Re: GENERAL : Fifth Night of Chanukah

[Kollel Iyun Hadaf]

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Re: GENERAL : Fifth Night of Chanukah

Barry Epstein asked:
>>I heard a speech that the 5th day of Hanukah is the darkest day
>>because it is the only day that can't fall on a Shabbos.  The venue
>>was a bris and therefore the point was that the bris brought light
>>to this day.  Since Hanukah doesn't have any rules regarding
>>specific days, is this fact correct?  If so, is it because of other
>>Hagim that don't can't fall on certain days (and therefore it leads
>>the 5th day of Hanukah to always miss Shabbos?

The Kollel replied:
>>If Cheshvan is 30 days and the 29th of Kislev is a Shabbos, that
>>means that the Rosh Hashanah of that year was a Tuesday. When Rosh
>>Hashanah is Tuesday and the year is a leap year, the Rambam writes
>>(Hilchos Kidush ha'Chodesh 8:10) that the year must be k'Sidran,
>>and not Malei (i.e. Cheshvan will only have 29 days). Thus, 29
>>Kislev will not be Shabbos.

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Barry Epstein responded:

Thank you for your answer.  That answers half of my question.  You
have proven that the fifthe night of Hanukah cannot fall on a
Shabbos.  This is due to other rules not following on certain days.
Because of that other reason, do you consider the fifth night of
Hanukah either "dark" or lacking?  
 
Barry
----------------------------
The Kollel replies:

Hoshana Raba can never fall on Shabbos (as I mentioned in our
previous correspondence), yet I wouldn't consider it to be "lacking." 

On the other hand, the Midrash does equate light with Shabbos (see
Bereishis Raba 82:15) and darkness or concealment with "Din", i.e.
strict justice or punishment (see Bamidbar Raba 1:1). Hoshana Raba is
certainly a day of Din (see Rabeinu Bachye to Bamidbar 14:9). Maybe
that applies to the fifth day of Chanukah also.

Be well,
Mordecai Kornfeld


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