As he has done in past years, Finance Committee Chairman MK Moshe Gafne has turned to the head of the nation’s Water Authority, Alexander Kushner, planning ahead for Pesach. In his letter, Gafne explains there is a large tzibur that prefers not to use the water from the Kinneret on Pesach for fear of chametz. He reminds Kushner that the solution, as in previous years, is to use water pumped from wells maintained by the Water Authority.
Kushner responded, informing Gafne that the authority will accommodate the request as it has in previous years, and beginning three days before yomtov, water from the Kinneret will not be pumped south of Haifa. He explains sufficient water is drawn before yomtov and stored in facilities for use during the yomtov to alleviate fears of pumping chametz on Pesach.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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11 Responses
I’m clueless.
What is the problem of chametz in the water from Yam Kinneret.
What am I missing here?
Another chumra? or what?
Why does the State hate charedim so much? All this giving money for schools and accommodation.
rav gafni did as instructed by gedoilei yisrael. yasher koiach to him
#2- I assume your question should have been phrased as “Why do the chareidim hate the State so much?”. In light of all the accomodation and the money given to chareidim, why all the hate?
1. Water is filterable. For milenia Jews have used water from rivers and lakes, so why the change?
2. Israel has been claiming to have increased desalination to the point they don’t have to keep pumping from the Kinneret or draining the aquifers.
it is ossur during Pesach
IF THERE IS CHOMAITS ITS BOTUL BESHITTIM BEFORE PESACH look where amaratzus leads you .It leads to a chillul hashem
It’s called nitzok ניצוק which says that your water is connected to its uninterrupted source – no matter how distant. Since eating chametz is assur on pesach in the most minute measure – the concern is that someone will throw chametz on Pesach into the kinneret.
#5- When did Israel ever claim that water is no longer needed from the kinneret? You seem to frequently make up facts to suit your particular point of view…
#9 – there have been articles in the secular press over the last few weeks boasting of Israel’s success in developing desalinization, claiming they have largely eliminated the need to pump the Kinneret, and that it has risen to its normal levels for the first time in years.
In any event, if one is concerned about hametz in the Kinneret, one has to worry about hametz all along the way the water is transported, suggesting the only alternative is to filter at the point one gets water into the house.
As in all cases of hallachah, please consult your posek about this.
There are many poskim who are not concerned about this, including Shulchan Aruch haRav (Orach Chaim 467:4), R’ Shlomo Zalman Aurbach, ZTz”L (sorry, no reference), and YBLChTv”A, Rav Ovadia Yosef (Yabia Omer Chelek 7 Siman 44).
“Even a mashehu has a shiur.”
A Freilichen Pesach to all.