Thursday, May 06, 2010

Tosfos vs. the Ran on counting sefirah early

Yesterday I mentioned the view of Tosfos (Menachos 66a) that since sefrah is derabbanan it can be counted during bein hashemashos based on the principle of safeik derabbanan l’kula. The Ran disagrees and argues that sfeika derabbanan l’kula means that if one is forced into a situation of doubt, one can be lenient; it does not give a person the right l’chatchila create a situation of safeik.

Rav Hershel Shachter (article here) notes that the Ran’s point seems to be borne out by the principle of ain m’vatlin issur l’chatchila, which tells us that one should ideally avoid having to decide a safeik if such a situation could be avoided. Why then does Tosfos advocate counting during beis hashemashos?

Rav Shachter suggests that Tosfos agrees in principle to the Ran, but argues that the case of sefirah is different because there is compelling reason in this case to enter into the safeik: the din of temimos. Tosfos held that the count of sefirah must be done at the earliest possible moment to include as much of the 24 hour day as possible. (If one davens ma'ariv at a late minyan it would be preferable based on this to count sefirah earlier.)

Why does the Ran disagree? The Ran may simply hold that since were sefirah d’oraysa counting early would be impossible (as sfeika d’oraysa l’chumra), the din derabbanan of sefirah done zecher l’mikdash cannot have more stringent parameters the d'oraysa mitzvah and cannot require counting earlier. Altrenatively, Rav Shachter suggests an interesting chiddush: the Ran may hold that the count of sefirah done at any point during the night covers the entire time period in question. In other words, just like kiddush hachodesh by beis din, even if done mid-day, retroactively creates a status of kedusha on the entire day, so too, the count of sefirah done at any point during the night effectively includes every moment of the night in the mitzvah, retroactive to the night's beginning. According to this approach, the reason to count early is not because of the din of temimos, but rather because of the usual din of zerizim makdimim.

A similar machlokes perhaps exists with respect to the mitzvah of kiddush. The Tur writes that one should hurry to recite kiddush immediately upon getting home Friday night to fulfill the mitzvah of zachrey’hu b’knisaso. The Rambam (shabbos 29:14), however, makes no mention of a need to rush, and even adds that although “ikkar kiddush” is at night, the kiddush may be recited at any point during Shabbos.

According to the Tur, the mitzvah of kiddush serves to sanctify the time of Shabbos going forward from the moment it was recited. Therefore, to encompass as much of Shabbos as possible, kiddush must be recited at the earliest possible moment. The Rambam, however, understood that kiddush works even retroactively, like the kiddush hachodesh of beis din. There is no specific din in hilchos kiddush that demands that it be recited early, only the usual din of zerizim.

7 comments:

  1. Tamir5:59 AM

    ... the Ran may hold that the count of sefirah done at any point during the night covers the entire time period in question ... the count of sefirah done at any point during the night effectively includes every moment of the night in the mitzvah, retroactive to the night's beginning.
    ( and later...)
    [ Re: Qidush on Shabat] The Rambam, however, understood that kiddush works even retroactively ...

    Why the need to say that, for the Ran, the Sefira of the day, and, for the Rambam, the Qidush, work retroactively ?
    Why not say that, for the Ran and the Rambam, the numbering of the days of the Omer( and their fullness) and the Qedusha of the Shabat occur regardless of our actions, and the Sefira and Qidush, respectively, are simply our acknowledgements of them( and Zerizim Maqdimim laMisvat) ?

    Also,
    According to the Tur, the mitzvah of kiddush serves to sanctify the time of Shabbos going forward from the moment it was recited. Therefore, to encompass as much of Shabbos as possible, kiddush must be recited at the earliest possible moment.

    Does this mean Yom haShabat before the Qidush is recited, for the Tur, has less Qedusha than afterwards ?

