[Avodah] Aliyah l'regel

[Jonathan Baker]

From: "Jonathan Baker" <jjbaker at panix.com>
> Daniel Israel:
  
> > aliyah l'regel?
 
> And why is it "aliyah l'regel" when the way the halacha is practiced
> seems to be "aliyah b'regel"?  Ascent to the foot?  The foot of what?
> God's foot? 

Several people pointed out off-list that it's "aliyah for the holiday"
not "to the holiday".

My response:

Ainochenami.  The festivals are only called "regalim" once, at Ex. 23:14.
Chazal seem to take this to imply a requirement for foot-pilgrimage.
Since this is a requirement, it seems a bit odd that they then divorce
the aliyah from the raglayim, and remap it to the regel-festival, in 
the commonly-used expression.

--
        name: jon baker              web: http://www.panix.com/~jjbaker
     address: jjbaker at panix.com     blog: http://thanbook.blogspot.com