[Avodah] Simchas Torah, post-covid19

[Micha Berger]

On Fri, May 15, 2020 at 03:52:20PM -0400, Akiva Miller via Avodah wrote:
> What will Simchas Torah be like this year? Even if we can be socially close
> like in yesteryear, *what* will we celebrate? Usually we celebrate the
> completion of learning the entire Torah. If we leave some parshios unread,
> what will be the significance of the day?

RGS and I discussed this.

He said it's a siyum on being ma'avir sedra either way.

I wonder about all the heterim we invoke to have various minhagim on
Simchas Torah. Like reading the Torah at night, in order to justify
taking them out to dance with at night.

Or the absurd number of aliyos, requiring repeating the leining. (Less
odd for Sepharadim.)

Or dancing with sifrei Torah to begin with.

And I too don't mean to cast aspersions on a regular ST.

But....

Is there enough justification left for such dachuq practices?

I wasn't happy with RGS's answer because the whole point is that we're
witnessing the end of what we made a siyum on. Ought we permit going
through such lengths to justify use of sifrei Torah to make a siyum
for learning we did out of chumashim?

Meanwhile, a third person suggested: Yes there is another factor to push
for heter this coming Shemini Atzeres -- the tzibbur needs this Simchas
Torah more than most. For straight psychological terms. And if we don't
firmly return to normal, how many people will normalize things they have
been doing all this time and continue in the post she'as hadechaq period.

Kind of like arguing that a normal ST this year would help shul attendance
in the long run. Or going back to not selling "real chameitz" if that's
what you hold.

I could see it. People forget how quickly something can become ancient
history. So it might depend on how soon after the resumption of minyanim
Simcas Torah will be. OTOH, I expect by then I'll still be wearing my
Shabbos, work and just-around-the-neighborhood face masks. So... we'll
see.

:-)BBii!
-Micha

Cc: RGS, so that if I misrepresented what he said, or he wants to answer
my question on it, he can.

-- 
Micha Berger                 Today is the 36th day, which is
http://www.aishdas.org/asp   5 weeks and 1 day in/toward the omer.
Author: Widen Your Tent      Chesed sheb'Yesod: What is the kindness in
- https://amzn.to/2JRxnDF               being a stable and reliable partner?