[Avodah] priorities in halacha

Micha Berger micha at aishdas.org
Thu Dec 25 08:17:48 PST 2008


On Thu, Dec 25, 2008 at 10:52:30AM -0500, Zev Sero wrote:
: Danny Schoemann wrote:
:> Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 139:5 - If one can afford it, one should buy a
:> silver Menorah to beautify the Mitzva.

: Isn't it a little strange for a sefer halacha to impose a particular
: aesthetic as if the author's tastes were universal?

Assuming that's what he meant. The KSA starts with suggesting one try to
use a metal menorah to give the mitzvah some respectability. Then if you
could afford it, better silver. I read him as taking it for granted that
people would value a silver menorah more than a tin one. But if you had a
beautiful piece that was acrylic artwork, I don't think RSG was saying,
no -- pick the silver.

Frankly, my most valued menorah was (it didn't survive since last year)
made from a cigar box, small tiles, some bolts, etc... I proudly used the
menoraah my son gave me, and never would have traded it for a silver one.
(Since he made it in school, it was probably moet expensive, anyway.)

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             "I hear, then I forget; I see, then I remember;
micha at aishdas.org        I do, then I understand." - Confucius
http://www.aishdas.org   "Hearing doesn't compare to seeing." - Mechilta
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