Ask The Rabbi
27 January 1996
Issue #93
===========================================================================
This Issue Contains:
1.  Two Yuds
2.  High Voltage
===========================================================================
    All Ohr Somayach Publications are now available in Adobe Acrobat and
     Microsoft Word formats from our web site: www.jer1.co.il/orgs/ohr
===========================================================================

Aharon from Monsey <asubar@aol.com> wrote:

>Dear Rabbi,
>
>Why is the name of Hashem written in the siddur as two Yuds?  In my siddur
>-- siddur "Tefillat Kol Peh" -- it is written as two yuds everywhere that
>I looked, with the exception of Shirat Hayam (the song at the sea).  Why
>is this so?  I suspect that there is more to it than merely an editor's
>whim.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Dear Aharon,

I'm afraid your suspicions are groundless.  The phenomenon is purely a
function of your siddur's editor and printer.  The double yud is not one of
the names of Hashem and has no kedusha (sanctity).  It's simply a
substitute for the name of Hashem and it appears randomly in various
versions of the siddur.  The siddur I use (Kavanat Hashem) has the name of
Hashem written out fully all the time.

Essentially, the reason for using a substitute is out of respect.  The name
of Hashem has kedushah and must not be erased or abused.  Since two yuds
isn't a name of Hashem, it was substituted so that if the siddur wasn't
treated properly it would be less serious.  Especially today, with the
availability of inexpensive printed siddurim, siddurim aren't treated with
the same care and respect with which they historically were treated.

I called Eshkol Publishers, creators of the siddur `Tefillat Kol Peh.'  I
asked them why in some places the name of Hashem is written as two yuds and
why in other places it's written out fully.  They told me that when they
put together the siddur they copied (with permission) from various older
siddurim by means of offset.  Whichever way the name of Hashem appeared in
the old siddur, the new siddur had the same.

But why two yuds?  I heard the following reason from Rabbi Aharon Feldman,
shlita:  The Name of Hashem is written one way and pronounced a totally
different way.  It's written with a `yud', a `heh', a `vav' and another
`heh'.  However, we pronounce it as if it were spelled `aleph' `dalet'
`nun' `yud'.  As you can see, the letter `yud' appears twice, once in the
beginning of the written Name and once in the Name as pronounced.  Hence,
two yuds.

Sources:
o  Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Deah 276:1

===========================================================================

Jonathan Katz <frisch1@MIT.EDU> from Cambridge, MA wrote:

>Hi,
>Can you settle a debate I have been having with some of my friends?  Is it
>permissible to `light Shabbos candles' Friday night using an electric
>light?  If so, would you be able to say the blessing?  How about if one
>does not have any candles around?

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Dear Jonathan Katz,

Two reasons are given for lighting Shabbat candles:  Shalom Bayit (Peace in
the home) and Oneg Shabbat (delight of Shabbat).  It's hard to experience
Shalom Bayit while stumbling over furniture, or Oneg Shabbat while eating
in the dark.  By filling the home with light, Shabbat candles promote
harmony and peace, and they make the food enjoyable.

Most Poskim, therefore, say that you may use electric lights and even
recite the blessing over them, since they add to Shalom Bayit and Oneg
Shabbat the same way as candles.

Some Poskim, however, differentiate between battery-powered lights, such as
flashlights, and those that run on electricity generated from a power
plant.  Battery-powered lights are all right since they contain `fuel' --
i.e., the battery -- which is right there when you light it.  Regular
lights, on the other hand, have no `fuel'.  Rather, the electricity is
`piped' in from the outside; and furthermore, the electricity doesn't
really exist yet -- it's being created every second at the power plant.  In
a sense it's like lighting a wick with no oil.  It's known about Rabbi
Moshe Feinstein, zatzal, that once when he was in a hotel and unable to
light candles, he `lit' a flashlight and made a blessing over it.

Sources:
o  The Radiance of Shabbos, Rabbi Simcha Bunim Cohen
o  Shmirat Shabbat Kehilchata 2:43, footnote 22

===========================================================================

Yiddle Riddle

What is the longest Birkat Hamazon (grace after meals)?
What can make it even longer?
===========================================================================

Where Are You Now ?
   Where Will You Be at the End of the Year ?
      How Will You Get There ?

->        YESHIVA YEAR ABROAD

a one year PROGRAM
in JERUSALEM
for Self-Sufficiency
in
Jewish Learning

For further information on this new program,
contact one of these Ohr Somayach Branches:

Jerusalem: Tel: 02-810315 - Fax: 972-2-812890 - Email: ohr@jer1.co.il
New York:  Tel: 212-213-3100 - Fax: 212-213-8717 - Email: RZCorlin@aol.com
Toronto: Tel: 905-886-5730 - Fax: 905-886-6065
         Email: avram.rothman@canrem.com ===================================
                                 SUBSCRIBE!

to one of the many weekly "lists" published by Ohr Somayach Institutions:

       weekly - Summary of the weekly Torah portion
      dafyomi - Rav Mendel Weinbach's insights into the Daf Yomi
          ask - The Rabbi answers YOUR questions on Judaism
   parasha-qa - Challenging questions on the weekly Torah portion
   os-special - All the SPECIAL publications produced by Ohr Somayach
      os-alum - "B'Yachad" - the Ohr Somayach Electronic Alumni Newsletter
     judaismo - Spanish-Language newsletter on the Parsha & Judaism
        month - Seasons of the Moon - The Jewish Year through its months

There is NEVER a charge for any of the above lists (though your local
information provider, such as AOL, Prodigy or CompuServe, might charge a
nominal fee).  To subscribe to any of these lists, send the message:
    subscribe {listname} {your full name}
to: listproc@jer1.co.il
===========================================================================
Ask The Rabbi is written at Ohr Somayach Institutions / Tanenbaum College,
Jerusalem, Israel.
General Editor: Rabbi Moshe Newman
Production Design: Lev Seltzer
===========================================================================
Dedication opportunities are available for Ask The Rabbi.
Please contact us for details.
===========================================================================
   Jewish   L         EEEEEEEE  Prepared by the Jewish Learning Exchange of
     J      L         E         Ohr Somayach International
     J      L         E         22 Shimon Hatzadik Street, POB 18103
     J      L         Exchange  Jerusalem 91180, Israel
     J      L         E         Tel: 972-2-810315 Fax: 972-2-812890
J    J      L         E         Internet: ohr@jer1.co.il
 JJJJ       Learning  EEEEEEEE  Web: www.jer1.co.il/orgs/ohr
===========================================================================
(C) 1996 Ohr Somayach International - All rights reserved.
This publication may be distributed to another person intact without prior
permission.  We also encourage you to include this material in other
publications, such as synagogue newsletters.  However, we ask that you
contact us beforehand for permission, andd then send us a sample issue.
