[Avodah] Subject: Onein and Sefirah

[Saul Mashbaum]

RMBerger
>>
Say someone lost a family member,
and qevurah had to be delayed more than 24 hours. Does he not count omeir
that day, and thereby lose the entire year's count (if it is one chiyuv)?
>>

This question is dealt within the Biur Halacha ot SA OC 489:7 d"h
v'lo. In the cited case one would count s'fira without a bracha during
aninut, and then may resume counting with a bracha the night after the
k'vura.
There are many s'frikot about sfira during aninut. According to some
opinions, an onen is not really patur from s'fira, since the brief
time devoted to s'firadoes not interfere with preparations for the
funeral. Some opinions say that an onen, although not obligated in
mitvot, may do them if he sees fit, and so one may count s'fira
during aninut.

IMO, according to the latter opinion,  further counting with a bracha
is dependent on the knotty question of whether a mitzva done in a time
of ptur counts for after a chiyyuv is (re)established, like someone
who becomes bar-mitzva during sfira. The common Ashkenazi practice is
to continue to count with a bracha in the latter case, and this would
apply to the case of an onen as well (according to the opinion that an
onen is patur from sfira). IIANM, Sfardic practice differs on this
point.

Implicit in RMB's question is the IMO correct assumption that if this
is possible, an onen waits until after the funeral, during the day,
and then counts without a bracha, again resuming to count with a
bracha the following night.

Th BH notes that if the onen did not count during the night and day,
he indeed cannot make the bracha on subsequent nights  One who did not
count *for any reason* (including illness or aninut) does not make a
bracha afterwards.

May our learned chaver RRW be comforted among the mourners of Zion and
Yerushalayim.

Saul Mashbaum