Friday, June 15, 2007

eiruvin 86 - a volatile family mix

The Mishna (Eiruvin 86) discusses case where someone plans be away from home for the duration of Shabbos – does that person’s home need to be included them in the local eiruv or not? R’ Shimon says that if a person plans to spend Shabbos by his daughter’s house, even if he will be in the same city, his own house does not need to be included in the eiruv because we assume it will be vacant for all of Shabbos.

The gemara notes that the Mishna speaks specifically of a case where one is visiting one’s daughter – only then can we assume that even if one is not far from home one will remain away as a guest. But if one plans to spend Shabbos with one’s son, that’s a different story – the volatile mix of parents with their son and daughter-in-law leaves little assurance that the entire Shabbos can pass without the parents returning to their own home! All I can say is that Chazal were the keenest observers of the human condition who ever lived.

1 comment:

  1. All we can say is that if we could have walked home from this table, we would have. (http://orthonomics.blogspot.com/2007/04/when-your-family-dislikes-your-cheap.html)

    Chazal were certainly keen observers of the human condition.

    We are always amazed how my parents, who are by no means perfect, seem to not rub on either of us the way my husband's parents can. And yet, my husband's parents don't seem to rub on their son-in-law hardly at all. (And I'm easy a fairly easy DIL to get along with, if I say so myself).

    Another link to another gemara could be made. The woman really is the foundation of the home and sets the tone, even as the father is the public face.

    Happy Father's Day

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