A colleague of mine brought to my attention the Kosherswitch. This isn’t a gramma-based light switch (i.e. a light switch that is based on indirect causation). The website has all of the info about how it works, which rabbis approve of it, where to buy it, etc. It is not currently available for purchase by [...]
The weekday edition of Makor Rishon has been available online for some time, and I just saw that part of their Musaf Shabbat is now also online here. If you’re looking for quality writing about Israeli and Jewish culture, this is the place to look.
For some time now in Arad there has been a battle between hasidim from Habad and Gur over who has control over the central synagogue. From time to time things get a bit violent, and the confrontation from this past shabbat created a rare situation. Apparently, there was an argument over which rabbi was going [...]
Yondov Kaplon has recently published Meimcha Eilecha: Sefer ha-Shabbat. (hat tip) The book is based upon the traditional liturgy for Shabbat, and it includes commentaries, both ancient and modern, stories, poetry, etc. This is similar to the popular mahazor that Kaplon edited for the Yamim Noraim.
The Atlantic Wire has a good post discussing the issue of Shabbat observance, e-readers, and modern technology, “People of the E-Book? Observant Jews Struggle With Sabbath in a Digital Age.” So how are Jews responding? Some are thinking of ways to accommodate emerging technology within the structure of traditional Sabbath observance while others wrestle with [...]
A number of years ago Stephen M. Passamaneck wrote an interesting article, “Biblical Arsonists and Sabbath Firemen: Matters of Public Safety.” Melilah 2 (2005): 1-27. (here) In this article Passamaneck identified a four-stage process of development in Jewish legal discussion about firefighting on the Sabbath. To review briefly: the first stage is the most rigid, [...]
Ynet has an article (Hebrew) about Kabbalat Shabbat in the communal settlement of Shimshit. Shimshit is one of a number of secular communities that have developed rituals related to Shabbat, Jewish holidays, and other life-cycle events. Information about these communities can be found at Hitḥadshut Yehudit and Betei Kehila.
Giluy Milta B’alma has a post about the well-known piyyut, Yedid Nefesh (ignore the version of the piyyut included in this entry, see below), that is recited on Friday night in many synagogues. The post describes the textual history of the piyyut and why it is attributed to R. Elazar Azkari (1533-1600). Pay attention to [...]
During Shabbat I was thinking a bit more about the questions of glow sticks on Shabbat (see here) and I found some similarity to the question of whether one is permitted to use a microwave oven on Shabbat. How is a posek suppose to approach the question of using a microwave oven on Shabbat? Poskim [...]
Here’s an interesting question from the realm of the laws of Shabbat. Can one initiate the “lighting” of a glow stick on Shabbat? The light comes from a chemical process, no spark, flame, etc. Here is a description of how a glow stick works. Atoms are excited, does that mean that it should be forbidden? [...]
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