[Avodah] Candyman (HT-S Davis jr.)

[Micha Berger]

On Wed, Jun 11, 2025 at 10:44:17AM +0300, Joel Rich via Avodah wrote:
> I've always wondered about this role with regards to the age of chinuch and
> having those children eating before kiddush. Thoughts?

When teaching davening altogether, what's the point of teaching a
child to utter a bunch of syllables they can't understand? It can
even be counter-productive, as we are creating a habit of talking
without connecting to meaning.

Why worry about the resulting lack of decorum, or children (who eat on
fast days also) learning about eating before Qiddush, when the basic
experience that people go to shul for creates habits that need overcoming?

To my mind, the whole concept of tefillah for children is to create
happy childhood memories, nostalgic ties to shul.

And therefore the candyman can play an important role.

(I picked up from a yahrzeit reminiscence article somewhere that R Aharon
Lichtenstein played candyman. I fell in love with that mental image. But
Googling just now, I couldn't find confirmation.)

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger                 It is a glorious thing to be indifferent to
http://www.aishdas.org/asp   suffering, but only to one's own suffering.
Author: Widen Your Tent                    -Robert Lynd, writer (1879-1949)
- https://amzn.to/2JRxnDF