    If so, why not suggest the Qidush be recited right after Qabalat Shabat( Mizmor Shir leYom haShabat), before Barekhu and Qeri'at Shema' shel Arvit are said( like the Tosafot you bring seems to imply for Sefirat ha'Omer) ?

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  2. Tamir8:23 AM

    [ Re: Sefirat ha'Omer] In other words, just like kiddush hachodesh by beis din, even if done mid-day, retroactively creates a status of kedusha on the entire day...
    and
    [ Re: Qidush for Shabat] The Rambam, however, understood ... like the kiddush hachodesh of beis din.

    I would have thought there is a major difference between Beit Din's Qidush haChodesh and Sefirat ha'Omer\Qidush for Shabat:
    In Qidush haChodesh the Beit Din decides whether the previous month was 29 or 30 days. When they decide that the previous month was 29, the would-be 30th day becomes the first of the new month even after the day has already begun, i.e. retroactively. The retroactive nature of Qidush haChodesh of Beit Din is the result of them deciding, as things are happening, the day the new month begins.
    In the cases of Sefirat ha'Omer and Qidush haShabat the essence of these days already exists beforehand, regardless of whether, and when during the day, we perform the Sefira or Qidush: Shavu'ot falls on the 50th day from after the first day of Pesach regardless of whether one stopped counting, and one is no less obliged concerning Qedushat haShabat for not reciting the Qidush. On the other hand, if Beit Din do not do Qidush haChodesh on the 30th day of the preceding month, it does not become the Rosh Chodesh of the new month.
    The Qidush haChodesh makes the 30th day what it wouldn't have been otherwise. How do the others do the same ?

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  3. >>>the numbering of the days of the Omer( and their fullness) and the Qedusha of the Shabat occur regardless of our actions,

    There is no kedushas hayom to omer -- nothing is qualitatively different about the day. You just have a chovas hagavra to count.

    >>>If so, why not suggest the Qidush be recited right after Qabalat Shabat

    Because you need a seudah and you can't be kovea seudah before ma'ariv. (Actaully, IIRC, there is a question raised whether you could have your seudah before ma'ariv if you daven kabbalas shabbos very early. I forget why this is frowned upon.)

    >>>The Qidush haChodesh makes the 30th day what it wouldn't have been otherwise. How do the others do the same ?

    It's just an analogy -- you are definitely right, the mechanism must be different.

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  4. Tamir5:22 PM

    Chaim B.( 9:31 AM): There is no kedushas hayom to omer ...

    I didn't say that there is.

    Chaim B.: ... nothing is qualitatively different about the day. You just have a chovas hagavra to count.

    According to Rav Shachter's Chidush, there is a qualitative affect of the Sefira: If it is said early, that day is Tamim, to all opinions. The Ran differs from the Tosafot only in saying that even if one counts later, it holds for Temimot - retroactively.

    What I meant to say was that the days can be Temimot, regardless of when the Sefira is done, even without it having to happen retroactively from the Sefira.

    Chaim B.: Because you need a seudah and you can't be kovea seudah before ma'ariv. (Actaully, IIRC, there is a question raised whether you could have your seudah before ma'ariv if you daven kabbalas shabbos very early. I forget why this is frowned upon.)

    So back to my other question: According to the Tur, does Yom haShabat before the Qidush have less Qedusha than after it ? How so ?

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  5. >>>does Yom haShabat before the Qidush have less Qedusha than after it ?

    No, the day's kedusha is not effected, but you have failed in your chovas hagavra to be a mekadesh b'knisas shabbos.

    With respect to sefirah, what does it mean to say the day is tamim apart from the chovas hagavra to count? I don't understand what you are saying. Kedusha is a quality of the day, temimus is not.

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  6. Anonymous6:10 PM

    I have a different question which I am unsure if you addressed If on Shavous by night we wait for Marriv Late for Temimos why dont we have to Daven Marrriv earlier on Pesach For the Same reason?

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  7. Who says we don't? That's why the minhag of counting sefira in the middle of the haggadah is difficult to understand.

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