[Avodah] Minyan, Including A Child

[Micha Berger]

On Mon, Aug 27, 2018 at 12:28:11PM -0400, Zev Sero via Avodah wrote:
: Note that for those who do allow counting a child, the chumash is an
: unnecessary prop; the minhag has developed to have the child hold a
: chumash in order to impress on him (or her) the seriousness of the
: occasion, but it has no basis in halacha.

I ran services in the O synagogue in Fall River, MA, for a couple of
years. (My complements to Cantor Wolberg, who volunteered to be their
"search committee", despite having his own synagogue's services to
worry about.)

One Mussaf, we were one man short -- someone slipped out when my back
was turned. (Literally, probably during Qaddish; the amud was at the
bimah was abutting the duchan. So facing front for Qaddish, I couldn't
see the minyan.)

I was worried about flagging loyalty, who would bother shlepping out
for services that may or may not really happen, so I relied on this heter.

I made the kid hold a (pasul, at least the gartel was on the outside)
sefer Torah.

But when I came back the next year, he was still talking about how he
got to make the minyan the year before. I hope something positive came
of his involvement.

: Also note that the same heter for including a child also applies to
: a woman...

Except, for the same reason that I would have the child hold a prop,
I would choose a boy over a woman. You may be teaching the wrong lesson
by opening the door to counting women.

When pushing the envelope, image and education are important. Or people
may cantilever beyond the limits of the permittable. The risk *might*
be significant enough to call the wrong choice "assur".

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

PS: Linux's "ispell" wanted me to correct "minyan" to "Minoan". <grin>

-- 
Micha Berger             Man is capable of changing the world for the
micha at aishdas.org        better if possible, and of changing himself for
http://www.aishdas.org   the better if necessary.
Fax: (270) 514-1507            - Victor Frankl, Man's search for Meaning