Special Monday Night Class: March 22, 2010

WHY IS THIS NIGHT DIFFERENT THAN ALL OTHER SEDER NIGHTS?

Join Rabbi Axelrod and explore new insights of the Haggadah which you can share at this years Seder.

Back by popular demand!

Come on Monday evening, March 22, at 8pm in the Braun Youth Center for a yearly treat.

Preparing for Pesach

PREPARING FOR PESACH 5770 - 2010

 INTRODUCTION

Chometz results when one of the five type of grains (wheat, barley, rye, oats or spelt) comes in contact with water and is al­lowed to stand for a brief period of time without being baked.  We are forbidden during Pesach to eat, own or derive any benefit from such a mixture that has been allowed the time to rise.  Therefore all grain products, their derivatives or mixtures are forbidden.

Compliance with the prohibitions of eating, owning or possessing chometz, or deriving any benefit from chometz takes three forms.  The first is the actual removal of chometz from our homes, either through consuming it or disposing of it. This culminates in a search for chometz on the evening before Pesach (bedikat chometz), and in the symbolic burning of the chometz (biur chometz) on Erev Pesach morning.  The second is the recitation of a formula of nullification of ownership (found in the hagadah or siddur) over any chometz which we might still inadvertently have in our pos­session (bitul chometz).  This nullification is recited twice, once after bedikat chometz and then a final time after biur chometz. Finally any chometz which can neither be consumed nor disposed of before Passover may be sold to a non‑Jew (mechirat chometz). The form for mechirat chometz is found elsewhere in this publication, and is available on line as well.

KITNIYOT

Jews of ashkenazic descent also avoid legumes  (kitniyot) such as beans, peas, rice, corn, or other such foods. There are two traditional reasons given for the institution of this rabbinic prohibition. Some of the foods could be ground into flour and confused with chometz flour, whereas others normally grow in close proximity to chometz products and might not be free of mixed in grains.  This prohibition applies only to the eating of such products; their posses­sion is permissible, as is using them for other (non-eating) purposes. Whereas the rabbis of the sephardic community never instituted such a prohibition, Jews of sephardic descent who eat kitniyot also need to be sure that they are free from any chometz mixtures. (A reliable list of kitniyot items permitted for sephardim may be obtained from JSOR 732-531-4872)

Those who avoid eating kitniyot need to be particularly diligent in purchasing products for Pesach. Often products bear kosher for Pesach labels even though they contain kitniyot, and sometimes stores are not careful to separate between the kitniyot and non-kitniyot products. The OU, Star-K and OK do not certify kitniyot containing products as kosher for Pesach for consumer use.

Following is a list from the Star-K of products that are usually considered as kitniyot. As with all other Pesach matters, please feel free to contact our rabbinic staff with any questions.

Anise
Ascorbic Acid
Aspartame
Beans
Bean Sprouts

Black Eyed Peas
BHA (in corn oil)
BHT (in corn oil)
Buckwheat
Calcium Ascorbate
Canola Oil (Rapeseed)
Caraway Seeds
Chickpeas
Citric Acid
(possibly chometz)
Confectioners Sugar (possibly chometz, possibly KFP - look for KFP symbol)
Coriander
Corn

Corn Oil

Corn Syrup

Cumin
Dextrose
Emulsifiers
Fennel
Fenugreek
Glucose
Green Beans
Guar Gum
H.V.P*. (possibly chometz)
Isolated Soy Protein
Kasha (Buckwheat)

Kimmel

Licorice
Lecithin
Lentils

Malto-Dextrin(possibly chometz)
Millet
MSG (possibly chometz)

Mustard Flour
NutraSweet
Peanuts
Peas

Popcorn
Poppy Seeds
Rice

Saffron
Sesame Seeds
Sodium Erythorbate
Sorbitan
Sorbitol
Soy Beans

Soy Oil
Stabilizers
Starch

String Beans

Sunflower Seeds

Tofu

*hydrolyzed vegetable protein

Dishes and utensils used for chometz year round should be packed away in preparation for Pesach. Certain dishes and utensils normally used may also be used for Pesach once they are properly kashered and any chometz they have absorbed has been removed. The following section provides a brief summary of the laws involved in kashering utensils and appliances for use on Pesach. Please contact any of our rabbis if you have additional questions.

