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? [...]
I previously pointed out where you can read a review of this past shabbat’s Alonei Parashat ha-Shavuah. To see most of the pamphlets themselves, look here and here.
Eddy Portnoy has an interesting article in Tablet on Shomrei Shabbos organizations. As secular Yiddish groups like women’s rights organizations and sports clubs established themselves in the early 20th century, so too did Orthodox groups begin formalizing their unions. Chief among them was the establishment of an official Shomrei Shabbos organization. After the organization was [...]
Part I, Part II Found throughout the literature which discusses whether a blessing is recited over the lighting of shabbat candles, there are a number of “phantom sources,” sources which aren’t found in the extant literature. The first example of a “phantom sources” is from Abraham ha-Yarhi’s Sefer Ha-Manhig. In Yitzhak Rafael’s edition this can [...]
I have been teaching a course in which we are examining two different questions relating to the lighting of shabbat candles, whether a blessing is required and if the lighting of shabbat candles is considered kabbalat shabbat, i.e. if lighting shabbat candles initiates the accepting upon oneself of shabbat prohibitions. I won’t be going over [...]
See here for a previous post about blowing the Shofar on Shabbat and this post from Seforim and this article which Dan links to. Update: Maariv has an article on the shofar blowing this past shabbat in Jerusalem.
A few weeks ago, one of the local papers had an article about another blogger who lives in my neighborhood, Aliza Hausman. She describes herself as “a Dominican-American Latina and Orthodox Jewish convert (Jewminicana for short!), freelancer writer, blogger and speaker.” For those looking for something in addition to questions concerning philology, manuscripts, Talmud study, [...]
There was a recent article in the Jewish Week about Sherwood Goffin, the cantor of the Lincoln Square Synagogue. Goffin was lamenting the current state of leading prayer services and what may be termed the over-Carlbachization of prayer services. He is upset that many people lead services and have no idea about what is the [...]
As the snow/ice was falling right before Shabbat I realize a missed opportunity to write about a practical halakhic issue, so save the conclusion for next year. Living in an apartment building shoveling snow is not an issue, but for homeowners and shuls, the removal of snow on Shabbat raises a number of halakhic issues. [...]
Gil at Hirhurim has a post discussing the description from the First Book of Maccabees 2:31-41 of how at first some of the rebels would not fight back on Shabbat, and it was only after they were slaughtered that the decision was made to fight on Shabbat. “So they made this decision that day: “Let [...]
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