custom in some hassidic circles to kiss the hand of a talmid chochom upon
first seeing him in the same manner as kissing the Torah when it passes by. The one thing we must
never forget is the basic issue involved. It is not the mere person that is the center of the commandment;
it is the ?v?yorayso mey-Elohechoh, Ani HaShem that is here involved. In rising before and granting 
honor to the talmid chochom, we affirm our profound belief in the Torah of God.

Who sows virtue reaps honor.
Leonardo da Vinci
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In Avodah V35n60, RJR responded to RZS, who had responded to RAMiller:
>>> When eating the evening seudah elsewhere than where you're sleeping,
consider lighting at the seudah location, so that they won't be
unattended. <<<
>> My mitzvah is to light my own home, not someone else's. <<
> The psak I receive many years ago is that you light where you sleep. One
concern was to make sure the candles would run long enough so they were
still burning when you came home so you could get benefit from them <
As RJR implies, I thought the key component of *neiros Shabbos* was
enjoying their light (in contradistinction to *neiros Chanukah*); and as I
learned as a kid every Pesach that my family was at a hotel (because my
parents didn't have Pesach cooking utensils, dishes, etc. in their
apartment), everyone lit in a common room (and then stayed a bit to get
enjoyment from the light) because lighting in one's room or in the hotel
dining room would have represented a fire hazard....

All the best from
*Michael Poppers* * Elizabeth, NJ, USA
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As RJR implies, I thought the key component of neiros Shabbos was enjoying
their light (in contradistinction to neiros Chanukah); and as I learned as
a kid every Pesach that my family was at a hotel (because my parents didn't
have Pesach cooking utensils, dishes, etc. in their apartment), everyone
lit in a common room (and then stayed a bit to get enjoyment from the
light) because lighting in one's room or in the hotel dining room would
have represented a fire hazard....

All the best from
Michael Poppers * Elizabeth, NJ, USA
_______________________________________________
Except if they were incandescent bulbs in the individual hotel rooms. In that case I was taught that the women make a bracha on the bulbs in their room
Kt
Joel rich
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Rav Asher Weiss discusses in parshat Vayeitzeih on lo taamod al dam reiacha
that one would have to give up all his assets to save a single life if he
is the only one who can do it. However, "it's pashut" that if others can
also do it, that he doesn't have to give up all his assets. Why is it so
pashut if others refuse? (i.e. why isn't it a joint and several liability?)
KT
Joel Rich

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Anyone have any sources on how local government, if any, functioned in
times of Tanach? Was there any besides the court system? What was the role
of the nesiim of the shvatim?
KT
Joel Rich

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Someone mentioned tahorapp.com on-line, so I took a look at their web site.
To quote:
> Keeping Tradition &
> Keeping Your Privacy

> Rabbinically Approved! Anonymously send pictures of your Taharas
> Hamishpacha questions to a Rav right from your own home. Receive answers
> quickly and privately. Download Tahor App For Free!

I then thought of "The Dress" <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_dress>,
a picture of a black-and-blue dress that floated around the internet that
many of us perceived as white-and-gold.

So, given that people guess at the background lighting when they see a
picture and then subconsciously correct for it (see explanation on
wikipedia page), how could a rav rely on a Tahor App image?

So, I filled out their contact form with something to that effect, and
a short discussion followed.

They replied:
: Color Precision:

: Thank you for your inquiry,

: To clarify (as this seems not to be clear):

: "Tahor" is meant to serve as a halachically approved "filter" for a
: majority of Shailos (many of which are straightforward and simple to
: determine). It is meant to allow those who may not have access to a rov, or
: who may not feel comfortable going to a rov, to have an option, when
: halachically viable, to send in their sample anonymously.

: What this app is not:
: This app IS NOT meant to be an umbrella replacement for the process of
: showing questionable bedikah cloths to Rabbonim. Rabbonim were all able to
: pasken correctly because of our advanced white balance technology and
: Rabbinic measurement capabilities. The cloths which are borderline or
: questionable, will be told to show the actual cloth to a Rabbi.

: It is obviously preferable to take the cloth directly to the Rabbi when
: possible, but many many women are not doing it! This will allow them to
: keep Taharat Hamishpachah and get accurate answers.

I felt I was getting a barely touched form letter, so I paraphrased
my original question:

} But given that the human eye will misinterpret colors when the lighting
} differs between the camera and the person looking at the picture, how
} can you know the results are accurate? After all, the differences in
} perception of the colors of The Dress is far far greater han that between
} a tamei brown and a tahor one.

And their reply:
: Shalom,
: Yes, this is true.
: This is why the Rabbis will only answer questions through the app which are
: clearly one or the other.

: An example of this would be if a stain on underwear is less than a gris.

: The Rabbi can with complete accurately declare this Pure/Impure.

: If the Rabbi feels that it is not so clear, he will tell the user to go to
: a Rav.

I am letting it drop there, because I am not going to argue anyone
into wondering whether or not his pet project works.

But I myself am still wondering.... Given how pronounced optical illusions
can be when it comes to color and how subtle many determinations are,
can a rav even know when the question is "clearly one way or the other"
rather than only seeming obvious?

I saw the dress in a catalog, so I know I am getting it wrong when I look
at the infamous picture. And yet, it's suprising. If it weren't for people
reporting a different color set, I would have considered white-and-gold
"clearly" right.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             Today is the 30th day, which is
mi...@aishdas.org        4 weeks and 2 days in/toward the omer.
http://www.aishdas.org   Gevurah sheb'Hod: When does capitulation
Fax: (270) 514-1507                  result in holding back from others?

See the following timeline:

http://crownheights.info/jewish-news/575460
http://crownheights.info/chabad-news/575513
http://crownheights.info/communal-matters/575546
http://crownheights.info/chabad-news/575559



-- 
Zev Sero                May 2017, with its *nine* days of Chanukah,
z...@sero.name           be a brilliant year for us all


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