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On your shoulders?
In your suitcase?> They don’t like us regardless of how nice we act.
Well, you could at least try and then it will be their fault. Or you can be as rude as you are sometimes trying, and justify their hate.
> and ONLY removed the bag with Teffilin .
maybe because it was a small bag that took extra place? I am sure if there were a muslim prayer mat there, they would have removed it too (and it would be ok to put it on the floor).
Common, I agree with the sentiment on humility,. I am not saying one should do this. Just saying it is a new question that was not entertained before, so we can’t answer by saying that Yitzele Peterburger didn’t light by the czar.
To follow on commons call for cautiousness, Maybe there are limits to public lighting when there’s opposition: don’t sue town hall for your first amendment rights, don’t do it where antisemitic feelings are high. Or join with other religions to have everyone access public property. We have an example in NY where Jewish schools join Catholics in fighting public health measures. An effort as admired in the unity aspect as misguided at its goal.
Avram > Pregnant women have babies
You probably have outdated books in your house. Current use is “pregnant people”, so you’ll have to burn your books soon. Highest disregard for women I ever saw …
Speaking of titles, someone commented that, ironically, Rav Feinstein was addressed as “Rosh Yeshiva” while Rav Soloveichik as “Rav” – while R Feinstein is mostly known for his teshuvos and had a small Yeshiva, while R Soloveichik is mostly known for raising students.
> Shul is established in the rishonim,
Obviously, we were not able to light publicly in most countries for last millenia … we even moved menorahs from outside to inside. Does anyone light new publicly in, say, Paris, where reportedly Jews do not walk publicly in kipah? I can’t find an example of a society where Jews had a status to light in public, so this seems to be a novel question for today’s society.
One matronah tried that in an argument w/ R Akiva in Sotah
learn Beitza 25 and do teshuva
very timely
Daf Yomi Taanit brings examples that unless someone is a Tzaddik Gamur, you don’t drive into Ramlallah, not on purpose, not by mistake.
Syag> Only you and Reb E
thanks for putting me in a good company. I presume RebE is too nice to object.
phil > Aren’t we as Jews supposed to keep our opinions in the community and to ourselves?
yes, but you also should examine opinions that are embarrassing and see if you need to fix them. Torah says that nations will look at our laws and say “how wise nd understanding this nation is”
We tried to help you with information but you keep referring to “numerous experts’ that you are not able to quote or name. Maybe time to ask your posek.
Maybe this is what is meant by ey increasing bzman moshiach: price of real estate
Daf yomi Taanit discusses a need to fast when there is a magefa at nearby place as it is inevitably coming, so we value foresight. The potential danger of new variant is a combination of higher transmission with escape of immunity from previous vaccines and infections. T cell protection seems to be holding better, protecting from severe disease bit not initial infection.
I have a new hypothesis that vivid with variants is continuously circulating in some communities. Most become protected from severe disease, but time to time get infected again. Most of infections aren’t noticed, but some do incremental unseen damage, like myocarditis.. so, after several times, an unusually large load cause a hard case
This would explain anecdotal observations that natural antibodies stay high: they do because they go down only when they stop encountering virus. Also, I am hearing about families who do tests to fly and turn out positive, then they remember yes some kids were not feeling well… Anyone else heard about such things happening?
Why don’t we have Hanukkah on sukkos?
Because menorah and Sukkah on the same car are the fire hazard
I humbly suggest we let nonjews to figure it out on their own. Extremists on both sides are not our good friends: neither those who matir asurim, nor those who Asur matirim. There are many less divisive issues where we can contribute positively to the public debate: education, hesed, unity of Hashem..
I agree. I am sad to admit that I sometimes post thought picked from someone without proper attribution, as there will be always someone saying it is from wrong derech, or I have to attach a page of explaining why this Rabbi is acceptable.
As Charlie said, there are Jews out there. The proof – you apparently saw them, unless it is a purely theoretical complaint!
Seriously, we discussed already how these chabadnikim are almost the only ones doing something for the millions of disappearing Jews, so let’s discuss whether they are has vesholom doing too much.
