Chanuka and Rosh Chodesh Tebet

30th day of Kislev, 5771

Today is the 1st day of Rosh Chodesh Tebet, and the 6th Day of Chanuka, at night we light 7 candles

Besides Chanuka, today we also celebrate Rosh Chodesh Tebet.

In the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) the name of this month is Chodesh ha-Asiri, the tenth month, counting from Nisan. The name Tebet was coined in Babylonia, same as all the other Hebrew months' names.

Some years Rosh Chodesh Tebet is observed for one day and some years -for example, this year- for two days. Why? Because Kislev, the preceding month, is sometimes "full" (consisting of 30 days) and sometimes not (consisting of only 29 days).
In other words: The 30th day of the preceding month is always the first day of Rosh Chodesh of the next month, and the second day of Rosh Chodesh is the 1st day of the new month. The month of Tebet itself, is always 29 days long and because of this lack of variation in the length of Tebet, Rosh Chodesh Shebat, the month which follows Tebet, will always be celebrated for just one day (the 1st of Shebat).

Today and tomorrow we say Yaale veYabo and al haNisism in the Amida and in Birkat haMazon. In the morning we read the full Halel, then we take out two Sifre Torah . On the first one we read the Rosh Chodesh portion, but instead of dividing it into 4 parts (or Aliot) as we do every Rosh Chodesh, we divide the reading into 3 Aliot. In the second Sefer Torah we read the part corresponding to the day of Chanuka.

Chanuka and Rosh Chodesh Tebet

30th day of Kislev, 5771

Today is the 1st day of Rosh Chodesh Tebet, and the 6th Day of Chanuka, at night we light 7 candles

Besides Chanuka, today we also celebrate Rosh Chodesh Tebet.

In the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) the name of this month is Chodesh ha-Asiri, the tenth month, counting from Nisan. The name Tebet was coined in Babylonia, same as all the other Hebrew months' names.

Some years Rosh Chodesh Tebet is observed for one day and some years -for example, this year- for two days. Why? Because Kislev, the preceding month, is sometimes "full" (consisting of 30 days) and sometimes not (consisting of only 29 days).

In other words: The 30th day of the preceding month is always the first day of Rosh Chodesh of the next month, and the second day of Rosh Chodesh is the 1st day of the new month. The month of Tebet itself, is always 29 days long and because of this lack of variation in the length of Tebet, Rosh Chodesh Shebat, the month which follows Tebet, will always be celebrated for just one day (the 1st of Shebat).

Today and tomorrow we say Yaale veYabo and al haNisism in the Amida and in Birkat haMazon. In the morning we read the full Halel, then we take out two Sifre Torah. On the first one we read the Rosh Chodesh portion, but instead of dividing it into 4 parts (or Aliot) as we do every Rosh Chodesh, we divide the reading into 3 Aliot. In the second Sefer Torah we read the part corresponding to the day of Chanuka.


The story of Chanuka in 1967 http://www.aish.com/v/ho/78754242.html

Rabbi Yosef Bitton. YMJC 130 Steamboat Rd. Great Neck NY 11024

BAREKH ALENU, praying for rain

Today is the 5th day of Chanuka
29th day of Kislev, 5771

On Shemini Atzeret, we started reciting "Mashib HaRuach U'Morid HaGeshem" instead of "Morid HaTal" during the Amida prayers, praising HaShem for giving us rain, but we did not start asking Him to bring the rains yet.

In Israel, Jews start praying for rain in the Amida two weeks after Shemini Atzeret, on the evening of the seventh of Cheshvan (Sepharadic Jews do this by switching to 'Barekh Alenu' on the weekdays Amida, while Ashkenazi Jews add 'veTen Tal uMatar').

This was because they wanted to give time to the travelers who had made the pilgrimage to Jerusalem to get back home before praying for rain.

Diaspora Jews of the time, who mainly lived in Babylonia, did not need the rains to start so early, so the Rabbis ruled that in Babylonia the Jews would start praying for rain on the 60th day of Tekufat Tishrei (season of Tishrei) or approximately sixty days after the beginning of Autumn.

The Rabbis gave an easy to calculate round number for determining the beginning of each cycle (season). Each cycle is to be calculated at exactly 91 days 7 hours and 30 minutes. This makes each seasonal year exactly 365 days and 6 hours long, about 11 minutes longer than the actual astronomical calculation of a Solar year.

When it comes to calendar matters, Jews who live outside of Israel follow the practice of the Jews of Babylonia. Therefore, it has become tradition for all Jews who live in the Diaspora to start asking for rain in their prayers as the Babylonian Jews did.

Based on this calculation, this year, 2010, we switched to 'Barekh Alenu' in our prayers on the evening of December 4th.

(Thanks to Mr. Mehran Etessami, expert in Hebrew calendar calculations, for his help with this HOTD)

CLICK HERE for a very cool Chanuka song, more than 2 millions hits in Youtube.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSJCSR4MuhU

Rabbi Yosef Bitton. YMJC 130 Steamboat Rd. Great Neck NY 11024