[Avodah] Yom Ha`atzma'ut vs. 5 Iyyar

[David E Cohen]

R' Marty Bluke wrote:
> How exactly does that work al pi halacha? Does this apply in
> Chutz Laaretz where the chillul shabbos question is not
> relevant? That would be quite interesting, people in
> America saying Hallel on Monday and people in Israel saying
> hallel on Tuesday.

Stritcly speaking, the chillul Shabbos issue is not directly relevant to the
Hallel question in Israel either.

There is a sevara to always say Hallel on 5 Iyyar (the exact day on which
Jewish sovereignty in Eretz Yisra'el was restored), and there is a sevara to
say Hallel on the day that's being observed on Yom Ha`atzma'ut (since the
miracles surrounding the establishment of the State took place on many
different dates, if we're going to give shevach for it on one particular
day, it might as well be the day that the country is celebrating it).

In theory, either sevara could be applied anywhere.  However, in Israel,
where Yom Ha'atzma`ut is celebrated as a public holiday, it would "seem
strange" to say Hallel on a different day, so to the best of my knowledge,
everybody who says Hallel follows the second sevara.  Additionaly, the Chief
Rabbinate has decided this way, and most of the shuls that are saying Hallel
at all follow its ruling in the matter.  In chutz la'aretz, where saying
Hallel might be the only way in which many working people are marking Yom
Ha`atzma'ut at all, and where there is no "central authority" like the Chief
Rabbinate, the second sevara doesn't carry as much weight, and there are a
few local rabbanim (though definitely a minority, in my experience in chu"l)
who pasken according to the first sevara and always say Hallel on 5 Iyyar.

I wonder if this would have turned out differently had the frequency of Yom
Ha'atzma'ut actually being observed on 5 Iyyar always been as low as it is
now.  Initially, it was always observed on 5 Iyyar, 100% of the time.  In
5718, the rule was adopted that pushes Yom Ha`atzma'ut back to Thursday when
5 Iyyar falls on Friday or Shabbos, leaving it on 5 Iyyar 60% of the time.
Only in 5764 was the rule adopted that pushes Yom Ha`atzma'ut to Tuesday
when 5 Iyyar falls on Monday, leaving 5 Iyyar to be observed as Yom
Ha`atzma'ut only when it falls on a Wednesday, 29% of the time.

--D.C.