Alleyways To Torah

The Rebbe Shlita, a tzaddik gamur, who personally saves peoples lives on a daily basis through many means of charitable works and other means and through his infinate wisdom, has caused me to research this torah query and for this I will merit the world to come. Now if only I could get the rebbe to tell me which stocks to invest in. The following is an answer to a question. I hope it is an answer to the rebbe's kasha but I am not sure. HaGaon Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach zt'l, writes in Mivakshei Torah in Siman bes that the main obligation of nerots chanukah is on the family. So perhaps if a shaliach does it it doesn't merit a bracha. (a little bala batish) furthermore it is a rabbinic mitzvah performed by a shaliach perhaps only biblical mitzvot performed by a shaliach warrant a bracha. Lastly, Rav Moshe Sternbuch writes that when we light the candles in shul we say a bracha only because their is a tzibbur. Without the tzibbur we would light without the bracha because the hadlacka itself does the mitzvah. Rav Sterbuch quotes Rav Chaim M'brisk at the end of this tshuva in his "tshuvus v'hanhagus" in siman Shin Samaech Chet of Orach chayim saying that the tzibbur is in shul specifically for the hadlaka. So perhaps in our case too if there is a single shaliach and no tzibur and no family to publicize the miracle to a bracha is not warranted.

further to hillel's comment:

i believe it was the rambam who talked about the greeks' edict to remove our doors, to take away the sanctity of our families/homes. for that reason the parsumei nisa aspect of hadlakat neirot is meant to be done next to the door. so in that light (get it?), the presence of a family or the madlik himself should be necessary.

btw, bedikat hametz is also d'rabbanan, so it can't only apply to biblical commandments.

Hubscubs - I love your website and all the children who are adorable. In regard to Bedikas Chametz being d'rabbanan, I'm not sure the matter is so simple. I am not a torah scholor in the least in fact I have very few brain cells, but I believe the the Ran Zt"l and some other notable giants note that a yid does fufill a Torah commandment if one does bedikah (as opposed to bittul) so there is a circumstance where bedikas chametz would be a fufillment of a Torah Commandment. This does not answer the question if a rabbinic mitzvah performed by a shaliach warrants a bracha. But that is why we have a holy rebbe or perhaps you yourself know the answer and can enlighten me.

hillel, thanks for your thoughts. though i am not familiar with the ran that you mentioned, i presume he is referring to fulfilling the biblical obligation of 'biur hametz' which can be performed in a sundry of manners.

however, since the typical case (at least the generally accepted minhag) is to perform both bedika as well as biur, my suggestion remains accurate. i.e. since there are circumstances where a messenger's performance of the bedika is purely rabbinic in nature, and yet we see that the messenger nonetheless would make the braha, we can assume that biblical/rabbinic is not the determining factor. rav alley, please interject if i'm mistaken. shabbat shalom.

I was perusing through my seforim and book collection which is quite small and after passing my 1987 thesaurus, my personal Finance for dummies book, Exodus, Maus, and my siddur Shilo from my first grade siddur play, I came to my most cherished sefer that was inscribed to me by the author. The author is a 21st century gaon who lives in Israel. His sefer is called Shirat Yitzhak. In this kuntrus the Shirats Yitchak writes on page 189 of the importance of seeing the lighting of the candles or “reiyah.” So perhaps an alternative answer could be that the shaliach does not say a bracha over ner Chanukah because the sender of the shaliach is not seeing the candles burn and thus is not fulfilling the aspect of the mitzvah of “reiyah.” Again if this is not what the Shirats Yitchak had in mind all fault lies with Hillel and not with the Shirats Yitchak.

I also love hubscubs blog and adorable children!