Community Magazine August 2006

 ”  14 Community Magazine Overseeing the Overseer We would like to thank Rabbi Weiner of the KIC and wish him a Hazak Ubaruch! The work that he does for klal yisrael is amazing! We personally call the Rabbi daily, with questions about local restau- rants, butchers, supermarkets, etc. He even helped us find kosher vitamins. He is always very patient and has accurate infor- mation. He also ends every phone call with a beracha! Thank you very much and may Hashem bless you and your family with tremen- dous berachot and the strength to continue your amazing work! R. and J. Green The [July] cover article about the over- sight for Hashgahot in Flatbush was an eye-opener. It’s comforting to know that in the area of restaurant kashrut, establish- ments in Brooklyn are being kept on their toes. But bringing to light the sometimes spotty kashrut enforcement found in the restaurant industry, begs the question: who is checking up on enforcement in the pack- aged food industry? A. Massry Loving Your Fellow Jew The timing of Rabbi Mansour’s article was especially appropriate, not just because of the three weeks, but also because of the difficult situation that has arisen in Israel. It is only when we fail to unite on our own that Hashem must send an enemy to remind us that we are one nation. Now that we have seen the results of the Gaza withdrawal and in hindsight we see that we should have listened to the Hachamim, we should not focus on assigning blame or other “I told you so” tactics. We need to come together, renew our dedication to Torah and deal with these threats as one nation. May Hashem bring us a speedy salvation. T. Dweck The Edict and Community Customs I would like to thank you for your infor- mative article updating the community on the edict against accepting converts. In a future issue could one of the rabbis address the issue of techelet (a blue string) which many people are now starting to use [in sisit]. Please let us know its background and if it’s okay to use as our own Rabbis never used it. Nathan Tawil Editor’s Reply: Please see this month’s edi- tion of the Top 10 Most Overlooked Jewish Laws for insight into your question. . Top 10 Overlooked Jewish Laws One of the halachot in the last installment of the Top 10 [Most Overlooked] Jewish Laws indicated that [non-mevushal] wine served by a Jew who is not Shomer Shabbat is forbidden to drink. It may be useful to point out that the rabbis define various levels among those who are not Shomer Shabbat. We can understand that a “rasha” – one who, after being taught the laws, willfully vio- lates them – would render the wine unfit to drink. But for those Jews who fall under the category of “tinok shenishba” – those who were never given the opportunity to learn the laws – and who may be coming closer to observance, many poskim permit wine which has been handled by them. I hope that by bringing this point to light, those who are learning more about their heritage will be encouraged to continue pursuing Hashem’s will. S. Shweky I would like to highlight two points that were mentioned in the July edition of the Top 10 Most Overlooked Jewish Laws. First, carmine (derived from insects) which is listed as a prohibited ingredient item may potentially be permissible according to an answer by Hacham Ovadia Yosef. Naturally, each individual should consult his Rabbi before deciding to eat any foods containing this ingredient. Second and more importantly, the hala- cha regarding warming foods on Shabbat states first that cooked dry food may not be placed directly on a blech and then at the end quotes Hacham Ovadia who brings down the lenient opinion that it is permissible to do so. While this is a per- fectly accurate summary of the halacha, some may infer from the order in which the views are presented, that the first, more stringent opinion, is the one which is generally accepted in our community and those who follow the more lenient opinion are digressing from our tradition. Since it is likely that the author did not intend for readers to make such an assumption, I would like to clarify that based on my experience, most Rabbis in our community permit the placement of cooked, dry food directly on the blech (for warming only – not cooking, of course) and there are a smaller number of people who have taken upon themselves an extra measure of piety in only placing the dry foods on top of a crock pot. Although on the face this distinction may seem subtle, it is important to give proper credit to our community for following the halacha the way they have been taught and extra credit to those who have gone beyond to accept additional stringency. M. Franco L E T T E R S We'd love to hear from you! have a story about how Community Magazine helped you or your business? please share it with us. Send your letters TO: Mail: Community Magazine 1616 Ocean Pkwy Brooklyn, NY 11223 Fax: 718-504-4246 email: letters@communitym.com Letters submitted become the property of Community Magazine and will not be returned unless accompanied by a self-addressed stamped envelope. Letters may be edited and revised for length, style and grammar before publication. All submissions are considered for publication unless otherwise requested.Preferentialconsideration isgiven tobriefcomments and insights that relate directly to published content.