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What’s the significance of 40



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solo




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Nov 13 2017, 8:26 am
Specifically with regard to 40 woman baking challah?
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water_bear88




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Nov 13 2017, 8:35 am
Interesting, never heard of that one. Other 40s that come to mind are 40 days on Har Sinai, 40 days of the mabul, and 40 men needing to fast (or one fasting 40 days) if someone drops a sefer torah.
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PurpleandGold




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Nov 13 2017, 8:44 am
Moshe Rabbeinu davened for forty days until Hashem said "salachti k'dvarecha" and forgave klal Yisrael for the chet haegel, therefore it is very recommended to daven for forty days for a yeshua.

I am not sure why someone would connect that to forty people doing any mitzvah...perhaps because there will be forty tefillos said for the yeshua by hafrashas challah?
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mandksima




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Nov 13 2017, 11:45 am
aish-the number40

Some of these reasons have to do with women specifically like the 40 se'ahs of water in the mikvah which purifies us, 40 days for an embryo to be formed, the 40 days women say Perek Shira, etc. I haven't heard 40 women doing hafrashat challah together but it is a significant number in its own right.
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amother
Ginger


 

Post Mon, Nov 13 2017, 3:31 pm
I'm curious too who came up with the idea of the forty women challah gatherings as I got invited to one and don't feel comfortable with the idea. Is there any real source for this?
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amother
Saddlebrown


 

Post Mon, Nov 13 2017, 3:52 pm
amother wrote:
I'm curious too who came up with the idea of the forty women challah gatherings as I got invited to one and don't feel comfortable with the idea. Is there any real source for this?
I heard there is no actual source for this just a nice thing for people to gather together and do mitzvah and daven together for more impact.
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octopus




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Nov 13 2017, 6:51 pm
It's probably kabbalistic. Certain numbers have kabbalistic significance. The number 7 represents tevah (7 days of creation) . 8 represents l'maalah min hateva (shavuos is the 50th day after seven cycles of seven. Once the Jewish people received the torah they were considered l'maaleh min hateva. Boy has bris on eighth day.
If I had to guess 40 is a number of creation. A fetus is considered a fetus at 40 days. Hashem accepted moshe's teshuva after 40 days and nights. It was a new creation since Hashem wanted to destroy klal yisrael. The mabul was forty days and nights and it was a different world afterwards (new creation)/ . So when people daven for 40 days or get 40 ppl together, I'm assuming the intention is that Hashem should create a new reality/creation and give person xyz (refuah, zivug, etc.)
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goodmorning




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Nov 13 2017, 7:01 pm
Bnei Yisroel wandered in the midbar for 40 years as a punishment for the cheit of the meraglim.

Immediately after the account of the meragalim in Parshas Shlach appear the mitzvah of (menachos) and challah. Challah is a mitzvah hatluya ba'aretz and the Abarbanel explains that it was given after the cheit of the meraglim to reassure Bnei Yisroel that although it would take a long time, they would eventually enter Eretz Yisroel and be able to perform that mitzvah.

Hence, challah is directly connected to the 40 years in the midbar; it's the reassurance that even those years would come to an end.

(Disclaimer: I'm not a fan of the 40-women-take-challah-together idea and am skeptical that whoever came up with it gave the number as much thought as any of us just did on this thread.)
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