I'm surprised not a word was mentioned this year about nitul

↑ JoyInTheMorning ↓

Tue, Dec 26 2017, 9:48 am

DrMom wrote:

Right. Due to circumstances that don't exist anymore.

So why delay a mitzvah for this today?

Well, if you want to minimize the amount of sex happening on Xmas eve, not opening mikvaot is a good way to accomplish that.

↑ Mommyg8 ↓

Tue, Dec 26 2017, 9:50 am

cnc wrote:

Years ago in Europe - none of the Mikvahs were open nittel nacht.

Well, either the circumstances are different, or litvaks are different. Like I said, I got married January 6, so it must not have been a problem.

↑ DrMom ↓

Tue, Dec 26 2017, 9:50 am

JoyInTheMorning wrote:

Well, if you want to minimize the amount of sex happening on Xmas eve, not opening mikvaot is a good way to accomplish that.

I don't agree that minimizing sx on some random Christian holiday should be of any interest to Jews.

Basically, I don't agree with the entire idea of putting any restrictions on learning, intimacy, or anything else due to a holiday that does not concern me, simply because a long time ago in a specific part of the world it used to be dangerous.

↑ cnc

Tue, Dec 26 2017, 9:56 am

Mommyg8 wrote:

Well, either the circumstances are different, or litvaks are different. Like I said, I got married January 6, so it must not have been a problem.

Lol. When I say years ago I don't mean your generation. And yes I would certainly assume that circumstances are different because afaik all Mikvahs are opened as regular these days with people encouraged to ask their own sheilah.

LittleDucky ↓

Tue, Dec 26 2017, 10:08 am

The whole “not learning” and playing chess idea came from the historical prominence of pogroms on the night of the 24th and the 25th. They do midnight mass and/or day mass and would be riled up by the speeches about how evil we were that they would go out and kill us.
So we created a custom to not go off to the bais medresh where they would assume we would be (and isolated, few at a time) and instead would be home and protect the family. Plus they would rampage down the streets drunk so we didn’t want to be out walking then.

Not learning also comes from the idea that men would be so engrossed in their learning that they wouldn’t hear the warning signs. Chess or that card game some communities only play on the night of the 24th is something to keep us awake but we can still hear the crowds coming.

Nothing to do with koach hatuma or giving power to their holiday. It was a survival tactic.

↑ JoyInTheMorning

Tue, Dec 26 2017, 10:43 am

DrMom wrote:

Oh, I totally agree. I was just trying to come up with a justification for the minhag continuing today.

↑ Mommyg8

Tue, Dec 26 2017, 10:45 am

LittleDucky wrote:

This is an excellent explanation, and it just makes so much more sense than any other explanation. That would also explain why the mikvaos were closed Xmas night (because of the danger).

Thank you so much for posting this!

↑ LittleDucky

Tue, Dec 26 2017, 11:37 am

Mommyg8 wrote:

My pleasure Very Happy

It bothers me when people attribute something to mystical reasoning when it was practical. Like the holy custom of cutting the brisket in half. Generations of mothers have done it this way (insert some mystical reasoning about wealth, Shalom bayis or happiness here) and we shall not change this minhag!! Except the reasoning was because Bubbe’s pan was too small...

↑ DrMom

Tue, Dec 26 2017, 12:09 pm

Historically, Easter is the occasion when more violent pogroms and attacks were perpetrated against Jews. Among the Jewish groups who change habits on x-mas, are there any restrictions against learning/intimacy on Easter?

shanie5

Tue, Dec 26 2017, 10:50 pm

DrMom wrote:

Probably not, ut Easter doesn't have a 'date' It falls on the first sunday after the 1st full moon after the vernal equinox. Unless that is the 1st day of pesach. Then its the following sunday.