Riddles, Free Stuff and Public Service Announcements

1. See below for riddles and how to win free stuff

2. A reminder that you can vote in the JIB Awards every three days. Last time I checked, Hirhurim was winning handily in two of its three categories.

3. The big post about S** in Halakhah (my wife uncharacteristically checked my blog and then told me not to use that word) is coming up soon. The hint I can give as to its content is that it deals with choice.

4. RIDDLES AND FREE STUFF Read more

Dr. Marc Shapiro sent me the following:

The University of Scranton has just published my little book on Saul Lieberman and the Orthodox. Those who are interested in purchasing a copy (I think it costs $6) can contact me directly. There will also be many copies at the YU Seforim Sale. Students of Rav Soloveitchik will find the kuntres valuable in that I disprove the oft repeated story that in the 1950's the Rav supported a joint Beit Din with the Conservatives. This story is repeated everywhere, including by R. Rakefet and maybe even R. Lichtenstein, as fact.

Gil was nice enough to allow me to offer some free copies on his blog, to the first people who are able to solve any of the following three riddles.

1. Point to a part of a certain Mishnah which, without question, was written by someone who lived after R. Judah ha-Nasi (hint: cf. Deut. 34:5 and how this is interpreted by one opinion).

2. Give me a case whereby if someone commits a certain averah he is hayyav on a lav, and if he does another averhah of this very sort he is patur even retroactively for the first averah? (hint: I am not saying he hasn't committed any averah, just that he is patur for this specific lav.)

3. What two separate acts are forbidden according to the Shulhan Arukh (not the Rama), but if you do them at the same time, they are both permitted?

I will check the answers throughout the day. The last time we did this, one of the riddles was solved in a few hours, and the other took a day or two.

Marc Shapiro