Year: 2018

Mass, Mainstream Halachic OCD

Otherwise serious Torah scholars in Yeshiva fear even speaking like a normal person when studying certain Sugyos in Shas. When learning Nedarim, or Shevuos, they will never use the first person point of view in an example, as though this would obligate them to do or avoid doing something…

It’s one thing to be superstitious in a religiously permitted way, such as not demonstrating Shechita on himself, not writing “Siman שמ”ד”, or being careful, as Sefer Chassidim says, around Iyun study of Moed Katan or Yevamos.

It’s one thing to avoid saying Birkas Hashem and the like, but quite another to mix in ridiculous “Yiras Shamayim”, as though reading the Talmudic words “I owe you a Maneh” (money) means you do, “Hareini Nazir” (I accept the Nazirite vow) demands nervous hedges תוך כדי דיבור, even “Harei At mekudeshes” (Behold you are my wife) are words to be avoided (maybe a female will pass within earshot of the study session!) [‘וגדולה מזו ש”ע אה”ע סימן ל”ה ט].

An otherwise rational person once said the Yiddish word for Yes should not be ethnically pronounced as “Yah”, for fear of uttering the Name in vain (יה)…

To psychologize, I think this is caused by repressed zeal for actual Halachos. Jews have a religious impulse, especially when generally cultivated, and if suppressed, it will express itself in insanity.

Want More Money? Just VOTE Yourself a Raise!

Hamodia is a reasonable source for clean Israeli news in English (if not always accurate), even if their “Charedi” perspective on important questions is always disgusting:

Knesset Votes Salary Raise to Ministers

The Knesset Finance Committee has acted to correct a disparity in official incomes, bringing ministerial salaries in line with those of Knesset members, whose salaries have come to exceed those of ministers.

The anomaly was due to the fact that lawmakers’ salaries were linked to the average wage, while ministers’ were pegged to the consumer price index. At the time that linkage was created, the CPI was rising faster than wages; but after the situation reversed, MKs began earning more than ministers.

Oy vey! How about we lower their salaries, instead, to motivate them to stop hurting us?! Except, well, who’s “We”?

Under the new regime, ministers will receive a pay raise of 5,000 monthly, and 5,500 to the prime minister, at a cost to the taxpayers of about 2 million shekels.

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s salary will now be 49,600 a month. Ministers’ salaries will go up from 39,200 to 44,200, according to Ynet on Monday.

Oh, is that all?!

Opposition MKs were opposed, saying that lawmakers should not set their own salaries. “It keeps happening that MKs make decisions on their own affairs in a complete conflict of interest. It’s unreasonable,” said MK Mickey Rosenthal (Zionist Camp). “We need to appoint an external committee.”

Haha!

Explain to me R e a l – S l o w – N o w how the State appoints an, um, “external committee”.

P.S., I have since found major, critical errors in Hamodia’s online reporting, and wouldn’t recommend it ever, to anyone.

בקרוב: הקדמה עבור דע מה שתשיב

בעזרת השם.

עדכון: המאמר, המהווה מדריך הישרדות לשיחה עם אתאיסט, נשלח לכל הנרשמים לרשימת התפוצה שלנו. הוא נקרא “מדריך מעשי לשיחה עם אתאיסט“.

אם גם אתה נרשמת לרשימת התפוצה, אך טרם קיבלת את המאמר, נא להזכיר לנו כאן.

Where Are Passports Mentioned in Tanach?

“Nechemya” 2:7-9:

ואומר למלך אם על המלך טוב אגרות יתנו לי על פחוות עבר הנהר אשר יעבירוני עד אשר אבוא אל יהודה. ואגרת אל אסף שמר הפרדס אשר למלך אשר יתן לי עצים לקרות את שערי הבירה אשר לבית ולחומת העיר ולבית אשר אבוא אליו ויתן לי המלך כיד אלהי הטובה עלי. ואבוא אל פחוות עבר הנהר ואתנה להם את אגרות המלך וישלח עמי המלך שרי חיל ופרשים.

Reading the Rema Carefully

Shulchan Aruch O.C. 6:2:

יש נוהגין להמתין לברך על נט”י עד בואם לבית הכנסת, ומסדרים אותו עם שאר הברכות. ובני ספרד לא נהגו כן.

Rema adds idem:

ועכ”פ לא יברך ב”פ ומי שמברכם בביתו, לא יברך בבה”כ, וכן מי שמברכם בבה”כ לא יברך בביתו (כל בו סימן ב’).

But why add ומי שמברכם בביתו, לא יברך בבה”כ, וכן מי שמברכם בבה”כ לא יברך בביתו? The Rema ought to write: ועכ”פ לא יברך ב”פ, so as to avoid a Bracha Levatalah, and stop there.

None of the Nosei Keilim seem to address this. (The Mishna Berurah might be implying the second sentence comes to include the Shli’ach Tzibbur; דוחק.)

Now, the source for the Rema is given as Kolbo chapter 2:

אינו מברך פעם אחרת בבאו לבית הכנסת אלא תופס במקום שהניח. והראי”ף ז”ל כתב זהו במקום שנוהגין לומר כל הברכות בבית הכנסת אבל אנו…

The Sha’arei Teshuvah explains there was a dispute in the age of the Shulchan Aruch as to which is preferable: More Amens or עובר לעשייתן, unlike Birkos Hash’vach.

So the Rema adds a new halacha (apart from Bracha Levatalah): One should do one or the other, but not alternate each day.

If I’m wrong, please correct me.