[Avodah] Shlissel Challah

[Micha Berger]

I assume by now most of you have read R' Jeffrey Saks' post at
<http://torahmusings.com/2011/04/shliss-challah>. He gives three reasons
for the minhag:

    1. Based on "Pitchi Li Achoti, Ra'ayati..." ..., on which the Midrash
    states "Pitchu li petach ke-chudo shel machat...," ... = something
    like "Open your hearts (in teshuvah) like the eye of the needle,
    and I (God) will open the rest like [a very large opening].

    2- According to Kabbalah on Pesach the gates to heaven were open,
    and following Pesach the lower gates are shut, and it's up to us
    to open them again...

    3- In the desert the Jewish people ate from the manna until after
    Pesach upon entering the land (with the bringing of the Omer, see:
    Josh. 5:11), at which point the ate from the produce... The key
    in the challah after Pesach is a request the God should open the
    Sha'arei Parnasah... Alternatively, the manna began to fall in the
    month of Iyyar, and this Shabbat is always Shabbat Mevarchim Iyyar.

A more prosaic explanation...

Sourdough is hard to come by this week, as it takes over a week to
ferment. The other source of yeast frequently used before the Fleishman's
figured out how to isolate it is barm, a sideproduct of making bear.
But barm has more yeast and is more reactive than they were used to,
and would make softer more floury bread than sourdough. Most metals kill
yeast, although stainless steel doesn't. So they put a piece of metal
into the challah to kill some of the extra yeast off.

Then, once people did it, they reverse-engineered kavanos for the
practice.

Just made it up -- I'm not saying it's emes, just plausible.

-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             Today is the 10th day, which is
micha at aishdas.org        1 week and 3 days in/toward the omer.
http://www.aishdas.org   Tifferes sheb'Gevurah: When does strict
Fax: (270) 514-1507                  judgment bring balance and harmony?