Besides the formal explanations, I think that men often define themselves by what they are against, what they are overcoming, how they are different from the other guy. Who is alpha, beta,
.. omicron… women seem to be happier with what they are and thus deserve a positive brochaAsh, agree with most of your points, but
– death rates in US and UK are about the same, Israel is way lower
– covid became a political pawn in many countries, and USA being the free country it is, is taking it to the extreme. Most of the blabber about vaccines you see here is simply a quote from some cable channel or website. Some Yidden are watching it secretly in their mothers’ basements, others are hearing it from friends in shul or fbook. This country gives people the blessings of freedom and some choose to use it to waste their minds.I recall a cartoon with a line of Chasidim and a professor standing in line to greet the Rebbe. Professor, embarrassed by his dress, borrows a shtreimel to go with his jacket. Rebbe says “Gut Shabbos” to everyone, and to Professor he says “A freiliche Purim”.
Health,
everyone asked for several weeks of tests. Biontech CEO said today that he presumes that T-cell protection against severe disease will not decrease, while lower level of antibodies protecting from initial infection may decrease.>> Should I say something?
Not during tefilah, however short it is! From COVID perspective, if you do not bother opening windows, you should daven even faster.
A Rav who happened to be stuck in a shul like that for a year, said that his solution was to come 30 minutes earlier and daven his normal speed. If other people join you, the problem will be fully solved.
The problem of speed davening, I think, is solely of confusing the tzibur. Hashem obviously understands you at any speed. For a humble example, I can (was able to) play chess 2 minutes against 5 minutes for a random chess-player of same average skill. I never measured, but I presume I can out-daven him too. Would my tefilah (or game) benefit from full 5 minute v. 2? Of course, they would. But you can’t say the shorter one is missing. For the tzibur, I can learn while the slow minyan is still davening. But other way around does not work.
publish several scientific or even popular articles before getting married and it will be a good excuse to keep the last name.
HaLeivi, what is this “on top”, “in parallel”. If someone uses “secular knowledge” to steal, to waste time, to offend people – then this is against Torah. If someone uses it to earn a living, to understand how Hashem’s world works, how to make life better for people – it is at basic level does not contradict Torah. (I am excluding cases like hiding Sefer Refuah because people did not deserve it).
Gemorah is full of not just medical but technical information about animals, farming, anything else in life. No Amorah would sow in the wrong season expecting Hashem to fix it. So, why would you do anything in our time without having all required knowledge.
Again, at the times of haskala things were different. Going to a university meant abandoning Torah.. It is not so in our days.
Gadol, MB suggests that sweet wine is exempt from drinking in two gulps. Given popularity of bad sweet wines in US, maybe this is a heter used. So, lifnei ever – you give sweet wine to people without manners.
Historically, NY Jews were drinking NY wine and only sweet stuff grows in upstate NY. Then, RebE and the rest of the kahal acquired taste for this sxweet stuff.
St some point NY wine was monopolized by Manischewitz sweet and was subject to Rabbinical boycotts – that wa the appropriate time to use chalah in the evening and mashke in the morning.
Avira > from a big lerusah
There is something here, yes, but there should be some limits. Whole sugya in Beitza revolves around eating raw meat on Yom Tov. Nobody is suggesting that yom tov seuda overrrides derech eretz min haTorah.
googling related varying manners: not talking during the meal – prohibited by Taanis 5b, Orach Chayim 170:1 but Prisha says this is due to old custom of eating reclined
Philosopher Karl Popper defines what a theory is and what is just babbe-maise (he is not using the latter term): could you suggest a potential fact that will overturn the theory? for example, a theory that vaccine is effective can be tested by a carefully constructed double-blinded test.
In case of phils writing above, he seems to reject any proposed proof or any widely proposed remedy as a conspiracy and, in turn, accepts anything that is not accepted widely as vadai remedy. I can’t come up with any potential piece of information that phil will not reject on these grounds.
Many over-simplify the situation. I see only one simple rule – there are no general rules. sometimes Jews wear same as others (Polish medieval garb, Sephardim in Arab countries), maybe excluding red color and other inappropriate things (Gemora times, later Polish time Vaad forbidding too much jewelry), sometimes Jews insisting on a different dress, sometimes non-Jews forcing Jews to wear different dress, or sometimes same dress. All, mostly depending on relationships to the outside world and mutual attitudes.
> purported intent of the travel ban was pikuach nefesh
Dutch just warehoused two planes from SA. 60 out of 600 people were infected. 13 with new variant.
There is a chain of command during emergency. There is no expectation that every case will be adjudicated to the full degree of lomdus.
> Judaism IS based on mesorah.
It is, and sometimes we do not have mesorah and we need to figure it out and create a new mesorah. This is either because information was lost (we discussed this before – Maharal about Bavli method of reconstructing missed information) and sometimes we have new circumstances (Churban, Modernity) and we can apply those Bavli methods (that include sevorah) to new circumstances.
