Patricia Heaton, a non-Jewish actress famous for roles in Everybody Loves Raymond and The Middle and Frasier, among many others has decided to put up a mezuzah to show solidarity with the Jews and to combat antisemitism, and has been encouraging others to do the same. According to reports, thousands of people have been ordering mezuzahs to follow suit. She calls this campaign "Myzuzah Yourzuzah".

minor anecdote that some might describe as an "only in Israel" moment..

For the first time ever, the Second Family's residence (ie the residence of the Vice President) has a mezuza on the doorpost. To remind you, Vice President Kamala Harris is married to a Jew - Doug Emhoff.
I must say I am sad to see so many people feel this way. In my opinion we should applaud any connection to Judaism and God a Jew has, especially an assimilated one. And halevai we should all do everything so lesheim shamayim, with such pure intent, that they demand of this assimilated Jew.

In 2007 a Conservative rabbi tried to promote not kissing a mezuza in public places, as it can help spread viruses and the like.

A group of doctors has now looked into the issue. They have come to the conclusion that kissing the mezuza does NOT increase the risk of spreading germs..

from the Jewish Week:

If you're in the habit of kissing mezuzot in public places, you can ease up on the Purell.
A group of doctors at Maimonodes Medical Center have found that the practice does not increase the risk of spreading germs.
Dr. Monica Ghitan and her colleagues tested over 100 mezuzot around their hospital, and other than a few benign microbes found that the ritual objects were not unsafe for those who touch them and then kiss their hands.
While not as controversial a practice as, say, metzitzah b'peh, the practice of kissing the mezuzah has been called into qusetion before. In 2007, Rabbi Simcha Ross even ruled that kissing the mezuzah should be avoided as a possible health hazard. And an earlier Israeli study in 2009 found that the practice did, in fact, spread germs. The newer study affirms that the key difference is that at their hospitals nurses cleaning the rooms also wipe down the mezuzot.
Not everyone is surprised by the study's results.
“They've been around for 4,000 years and we have yet to hear about someone getting sick,” Rabbi Nathan Friedman told the NY Daily News.
Doctors also recommend that the general rule of washing one's hands frequently applies here as well.
"You should always wash,"  Dr. Alexander Locke told the NY Daily News. "But at the end it's all in God's hands."
The doctors will publish their study in the Journal of Infection Control in the next few weeks.

So, if you stopped out of concern, looks like you can feel comfortable kissing mezuzot again. And if not, good for you...

Picture Of The Day

The largest mezuza in the world was just installed at a gate of the entrance to the Kotel plaza, donated by French-Israeli businessman Sammy Flato Sharon..

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Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger Affixes Mezuza On Doorpost Of New Jersey Supermarket

Note, Rav Metzger says the bracha without Hashem's name. Because it is a place of business and not a living quarters, there is a machloket whether it requires a bracha, and Ashkenazim tend to follow the opinion of not making a bracha under these circumstances..


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I am lumping together a few interesting stories that were in the news. They have no connection to each other, but individually they do not each deserve their own post.

• The grandson of the Spinka Rebbe married a girl in Israel last night, the daughter of Antania Rebbe (never heard of him, sorry). The Spinka Rebbe is in jail in New York and was unable to attend the wedding. His request was denied. The family decided that the Rebbe and his family would watch the wedding broadcast over the Internet, and would transmit a message to the chosson and kallah as well. (source: Bechadrei)
  
  I wonder if he is the first hassidic rebbe to use the Internet...
  
  
• A few days ago there was a news report about a blood drive by the haredi community in Ashdod. What made the news was the fact that it was for men only. There was really nothing new about it, so I did not even think about it. All over the place, for years already, the haredi community has been organizing blood drives for men only, though I do not remember seeing any blood drives for women only.
  
  What is interesting is the response. The haredi community of Ashdod feels betrayed by the journalist who wrote the article that got them in hot water. As part of the article the journalist asked Tanya Rosenblit (she of the mehadrin bus fame) for her response about the blood drive. The community feels that the article was hostile to them, especially because it involved Rosenblit.
  
  In response, the community has banned that specific journalist from receiving news updates and press releases from it. (source: Bechadrei)
  
  
• Bechadrei has publicized a story about Rav Chaim Kanievsky, and I find it puzzling. I always love a good story, but when they don't make sense they bother me.
  

  The Lederman Shul in Bnei Braq

  The story goes that the gabbai of the Lederman shul had gone to Rav Chaim Kanievsky a few days after Rebbetzin Kanievsky's death and asked if they should check the mezuzos. Rav Chaim answered that the mezuzos had recently been checked so there was no need.
  A few weeks later the gabbai returned. During his visit he mentioned to Rav Chaim that he had understood that he did not need to check the mezuzos. Rav Chaim said he should send the mezuzos to be checked.
  After checking 30 mezuzos from around the shul, it was discovered that they were all kosher. In the three mezuzuos from the womens section, where Rebbetzin Kanievsky was a regular, problems were found, though the mezuzos were technically kosher. the three mezuzos were brought to Rav Chaim who instructed them to replace the mezuzos immediately.
  
  My questions:
  1. Did the imperfect mezuzos kill the rebbetzin? Is that the implication of the story?
  2. Why did they ask about the mezuzos? Just because she had died? Do they check mezuzos after every time a member dies?
  3. If the mezuzos were kosher, why should they have "killed" the rebbetzin?

The next step in the delegitimization of Israel and the Jewish presence in the land is taking place in Jerusalem. The Arabs have tried denying our history in Jerusalem, our Temple's existence in history, our connection to the land.

The newest method employed is the existence of a mezuza. Head of the Northern Branch of the Islamic Movement of Israel, Sheik Raed Salah, has voiced protest and is leading a movement against the placement of the mezuzas on the gates of the entrances to the Old City of Jerusalem.

