[Sca-cooks] Mrs Levy again

[Kirsten Houseknecht]

the Mikva is sometimes a fee for use, but no one is ever "turned away" for
lack of funds. it is an integral part of orthodox jewish observance.....

no... not just any old bath will do. the mikva must be constructed in
specific ways. the water must be drawn (by a complex legal code i do NOT
understand) from rainwater or from certain other natural sources........
(incidentally, in the absence of a mikva, some lakes. and the ocean are
acceptable. i *think* the point is that it has to be "natural" water)

there are rules regarding immersion, and the blessings to be said. etc..

the mikva is also used (DRagging the email back on topic) for the immersion
of dishware as part of the final stage of Koshering them....
although dishes may be used without immersing them, it is NOT desirable. and
permenet dishes are supposed to be immersed...... same as people..... except
you usually only ever do it once.......
Kirsten
kirsten at fabricdragon.com
http://www.fabricdragon.com

----- Original Message -----
From: "Stefan li Rous" <stefan at texas.net>
To: <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org>
Sent: Tuesday, September 10, 2002 1:22 AM
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Mrs Levy again


> Avraham replied to me with:
> >> > As I read the Old Law, yes. Touching something unclean makes you
> > unclean,
> >> > and then you will swell up and be dead until morning... oops, wrong
> > Cosby
> >> > bit. At any rate, there's lots of jiffy keen instructions for
cleansing
> >> > after touching the Unclean- be it pork, misc. carrion, a menstruating
> >> > woman, etc. And then you have to go and get the priest to declare you
ok
> >> > again...
> >> Do you have to pay the priest/rabbi each time he does this? Or do
> >> you pay an annual fee or something? I mean some of this sounds real
> >> difficult to avoid, especially if you are a women.
> >
> > No. In fact, for most ritual uncleanlinesses, one does NOT need to be
> > "certified" clean.
>
> Ah! Thank you.
>
>
> > Remember that a rabbi is NOT a priest; he is not an intercessor with
G-d, he
> > has no real religious authority. The rabbi's authority is LEGAL - he
only
> > interprets the Law.
>
> Yes, I believe it may have been you that explained the differance to me.
That is
> why I used "priest/rabbi" since the original poster said priest and since
> there aren't, if I understand correctly, currently any Jewish priests.
Then
> the comment about needing a priest to "declare" you ok again is in error
> and most of the rest of my comments not applicable.
>
>
> > Most ritual uncleanlinesses can be obviated by prayer, sometimes
fasting,
> > and immersion in a ritual bath called a mikveh. There is no "fee" to use
the
> > mikveh in most cases, but the community as a whole is responsible for
its
> > maintenance and support.
>
> Oh. So this is not just a bath taken in a particular way, but it must
> be done in a particular spot? Or type of spot? A blessed/holy spot?
>
> > (And yes, in the modern world, there is often an
> > annual membership fee.)
>
> Understandable.
>
> > Women are required to bathe in the mikveh monthly
> > after their courses; men only need to visit a couple of times a year
unless
> > they do something that makes them unclean.
>
> I guess I don't see the reason for this aversion/fright? to the
> normal monthly cycle of things, but it certainly seems to be
> common to a lot of religions, both in the Middle Ages and now.
> Again, thank you for answering my questions. On re-reading them
> I realized that they may have come across as more belligerent than
> intended. I'm more rather perplexed by many of these religious
> practices. Shrug. And this isn't Judism specific.
>
> --
> THLord Stefan li Rous    Barony of Bryn Gwlad    Kingdom of Ansteorra
>     Mark S. Harris            Austin, Texas          stefan at texas.net
> **** See Stefan's Florilegium files at:  http://www.florilegium.org ****
>
>
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