https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honi_HaMe%27agel#Death
According to Josephus, in Antiquities of the Jews, Honi met his end in the context of conflict between the Hasmonean brothers Hyrcanus II, backed by the Pharisees and advised by Antipater the Idumaean, and Aristobulus II, backed by the Sadducees. Around 63 BC, Honi was captured by the followers of Hyrcanus besieging Jerusalem and was asked to pray for the demise of their opponents. Honi, however, prayed: "Lord of the universe, as the besieged and the besiegers both belong to Your people, I beseech You not to answer the evil prayers of either." After this, the followers of Hyrcanus stoned him to death.[8]
The Babylonian Talmud records a different story of his death, as part of the aforementioned carob tree story. The Maharsha explains the discrepancy between the Talmud and Josephus by stating that Honi was "presumed" killed by Hyrcanus II's men, but in reality was put into a deep sleep or coma for 70 years, and only then died.[5]
Taanis (23a) Ḥoni went home and said to the members of the household: Is the son of Ḥoni HaMe’aggel alive? They said to him: His son is no longer with us, but his son’s son is alive. He said to them: I am Ḥoni HaMe’aggel. They did not believe him. He went to the study hall, where he heard the Sages say about one scholar: His halakhot are as enlightening and as clear as in the years of Ḥoni HaMe’aggel, for when Ḥoni HaMe’aggel would enter the study hall he would resolve for the Sages any difficulty they had. Ḥoni said to them: I am he, but they did not believe him and did not pay him proper respect. Ḥoni became very upset, prayed for mercy, and died. Rava said: This explains the folk saying that people say: Either friendship or death, as one who has no friends is better off dead.
A very gripping post for Tish b'Av. I often wonders what are the halakhic parameters by which one becomes poreish min hatzibbur....
ReplyDeleteI just finished reading closely this 9th of Av Salman Rushdie’s newest and most excellent The Golden House . Wow I love this book. He tells it like it is.. A fictional story in today NYC.
ReplyDeleteI spoke on Friday with the NYS Court of Appeals. They said my motion had defects and are returning my papers to me. Well, I sent July 18 a correction:
“4.The questions presented in Exhibit A SCOTUS No. 20-8096 NYS Court of Appeals No. 2021-359 and Exhibit B: SCOTUS No. 20--7892 NYS Court of Appeals No. 2021--54 are the same: a) Can an elderly USA citizen living in Israel continuously since July 9, 1991 except for 1 week August 1992, appeal to the United States Supreme Court to overturn a NYS court order QDRO? b)Can an elderly USA citizen living in Israel prove deliberate fraud of NYS judges/clerks? C) Can an elderly USA citizen living in Israel, remarried, appeal to the United States Supreme Court to annul Judge Prus signed NYS civil divorce 9/10/2013?
5.I ask the NYS Court of Appeals to combine SCOTUS numbers: 20-8096, 20-7892, 20-6525, 18-9390, and 18-7160 and to combine NYS Court of Appeals numbers: 2021--359, 2021--54, 2020--352, 2019-266, and 2018--840. This shows that the Court has jurisdiction of the motion and shows the timeliness of the motion. This shows a concise statement of the questions presented for review and why the questions presented merit review by the Court
6.I ask the Court to calendar the present motion. Perhaps the Court could free up my TIAA pension which the NYS courts ordered 55% to Susan and 45% to me since early 1994? Alas, I'm out of work, retired and have large debts and no assets other than my car and motorcycle. My only income is USA and Israel social security and the 45% TIAA pension. Thank God I'm in good health, swim every day and gym three times a week. According to ERISA I should be getting 100% of my pension. There's no good reason I'm not”
Passaic friend, you're one of my fans/supporters, yes? Thanks KA and IsraelReader for upticks.
More on this week’s parsha ואתחנן “The Lord will scatter you among the peoples, and only a scant few of you shall be left among the nations to which the Lord will drive you. There you will serve man made gods of wood and stone, that cannot see or hear or eat or smell.” (Deuteronomy 4:27-28).
ReplyDeleteדברים ד' כ"ח
וַעֲבַדְתֶּם שָׁם אֱלֹהִים מַעֲשֵׂה יְדֵי אָדָם עֵץ וָאֶבֶן אֲשֶׁר לֹא יִרְאוּן וְלֹא יִשְׁמְעוּן וְלֹא יֹאכְלוּן וְלֹא יְרִיחֻן:
רש"י
ועבדתם שם אלהים - כתרגומו. משאתם עובדים לעובדיהם כאלו אתם עובדים להם:
אבן עזרא
יראון וישמעון - הזכיר הארבעה הרגשות, ואין צורך להזכיר החמישית, כי היא עבה מכולם. ועוד, כי היא שורש חיי הגוף. ואל תתמה על מלת ובקשתם... ומצאת (כט), כי ידבר לרבים ולגוי אחד, או לאדם אחד:
My magid shiur asked yesterday why in the Torah idols can’t see, hear, eat or smell and leaves out idols can't talk? Answer: idols could talk in the midrash. “Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof six cubits; he set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon.” (Daniel 3:1). In the midrash the idol loudly proclaimed from this week’s parsha ואתחנן “I am the Lord thy God, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage” (Deuteronomy 5:6). All the ancient gods, supposedly, talked plenty. Hertz Chumash p. 198: “Instead of the quarrelsome, deceitful, vindictive pack of Babylonia deities, false to one another and false to men, we have in the Hebrew account the One and Supreme God—holy and righteous in His dealings with man.” Terah taught the world idolatry. In Jewish mysticism Job was the reincarnation of Terah.
Daf Hayomi yesterday Sukkah 11b:
“THIS IS THE GENERAL RULE: WHATEVER IS SUSCEPTIBLE TO [RITUAL] UNCLEANLINESS etc. Whence do we know this? Resh Lakish said: Scripture says, “but there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground” (Genesis 2:6). Just as a mist is a thing that is not susceptible to [ritual] uncleanliness and originates from the soil, so must [the covering of] the Sukkah [Since the Sukkah is commemorative of the clouds (v. infra)] [consist of] a thing that is not susceptible to [ritual] uncleanliness, and grow from the soil. That is satisfactory according to the authority who says that [the booths of the wilderness were] clouds of glory, but according to the authority who says [the Israelites] made for themselves real booths, what can one say [in explanation of the ruling of our Mishnah]? For it has been taught: “that your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.” (Leviticus 23:43). These [booths] were clouds of glory, so R. Eliezer. R. Akiba says, They made for themselves real booths.”
Beautiful. My theory. Both R. Eliezer and R. Akiba agree that in the Wilderness the Jews made booths year around for the whole 40 years, their tents. Both R. Eliezer and R. Akiva agree that clouds of glory covered the Jews the whole 40 years (until Aaron died).