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Nittel Nacht
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Motek




 
 
    
 

Post Sat, Dec 30 2006, 8:06 pm
Quote:
The Maharsha (1555 - 1631) was a genuine tzaddik who studied Torah day and night and merited great siyatta d'Shmaya. The only time he didn't study was on "Nittel Nacht," when he would review his accounts and determine how much maaser money he had to distribute.

One year, one of the city's ruffians told the police that out of contempt for C-ristianity's "savior," the Maharsha didn't study Torah on Nittel Nacht. The police agreed to investigate.

That night, as the Maharsha sat in his study going over his accounts, a sefer fell from his bookshelf. The Maharsha picked it up, kissed it and then returned it to its place. Moments later, another book fell, and he picked up that one, too, and returned it to the shelf. The third time a book fell, he picked it up, but for some reason, felt compelled to open it. At that very moment, the police burst into his home. Seeing the Maharsha bent over a book, they stopped in their tracks - and returned to the police station.


Most people do not sleep during the hours that they do not learn in order to learn after chatzos. Not learning at this time has nothing to do with bittul Torah and the time need not be "made up."
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Motek




 
 
    
 

Post Sat, Dec 30 2006, 8:07 pm
Quote:
Rabbi Nathan Adler of Frankfort interpreted it as an expression of mourning, presumably for all the persecutions that were inflicted on Jews since the inception of Christianity. In this respect, it was comparable to the prohibition of Torah study that is observed on the Ninth of Av fast.


there are various reasons for nitel , some al pi nigleh and some al pi "inyonim". A good source for anyone interested in the various minhagim and reasons is Nitei Gavriel
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Motek




 
 
    
 

Post Sat, Dec 30 2006, 8:12 pm
In a book about Tzanz, the author writes that nittel nacht was kept on January 6, from 6 P.M. to 12, even though the gentiles' holiday was on December 25. The date of the Russian is Jan 7, but Belz (based on a story that the Belzer Rov asked a priest when nittel was) say it is Jan 6.

In Russia, they kept the Julian calendar and did not eliminate 11 day like the Gregorian calendar, so yom aidam is Jan 6.

The simple reason for nittel is rooted in Minhogei Yisroel, and once a minhag was established it has its life of its own, even though the original circomstances are not there anymore the Minhag is kept.

"If no one is learning Torah this night, how does the world continue to exist?" The Chidushei Ha'Rim said that R' Yonoson Eibschutz was asked this question and he answered, "minhag Yisrael Torah hee!" (get it?)

(alternatively, this line is attributed to R' Levi Y. of Berditchev)
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chavamom




 
 
    
 

Post Sat, Dec 30 2006, 8:47 pm
I didn't find quotes I *thought* I typed up last year from the article in HaModia, but here are a few things I remembers.

While today it is mostly observed by Chasidim and the followers for the Chasam Sofer (certain Hungarians), there is a source for the minhag that predates X-ianty. Al pi kabalah it dates back to Adam haRishon, if I remember correctly. I think it has more to do with the negative influences that X-ianity tapped into (remember, Dec 25 was just a date they picked in replace a festival that celebrated Saturn and who knows what festival preceded that one!) than basing the custom on the fact that this is when they celebrate the birth of Yoshke.
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shalhevet




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Dec 31 2006, 3:32 am
Motek wrote:


shalhevet wrote:
All the sources which have been brought seem to show:

Either-
People shouldn't learn before midnight so that they can sleep and have strength to get up at midnight to learn the rest of the night. ... Or It was dangerous to go outside in Xian countries on those nights. So they didn't go and learn in the Beis Midrash...


You missed the main point which was quoted several times which is not to give chayus to kelipos.

A macha'a is made when you denigrate a Jewish practice, period. No sources have to be offered at all (though they were). If frum Jews have a practice, minhag yisrael torah hee.


Not always the case. Sometimes there are mistaken minhagim which are against halacha, and sometimes frum Jews act in a way against halacha because they are used to it and there never was such a minhag. (I'm speaking generally here, not about this specific point.)

Quote:

Since your knee-jerk reaction is to denigrate a Jewish practice and only when sources are offered do you have to back down, seems that you ought to be doing some soul-searching as to why you, someone who prides herself on supporting Torah study, finds herself automatically disparaging frum Jews such as the Steipler, the Maharsha, the Chasam Sofer and their practices.

There are many important Rabbonim, Gedolim etc who dismiss nittel and learn as usual to fulfil the Torah obligation to learn Torah. So it is certainly not the accepted minhag for many Jews. I seem to think it is you who always demands a source; for me it is enough what our rav says to do. Anyway, a story about a gadol, or even seeing a gadol behaving a certain way with our own eyes, is not considered a halachic source. Certainly not anonymous stories cut and pasted from the Internet.
And I certainly never disparaged any Jew or any Gadol; only the practice is not accepted amongst many Gedolei Yisroel.
edited by mod2 you may pm me
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Motek




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Mar 11 2007, 4:52 pm
The topic of meshumadim came up - you know you read stories about the meshumad (Jew who converted to Christianity) who did things to get his fellow Jews into trouble even to the point of their expulsion and death, it's so unbelievable that a Jew could so such a thing Sad . Someone pointed out that the Chida brings (from someone else) that meshumadim were conceived on Nittel Nacht (or their fathers were gentiles).
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amother


 

Post Thu, Dec 20 2007, 7:33 pm
Comin' up
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chocolate moose




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Dec 20 2007, 9:05 pm
guess I'm gonna miss my halacha shiur ....
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freidasima




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Dec 21 2007, 9:14 am
I remember my dh asking my father a"h about nittlenacht and not learning and what the family minhag was and my father answered that if you had a kavua learning time you did it no matter what..
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shalhevet




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Jan 06 2010, 5:21 am
TzenaRena wrote:
Quote:
Anyway, seems like you need to ask your rav which shitta to go by as to which date is nittel . There are at least 3 different deias amongst the Xians. Maybe you should be machmir and keep all three.
Since it goes according to the date of the "Akum", one abstains from learning on the night the local population designates.

The Chasam Sofer brings this explanation of why we don't learn that night till chatzos:
the Chasam Sofer wrote:
It is possible that this "minhag kadmonim's"'(custom of early sages - or alternatively ancient custom) source is in the concern that maybe there will be a kitrug on this night on Am Yisrael, of whom the majority of them sleep after chatzos, whereas the non jews go to their house of worship after midnight.

And since they didn't want to decree and obligate all of Israel to get up at midnight, because then it would be likely to be interpeted as though we are following after the non jews in our actions, therefore they preferred to completely hold us back from learning Torah before chatzos, in order that all the Lomdei Torah would rise at chatzos, to complete their established quota of daily studies and should be involved in Avodas Hashem;resultingly there would be no kitrug on Israel. (Igros Sofrim, siman 2 )


My husband checked out this source, and the CS goes on to say that people kept this minhag but it should be discontinued.
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