[Avodah] chumrah of Sefardim

[Shoshana L. Boublil]

> Date: Tue, 8 May 2007 17:58:08 +0100
> From: "Chana Luntz" <chana at kolsassoon.org.uk>
> Subject: Re: [Avodah] chumrah of Sefardim

> And RKB wrote:

>> I do this as much as possible. The sepharadi shuls here are makpid to
>> only serve water challah.

> I think there are two aspects to ROY's psak:
>
> A) that if a sephardi is making hamotzei he can only do so on water
> chala;
> B) he cannot be yotzei with an Ashkenazi who is making hamotzei on sweet
> chala.
>
> Even if you hold A) and I think a lot of Sephardim do, that does not
> necessarily mean that you hold B).  If you hold, as my husband (and his
> Rav) does that if one is invited out the correct procedure is to be
> yotzei on the kiddush/hamotzei of the baal habayis

My husband has an interesting custom that could be connected to this.  When 
we have guests, his minhag is that "Orei'ach Mekadesh and Ba'al HaBayit 
Botze'a".

When offered the option at homes where we visit -- he offers this minhag and 
is willing to do the kiddush, but leaves the hamotzi to the Ba'al HaBayit.

The rational offered is that the Ba'al HaBayit wishes to honor the guest. 
But, if he would give him Hamotzi, there may be a problem - the Ba'al 
HaBayit uses a knife/doesn't while the guest does the opposite;  the guest 
could hand out pieces that are considered too big or too small by Ba'al 
HaBayit's standards.

So the result is that the guest does the kiddush and the host the Hamotzi.

> and if one takes the
> view that if it is OK for him, one can rely on his standards, then even
> if one holds A) one is not required to bring one's own challos
>(Note you can have the same problem with kiddush, as ROY
> and others hold that a lot of the traditional Ashkenazi kiddush wines
> (ie the very sweet ones) take a shehakol

It is easier (usually) to find another bottle of wine that would be suitable 
for the Sephardi guest than to find another challa. One can discuss the wine 
on the table and ask if a different wine is also available. Most hosts will 
gladly bring the alternate bottle, and if the guest is nice about it, the 
host won't be insulted (which is VERY important).

So, this minhag matches accepting A, a Sefardi needs a non-sweet challah for 
Hamotzi and not accepting B -- that is, one can be yotzei if the other is 
yotzei, even if by themselves they wouldn't have been, and that the Sephardi 
guest maintains his halachah, and without insulting the host.

Shoshana L. Boublil