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<DIV>Re: Avodah Digest, Vol 26, Issue 3 dated 2 Jan. '09</DIV>
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<DIV>My father once commented to me that had he lived at the time of the Vilna
Gaon, he would never have become a chossid. His basic posture towards
anything new was similar to that of the Chasam Sofer -- "Chadash assur
min haTorah." Chassidus did stand the test of time and since his
father and grandfather had been Gerrer chassidim, my father was too. (He
also told me that his grandfather -- or maybe great-grandfather, I'm not sure --
became a chossid because among the non-chassidim, he was the last frum person in
his town and there was nowhere else to go. My father said that chassidus
saved yahadus in Poland.)</DIV>
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<DIV><FONT lang=0 face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2 PTSIZE="10"
FAMILY="SANSSERIF"><BR><B>--Toby Katz<BR>==========<BR><BR></FONT><FONT lang=0
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<BLOCKQUOTE
style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: blue 2px solid"><FONT
style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" face=Arial color=#000000 size=2>Message:
2<BR>Date: Fri, 2 Jan 2009<BR><BR><BR><BR><BR>> Well as you know, I do not
look kindly on ancient minhagim<BR>> that are less than thirty years old.
Get back to me when<BR>> women have been reading ketubot at weddings for a
hundred<BR>> years or more...[--TK]<BR>R. Micha Berger
wrote:<BR>>>How big of a breach<BR>>>can mimetic halakhah absorb
and still survive to guide us.</FONT></FONT></FONT></BLOCKQUOTE>
<DIV> R' Harvey Benton <A
href="mailto:harveybenton@yahoo.com">harveybenton@yahoo.com</A> wrote:<BR></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
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id=role_document face=Arial color=#000000 size=2><FONT lang=0 face=Arial
color=#000000 size=2 PTSIZE="10" FAMILY="SANSSERIF"><FONT
style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" face=Arial color=#000000
size=2><BR><BR> <BR>>>In general, throughout history, what has
guided the Jewish Nation in its adoption and eventual acceptance of new
Minhagim?? The Arizal had many innovations, as did Chasidus.
Speaking Yiddish (though probably not a Minhag) and considering it a Heilige
Language does not go back to Har Sinai. Kenneth Miller mentioned silver
Ataras on Taleisim, etc.<BR><BR>How are we supposed to know what is a valid
practice, and what is a Minhag Shtus? Do we only find out about a
Minhag's validity after a 100 years of its
use??<BR><BR><BR><BR><BR></FONT></BLOCKQUOTE></FONT></DIV></FONT></FONT><BR><BR><BR><DIV CLASS="aol_ad_footer" ID="a5ae4c97a49a9a1c7500e8aa57bcdfc"><FONT style="color: black; font: normal 10pt ARIAL, SAN-SERIF;"><HR style="MARGIN-TOP: 10px"><b>A Good Credit Score is 700 or Above. <a href="http://pr.atwola.com/promoclk/100000075x1215855013x1201028747/aol?redir=http://www.freecreditreport.com/pm/default.aspx?sc=668072%26hmpgID=62%26bcd=DecemailfooterNO62"> See yours in just 2 easy steps!</a></b></FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>