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<font size=3>I sent out the following a few days ago.<br><br>
From
<a href="http://www.vosizneias.com/29446/2009/03/26/kiryas-joel-ny-arizona-wheat-controversy/" eudora="autourl">
http://www.vosizneias.com/29446/2009/03/26/kiryas-joel-ny-arizona-wheat-controversy/</a>
<br><br>
Kiryas Joel, NY - Rabbi Aaron Teitelbaum, Satmar Rebbe, has been using
Arizona wheat exclusively for all Pesach needs. In recent months, a new
sefer was introduced describing the deficiencies of Arizona wheat for
Pesach use. Written by Rabbi Avrohom Laufer, Doroger Rav, sefer Ho'aishel
Beramah, in three volumes, describes the traditions of which wheat to
use, by our parents and grandparents. Arizona wheat, because of the lack
of rain in wheat-growing areas may be thought of as ideal for matzah
baking, since the likelihood of it becoming leaven seems unlikely.
However, Rabbi Laufer focuses on irrigation systems that feed water to
the wheat, and finds it unacceptable. <br><br>
This "controversy" got me to thinking about rainfall in Egypt.
RSRH writes that the Egyptians thought that they controlled their
environment, because they depended upon the Nile River overflow and
irrigation for water rather than rainfall. Hence they felt they were not
subject to the elements. <br><br>
With this in mind, I checked the amount of rainfall in Egypt and found
<br><br>
"Average rainfall is about 200 mm (nearly 7.9 inches) at northern
coasts (near Alexandria), decreasing as you go south to about 50-100 mm
in the Nile Delta region. Around Cairo it ranges between 10-30 mm,
varying from year to year. Rainfall decreases sharply farther south.
Rainfall season is mainly in winter between the months of November and
January, and to a lesser extent February and March."<br><br>
Therefore, the wheat that was used to make the matzos that the B'nei
Yisroel ate at their seder in Mitzraim definitely was watered by
irrigation!<br><br>
Furthermore, it turns out that many places in Arizona receive more
rainfall than in Egypt. See
<a href="http://alliance.la.asu.edu/maps/AZ_rain_web.pdf" eudora="autourl">
http://alliance.la.asu.edu/maps/AZ_rain_web.pdf</a><br><br>
Thus, if anything, the contention should be that one should not use wheat
that was watered via rainfall, and all of our anscestors who did were not
following the original tradition!!!! >:-} <br>
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Yitzchok Levine</font></body>
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