[Avodah] Cancel Simchas Torah!

[Micha Berger via Avodah]

On Mon, Oct 12, 2015 at 10:55:35AM -0400, Prof. Levine wrote:
: >The 3 yr cycle is one of the examples cited to show the EY origins of
: >Ashkenaz, actually. So you could make a stronger argument that Ashkenazim
: >have less reason to observe Simchas Torah than does EY's more mixed
: >populace.
: 
: Cited by whom and where?  My understanding is that in Bavel they 
: leined the entire Torah yearly as we do now and it EY it was the 3 or 
: 3.5 cycle.  It has nothing to do with Ashkenazim as far as I know.

Egypt too, according to R' Binyamin miTudela who visited in 1170.
And the Rambam mentions an alternate minhag of three years in Tehillah
13:1, also compiled between 1170 an 1180, when he was in Egypt. But he
considers the 1 yr minhag "haminhag hapashut" (as in nispasheit).

Once Ashkenaz started becoming a major community, most of them too read
in a 3 year cycle, as I described. And there was a qerovetz in Mussar
every Shabbbos that refered to the week's haftarah, which was also as per
the three year cycle. It suggests also what they were leining that week,
from which historians of halakhah surmized that Bereishis was on Shavuos.

Machzor Vitri (from before Rashi's passing, 1105 CE) mentions Simchas
Torah, Chasan Torah and Chasan Bereishis. So we're talking VERY early.

Prof Ta-Shma links the Ashkenazi 3 yr cycle to the EY origins of many
of Ashkenaz's pesaqim and minhagim. But it sounds from what you're
saying that the early Ashk version of the cycle was more rigid than
the original. I had simply not considered the possibility, and just
assumed they were identical.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             Like a bird, man can reach undreamed-of
micha at aishdas.org        heights as long as he works his wings.
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