KASHERING - A SUMMARY

1.       METAL

Silverware (only with all metal pieces and no parts glued together), pots used on top of the stove (no baking utensils or frying pans) and other metal utensils may be kashered for Passover use.  They must first be cleaned thoroughly (if they are silver they should be polished) and then allowed to stand unused for 24 hours.  They are then completely immersed in a large pot (kosher for Passover) of boiling water, and rinsed in cold water after being removed from the pot.  The boiling water must touch each part of the utensil.  Large pots may be kashered by first cleaning them as above, allowing them to stand for 24 hours and then filling them with water to the very top, allowing the water to boil.  A heated stone or some other non‑combustible material is then placed inside the pot so that the boiling water overflows the top lip of the pot.

China, pottery, earthenware, utensils that have dif­ferent parts glued together and items that cannot be thoroughly cleaned (such as a sieve) cannot be kashered for Passover use.

2.       GLASSWARE

Glasses which have been used primarily for cold liquids during the year may be “kashered” for Passover by immersing them in cold water for a period of 72 hours.  The water must be changed every 24 hours, and with the exception of the time when the water is being changed, the glasses must be continually­ submerged. Glasses, pyrex, corningware, and the like which are used with heat must be treated as china and cannot be kashered for Passover.

3.       OVEN

A self‑cleaning oven is kashered for Passover use by simply running it through the self‑clean cycle. Spe­cial care must be taken to insure that the area around the inside seal of the door is thoroughly cleaned.  As with all kashering procedures the oven should remain unused for 24 hours before kashering it.

A conventional oven, either gas or electric, may be kashered by cleaning it twice with a caustic oven cleaner and then, after waiting for 24 hours, turning it to its highest temperature for one hour.  The broiler pan and tray  may not be kashered in this manner. They should be removed from the oven and not used.

Oven Racks - assuming that food is not cooked directly on the oven racks, they may be kashered by first cleaning them, allowing them to stand unused for 24 hours, and then placing them in the oven while the oven is being kashered. If food is cooked directly on the racks, a new set of racks should be used for Pesach. Occasional spillovers on the racks do not qualify as food being cooked directly on them.

A microwave oven may be kashered by cleaning it, and after not using it for 24 hours, placing a styrofoam cup of water in the oven and boiling it until the oven fills with steam.  If a glass tray is used in the oven, it should be replaced for Pesach. Microwave ‑Convection ovens are kashered in the same way as a regular oven. 

4.       STOVE TOP

Conventional Gas Burners may be kashered by placing the racks (or grates) upon which the pots rest into the oven while it is being kashered. The burner itself does not need to be kashered. The drip pans should be covered.

Electric Burners (either metal or glass) may be kashered by turning them on until the element glows red.

The other areas of the stove top surrounding the burners should be covered with aluminum foil. Glass stove tops present significant difficulty on Pesach because covering them often results in cracking. Please speak to Rabbi Polakoff for further information.

5.       DISHWASHER

Difficulties in kashering a dishwasher are primarily due to the difficulties in thoroughly cleaning it.  Assuming that all corners, edges and rubber gaskets and food traps can be properly cleaned, a stainless steel dishwasher may be kashered by running it through two soapy cycles with hotter water than is usually used (such as a sani‑steam), after allowing it to sit unused for 24 hours. It is preferable to stop the dishwasher mid cycle and to pour in a pot full of boiling water, raising the temperature of the water inside. The cycle should then be allowed to finish. A new set of racks should be purchased for Passover use. Dishwashers of porcelain or plastic may not be kashered for Passover use.

6.       SINK AND COUNTERS

A stainless steel sink may be kashered by cleaning it and allowing it to sit unused for 24 hours.  Boiling water may then be poured over the entire surface of the sink, including the faucets.  Enamel or porcelain sinks cannot be kashered for Passover and require a covering or plastic sink insert.

There are many different materials used for countertops today, which makes the question of kashering them very complex. Most poskim agree that countertops made of glass tile, ceramic, porcelain or concrete cannot be kashered. Countertops made of these materials should be thoroughly cleaned and then covered with a non-absorbent material (cardboard, contact paper, aluminum foil, etc). Most poskim agree that countertops made of granite, marble, stainless steel or metal can be kashered through the use of boiling water. Nothing hot should be placed on these countertops for 24 hours prior to kashering them. They should then be thoroughly cleaned and boiling water should be poured over them. The question becomes more complex when we talk about countertops that are made of plastic or acrylic, such as formica or corian. Also countertops made of ground stone which is bound with an acrylic resin, such as silestone or caeserstone, fall into this category. The psak of Rav Moshe Feinstein, zt”l, is to prohibit these materials, whereas the psak of Rav Gedalyah Dov Schwartz, shlita, of the Chicago Rabbinical Council (CRC) permits them to be kashered. If one is stringent and doesn’t kasher these countertops, they should be cleaned and covered with a double layer of covering, and one should avoid placing hot food directly on them.  Tabletops should also be covered for use during Passover.