By "placement" I do not mean that new mezuzas are being placed where no mezuza has been before, though such a protest would be equally offensive, but I mean the mezuzas are placed there and have been there for many years already.

NRG reports that Salah says he was touring the areas of Jerusalem and noticed the mezuzas. He sees them as an attempt by Israel to Judaize the Islamic Old City of Jerusalem and the Muslim heritage. Abu Ata from the Al Aqsa Foundation added that the Old City is an Arab city, and a mezuza is something placed on the door of a Jewish home.

Jerusalem is a Jewish city. Even with the need for tolerance and sharing the city among various religions, as Jerusalem city councilman Didi Hershkowitz said, just as we show respect for their freedom of religion, they should be showing respect for ours. The Palestinian and Israeli Arab leaders should put Salah in his place, and respect our right to worship equally.

It seems to me Hershkowitz is in a bit of a fantasy world with his statement, but he is 100% correct. Unfortunately, Israel has never demanded that the Palestinians respect our rights in Israel and the right to worship. Netanyahu has demanded they recognize Israel as a Jewish State, but on the ground such basic respect has not been demanded or shared. Even our mezuzas are now a provocation.

Rav Metzger was asked if yachts require a mezuza.

The question is based on the fact that people can stay on yachts for days and weeks at a time, and perhaps large boats are not equivalent to the boats referred to when the halacha states that boats do not require a mezuza.

Rav Metzger delved into the issue and decided that if the yacht is at least 2.5 meters by 2.5 meters (what yacht would be that small anyway?), and the intention of the boat is to be lived in for days at a time, rather than just hours at a time, the yacht would require a mezuza, though a bracha would not be made upon installment.

I should add my usual caveat, if you are a yacht owner and wondering if you need to put a mezuza on your yacht, ask a rabbi and do not rely on piskei halacha sourced on the internet.

(source: Srugim)

The story making waves is that there was an avreich in Bnei Brak married for 10 years who had not been blessed with children.

The avreich went to Rav Kanievsky regularly for a bracha. Rav Kanievsky would give him his usual "Bracha V'Hatzlacha" and then added, cryptically, that he should check what needs to be checked.

The avreich never understood what he was meant to check, but never had the courage to ask for an explanation.

Finally, the avreich got the courage to ask what needs to be checked and what he should be doing. Rav Kanievsky said what do we check? check the mezuzos.

The avreich sent all the mezuzos in his house to be checked. they all came back fine except for one. The mezuza from the door to the bedroom was passul because the words "v'shinantam l'vanecha" (you should teach your children) ran together with no space between the words.

He switched the mezuza for a kosher mezuza, and went back to Rav Kanievsky to tell him what happened. Rav Chaim gave him a new energetic "bracha v'hatzlacha"... (source: Haredim)

we don't know if he got his wife pregnant immediately or not, but we wish him well and hope he has kids aplenty now that the mezuza problem has been solved.

Note that you cannot just go to a gadol and expect everything to be solved. the guy didn't understand what Rav Kanievsky was telling him, didn't ask for an explanation, and didn't get his problem resolved. Going to a gadol isn't enough - you gotta get the picture straight, you have to understand what he tells you to do.

Rav Don Segal has issued a reminder of the urgency with which people should be careful to check their mezuzahs regularly - twice every seven years, as mandated by halacha.

When asked why he is mentioning this now, Rav Segal responded that it is in light of the recent tragic, horrific really, car accident in which 5 people were killed returning from Meron on Lag B'Omer.

Rav Segal had gone to be menachem aveil in the homes of the mourning, and he noticed there were no mezuzahs on the doorposts in the house he went into. He asked why, and they told him they had sent them out to be checked, in light of the accident. It turned out they were all no good.

Rav Segal said that while we don't know the ays of God, people should be careful to get their mezuzahs checked.
(source:kikarshabbat)

It rained all night long in much of Israel last night. Unfortunately, because the winter has been so dry and warm, that rain was just a drop in the bucket relative to the amount we need...

The government is becoming desperate and is looking for solutions (I do not know if they are considering taking up Oren Zarif on his offer or not).

Shalom Simhon, the Minister of Agriculture, outgoing I must add considering elections are in 10 days, has come up with a new solution. The government is so desperate that anything is worth a try - Simhon has recommended that Mekorot, the authority in charge of Israel's water systems, change all their mezuzahs... He says that when Labor was hitting all-time lows in popularity, he had all the mezuzahs changed in the Labor offices, and now they have doubled their polling numbers.

I guess changing the mezuzahs caused Barak to go to war in Gaza, improving his poll numbers... If they listen to Simhon and change the mezuzahs at Mekorot, I hope it does not end up leading to war with Syria!!!

(source: YNET)

The article to the left ran in today's newspaper...

It relates an incident in a police station of Kiryat Malachi.

The police in that station have felt that they have been having bad luck for a long time - things in general are no good, a number of commanders left early without completing their tenure, many policemen have fallen ill, a number of policemens' homes have been broken into, etc.

To change their fortune, they decided to have a rav come and change the mezuzahs in the station, and bless the station.

The [new] commander of the station responded that an officer who had been injured a couple of times wanted to change the mezuzah, so they allowed him to. But it was not a general thing of the whole station...

Sometimes, even the shmirah of the police is not enough, and even the police need the shmirah of the mezuzah...

According to this article on Ynet, Conservative Rabbi Simcha Roth recommends against kissing mezuzas in public places (especially in hospitals). He deems it a danger (of contracting iruses and germs left by other people. I guess the rule of "sakanta chamira m'issura" - danger is worse than prohibition - would apply in such a case, according to Rabbi Roth.

Kissing a mezuza is only a tradition, not a mitzva, and therefore he recommends against it.

Another one bites the dust..