Corollary: when we see people who are not good at applying sevorah to simple rational life problems, these people can not be counted among those who mastered Bavli.
> Techum, hotzaah, muktza.
They are not doing anything and not benefitting from any of these. All they did was – got back into the plane upon a lawful government order. They do not care whether the plane will stand on tarmac for a day or fly over the whole world. So, there is surely no issur mdeuraita. And concern for the health of other Jews should surely overrride any other concerns they have.
Vhere, Sh’A O’Ch 170:8, Ashkenazim allow for the cup size.
But a fair point: Beitza 25 proves a general klal on derech eretz min haTorah – I don’t think anyone argues on that. Pratim are obviously culture-dependent (and some commentaries say – upon health and size of the person). We don’t leave food on a side of a plate for the waiter to eat, and (in America) are not careful about using appropriate utensils as Victorians did. So, you will have to ask your local Rav.
What I do not understand – do we judge by general culture of the times? by the observant community? your own corner? Does it depend who of the above will see you?
HaLeivi > value secular study for its own sake
This was very vague, I am not sure what this even means. When I eat donuts, do I value them for their own sake or because I am hungry, or doing it l’shem?! Is it about parents who teach kids engineering to earn an honest living? Is it about learning science to marvel as Hashem’s world (R Twersky specifically recommends physiology with a caveat – can be done after yeshiva hours at hime)?
HaLeivi > you are going to prove something from what you made up?
this is from traditional sources, the source I can’t recall or look up right this second
> ignores every single one of Avira’s points
I was addressing the one about traditional learning lifestyle and those who interact with the world. Yaakov goes to Lavan upon the command of both of his parents (each with his own shitah – away from Esav or to get married, but they both think he can make it in a goyishe world) and learns from Ever practical halochos.
Avira,
> how a “reader” can see that the rishonim didn’t have a mesorah, because I’m not a readerthe joke is that academics spend a semester on the hakdomos, while learners skip it and go straight for lomdus. There is a good value for meta-learning – what is motivation, what is general approach or knowledge of the author. When you learn from someone in person (or on zoom :), you know the character of the speaker and it helps understanding what he is saying.
> academic mentality would not see anything wrong with annuling yom tov sheni,
I am not advocating academic paskening at all, but this is a bad example, as it is simple Gemorah that you need a better beis din to annul YT2. So, someone advocating such is definitely a ball gaavah as you are saying!Side note: if we want to have such a sanhedrin, we would definitely need to bring together people with different opinions and let them argue with each other directly rather than through humble proxies like us.
> This is why steinsaltz, who had no formal education, is so off base with his pshatim
In general, R Steinsaltz had yeshiva-educated people working for him. I have no insights on the Gemora editing process per se, but I think there are names listed, I did not open it for a long time. I read R Feldman’s critique of early volumes, I presume it is valid as I do not know better, although there was a response. Even with that, it opened Gemora for a lot of Israelis. I use Artscroll and it also has a lot of problems that can be seen with a naked eye, usually trying to smooth the text and avoid thinking outside the box. No translation is perfect.
phil, Gemora megilla explains the great reward of quoting by name. First, when you listen to someone about important topic, you should be making notes: name, date, info and source. If the person does not provide source, ask what the source is.
Second, do not search google directly, search specialized archives that return results by keyword and not by popularity. Try medline, pubmed, researchgate, etc. There are also archives of pre-prints if you are concerned that not all information is published. Those preprints often have comments attached. It is OK if you disagree with something that is published, but at least you’ll have an idea what you are disagreeing and why. When quoting it here, have a first author, title, date of the publication and then we can look at it also.
phil > there have been no peer reviewed, long-term studies on the negative side effects of the covid-19 “vaccine
and no peer reviewed studies on long term covid disease. Which one is more dangerous?
you always sound like you are quoting a website, or at best a popular journal article. You will find more response if you quote a scientific article you actually read through and found information there.
> Did he quaff the entire contents in one gulp?!?
this is against halakha even on wine. Beitza ~ 25, not one, not three, two.
> cynicism is inevitable.
any field is like that. Lawyers like challenging cases, doctors challenging operations, policemen – pursuing gruesome murderers, rebbes – complicated tosafos. all sometimes forget about human lives and tragedies involved.
On one hand, sometimes one needs to separate from emotions – otherwise a surgeon will not be able to stick a knife into another person. On another, we all need to remember who is in front of us.