Shabbat and Pesach Schedule

SHABBAT AND PASSOVER SCHEDULE

5770 - 2010

Sunday, March 28th

Bedikat Chometz this evening

EREV PESACH
Monday, March 29th

• 1st shacharit with siyum for first born      6:30 am
• 2nd shacharit with siyum for first born      7:45 am

 Chometz may not be eaten after:

• Magen Avraham   10:30 am
• Vilna Gaon     10:54 am

Chometz must be destroyed by:

• Magen Avraham  11:45 am
• Vilna Gaon  11:57 am

 

• Candle lighting    6:58 pm
• Mincha  7:00 pm

PESACH I
Monday night, March 29th

• Kiddush after (first Seder)                 7:57 pm

Tuesday, March 30th

• Main Shul  9:00 am
• Beit Midrash   9:15 am
• Mincha   7:00 pm

 PESACH II
Tuesday night, March 30th

• Candle lighting after   7:59 pm
• Preparations for the second Seder should not begin before                7:59 pm

Wednesday, March 31st

• Main Shul   9:00 am
• Beit Midrash   9:15 pm
• Mincha  7:00 pm
• Yom Tov ends after  8:08 pm

 CHOL HAMOED

• Thursday, Friday  6:30 am/7:45 am
• Mincha  7:05am

 SHABBAT CHOL HAMOED

• Candle lighting  7:02 pm
• Mincha  7:05 pm
• Main Shul   8:45 am
• Beit Midrash  9:00 am
• Shir HaShirim is read this morning
• Shiur  5:55 pm
• Mincha  6:55 pm
• Shabbat ends  8:11 pm

• Sunday, April 4th  7:30 am/8:30 am
• Mincha  7:10 pm

PESACH VII
Sunday night, April 4th                

• Candle lighting   7:04 pm

Monday, April 5th

• Main Shul  9:00 am
• Beit Midrash  9:15 am
• Mincha  7:10 pm

 PESACH VIII
Monday night, April 5th

• Candle lighting after   8:05 pm

Tuesday, April 6th

• Main Shul  9:00 am
•  Beit Midrash  9:15 am
• Yizkor is part of this service
• Mincha  7:10 pm
• Yom Tov ends  8:14 pm
• Your Chometz can be eaten after  8:45 pm

Magen Avraham (Rabbi Avraham Gombiner 1633-1683) and Gra (Vilna Gaon, 1720-1797)

There is a major dispute among the Aharonim as to how to figure Sha’ot Z’maniot - the “halachic” hours (1/12 of the day) upon which these times are based. According to the Magen Avraham, the day is reckoned from amud hashahar (dawn) until nightfall. According to the Gra, the day begins at sunrise and ends at sunset. Therefore, the Magen Avraham’s times will always be earlier than that of the Gra. For example, if sunrise is at 6:00 a.m. and sunset is at 6:00 p.m., the Gra’s ending time for K’riat Sh’ma will be 9:00 a.m., whereas the Magen Avraham’s ending time will be 8:24. Our shul policy is to follow the Gra.

Shmurah Matzah

GREAT NECK SYNAGOGUE

is again pleased to serve its membership with

the sale of Hand Baked SHMURAH MATZAH

Pick-up for Matzah will be on

THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

Between 6:30 pm & 8:30 pm

All orders must be prepaid

Please make checks payable to

GREAT NECK SYNAGOGUE

All orders must be received before MARCH 23, 2010

Limited Supply.  Please order early

—————————————————————————————— —————————————————————

Order Form

Name_________________________________________

Address_______________________________________

Telephone (Home)__________(Bus.)_______________

_____lb. Shmurah Matzah @ $18.50 per lb.________

Check Enclosed for Total Cost______

Send to Great Neck Synagogue

26 Old Mill Road

Great Neck, NY 11023

or Fax to 516-487-6149

Pesach Questions

A new service is provided to our members and friends on our shul website. A forum has been created which will allow you to ask a question on Pesach (a product, a seder question, anything you might be interested in) and one of our Rabbis will respond as quickly as possible. By browsing the forum you’ll be able to see the questions that others have asked that you yourself might have. Check it out and let us know what you think. In order to ask a question you’ll have to register as a user of the forum (a 2 minute process). Log into the new forum at www.gns.org/forum

Passover Class with Rabbi Axelrod

BACK  BY POPULAR DEMAND

Monday evening March 30th,  8 pm

“Why is this night different than all other Seder nights?

Join Rabbi Axelrod and explore new insights of the

Haggadah which you can share  at this years Seder table.