A large Religious Zionist congregation in North America slightly amends the standard text of the blessing for the State of Israel authored by Rav Yitzchak Herzog and Rav Ben Zion Hai Uzziel, the chief rabbis of Medinat Yisrael at the time of its founding in 1948. Instead of describing Medinat Yisrael as “reishit tzemichat geulateinu” (the beginning of the flowering of our redemption), it adds the word “shetehei” (that it should become) reishit tzemichat geulateinu.
Opening Soda Bottles on Shabbat jewishlink.news - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from jewishlink.news Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
By Rabbi Haim Jachter | January 21, 2021
Modern authorities have vigorously debated whether a sound heard through a microphone, hearing aid (which functions much like a microphone), or telephone shares the status of the original sound. This issue impacts the fulfillment of numerous mitzvot, such as listening to the blowing of a shofar or to Torah and Megilla readings, by hearing them through these electronic media. Rav Ovadia Yosef (Teshuvot Yechave Da’at 3:96) strongly endorses the stringent opinion.
How Does a Microphone Work?
Before addressing the halachic aspects of electronic devices, Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach (Teshuvot Minchat Shlomo 1:9) describes the workings of a microphone in great detail. It receives sound waves (the original voice or sound) and converts them into electronic signals. An amplifier/speaker system then reconverts the electronic signals into an amplified replica of the original sound. A similar operation takes place within hearing aids and