Presumably Rebbe used his students to help in writing, same as Chafetz Chaim for Mishna Berurah. As a reference. Rabban Gamliel had 1000 people learning Torah ands 1000 Science in his household.
References to forgetting or being unsure is a good hint what was unwritten. In a recent daf, R Akiva knew of a machlokes between b’Hillel and b’Shammai but was not sure who is which side. edited
While Avraham was teaching, Shem and Ever had their own yeshiva where Yaakov goes to learn how to live and deal with Lavan. Both types of learning are legitimate.
Avira, you have an admirable nack for putting everything in one sentence: science education “by itself” and feminism, a science theory of evolution and gender theory. Some of these are a matter of opinion and others are clearly beyond Jewish norms, of either halakha or hashkofa. At least, you could order or group them. Otherwise, you create an impression that everyone who disagrees with you in slightest is an apikoires.
Same goes for your parsing of a teshuva that at it’s face allows risking soldier life defending Israel. I think it would be fair to say that Melech Dovid paskened the same and this is not a modernishe reading of the Nach.
Can I come up with a new one? Greek philosophers defined the world built out of 4 components. So, we doubled that! Either to point to Olam Habo (although not clear why it will be divisible) or just to raise the stakes!
Seriously, note the difference between Purim, and earlier malchuyot, and Chanuka: in Purim, we deal with a drunk Emperor who changes his wish every day. In Chanuka, we are dealing with _laws_ that prohibit things, a way more advanced civilization.
Why are we increasing candles? One big point of contention between Greeks and Jews is of statics v. dynamics. Greeks observe the world and accept it as is. Jews see history as a way forward and up, starting with sulam Yaakov and “chachamim yodea eitim” in Megilla. Jewish idea prevails in this debate, with Christianity, being a mixture of Greek and Jewish thought, accepting the history progress view, and so does modernity, including Marxism and all other isms that at least talk about improving human condition in some way.
So, increasing candles shows that we are always aiming higher.
philosopher, you need to switch off your partisan information sources (that you did not tell what they are) and try reading scientific literature directly. It will take you some time to learn the lingo but it will benefit you greatly. You’ll be able to come up with your own ideas. Scientists may have biases and preferences for certain approaches, but a lot of what is happening is factual: results of experiments and observations. This is done by a multitude of authors in different countries, companies, universities. They are not in secret communications with each other before putting out their pre-prints.
AJ > What your describing is the kashrus industry in the US.
the difference is that, as of now, most Israelis are eating kosher. In US, it is a volunteer system that serves only those who care. I am not an expert to what degree Rabanut can be weakened to still serve the population with kosher food.
Avira > some are just shy of the yeshiva world
There are 2 aspects here:
1) philosophy of the movement – here the hierarchy is contested. There is a lovely exploration of decision space. Frankly, we did not yet have a proof that any of the approaches to modernity work: should we totally separate from humanity, should we incorporate capabilities developed by it? what is dangerous? what is useful? we have plenty of opinions, but I don’t think it is settled. Moses Mendelsohn tried one risky approach – and it failed clearly within a generation. Was everything done by his opponents correct? No, otherwise we would not have so many Jews lost to haskalah, it is not just fault of assimilators, it is as well fault of those who led communities. We can’t look down at those generations, of course. They were confronted with a tremendous challenge that we still did not fully understand. Compare this with post-churban-sheni period: R Yohanan Ben Zakkai forcing some of the changes, Rabban Gamliel talking to people who refused to eat meat, etc. There were multiple thoughts initially.2) community level – there is no question that yeshiva community has more people learning Torah than others. Are they doing it to the right credit (see Israel where people stay “in learning” to not go to the Army), what is the quality of learning, is the approach sustainable – are we trying to follow Rashbi “the way that many tried and failed” – these questions are not answered yet. Many discussions here mention “emergency measures” to allow current social norms. I hope we will settle at some point into non-emergency where learning will be integrated in the normal lifestyle.
RebE > bombed the tracks to Auschwitz.
I am aware of this claim, but not 100% sure it is not just for public consumption.
Railroad tracks were routine bombed by all sides in WW2. And routinely repaired. There was no precision targeting, lots of bombs need to be sent to get something like that. Military targets were a priority. Etc.
Gadol, you may be right re: visible litigating positions. These people got to be sharp. There are millions of others, including decision-makers, who are not. I rarely see any of them going to work for private businesses in a significant capacity, except when their connections are valued, which is bodering on corruption. There were actually several corruption cases with government guys starting negotiating for a position at private company while still in service, instead of just winking.