Communities

Writing
Writing
Codidact Meta
Codidact Meta
The Great Outdoors
The Great Outdoors
Photography & Video
Photography & Video
Scientific Speculation
Scientific Speculation
Cooking
Cooking
Electrical Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Judaism
Judaism
Languages & Linguistics
Languages & Linguistics
Software Development
Software Development
Mathematics
Mathematics
Christianity
Christianity
Code Golf
Code Golf
Music
Music
Physics
Physics
Linux Systems
Linux Systems
Power Users
Power Users
Tabletop RPGs
Tabletop RPGs
Community Proposals
Community Proposals
tag:snake search within a tag
answers:0 unanswered questions
user:xxxx search by author id
score:0.5 posts with 0.5+ score
"snake oil" exact phrase
votes:4 posts with 4+ votes
created:<1w created < 1 week ago
post_type:xxxx type of post
Search help
Notifications
Mark all as read See all your notifications »
Q&A

Welcome to the Judaism community on Codidact!

Will you help us build our community of learners? Drop into our study hall, ask questions, help others with answers to their questions, share a d'var torah if you're so inclined, invite your friends, and join us in building this community together. Not an ask-the-rabbi service, just people at all levels learning together.

Post History

80%
+6 −0
Q&A Why is Shlissel Challah permissible?

In ancient times, the Roman pagan holiday of Saturnalia included a practice of baking some type of cake with a fava bean hidden inside, with a prize for whoever got the piece containing the bean. I...

0 answers  ·  posted 4y ago by DonielF‭  ·  edited 4y ago by msh210‭

#2: Post edited by user avatar msh210‭ · 2021-01-25T23:52:56Z (almost 4 years ago)
You seem to be asking about a particular practice (or a couple with the same name) so I'm editing to make that clear. Unless I misunderstood
  • Why are practices such as Shlissel Challah permissible?
  • Why is Shlissel Challah permissible?
  • In ancient times, the Roman pagan holiday of Saturnalia included a practice of baking some type of cake with a fava bean hidden inside, with a prize for whoever got the piece containing the bean. In medieval times, the prize often included being the ruler of the region for the year, hence why this practice is called the “King’s Cake.”
  • Over time, the custom became distorted by its adoption into Christianity: rather than a winter custom, the practice was near-universally shifted to the spring and practiced during Epiphany (during Mardi Gras), the day believed to be the conception of their Messiah. Further, the specific object which was hidden (called a fève, after the original fava beans used) changed over time and locale, broadening to whatever fruits were in-season (almonds, dried fig pits), candies, figurines, and...keys.
  • It seems pretty straightforward to suggest that the Jewish custom of _shlissel challah_, where on the first Sabbath after Passover a key is baked in the challah (or in a more recent take, shaping the challah itself as a key), originated from this practice.
  • The Torah commands us not to emulate the practices of the idolatrous nations (Leviticus 18:3 et. al.; Rambam, Hil. Avodah Zarah 11:1ff). Why would a practice like Shlissel Challah be permissible?
  • In ancient times, the Roman pagan holiday of Saturnalia included a practice of baking some type of cake with a fava bean hidden inside, with a prize for whoever got the piece containing the bean. In medieval times, the prize often included being the ruler of the region for the year, hence why this practice is called the “King’s Cake.”
  • Over time, the custom became distorted by its adoption into Christianity: rather than a winter custom, the practice was near-universally shifted to the spring and practiced during Epiphany (during Mardi Gras), the day believed to be the conception of their Messiah. Further, the specific object which was hidden (called a fève, after the original fava beans used) changed over time and locale, broadening to whatever fruits were in-season (almonds, dried fig pits), candies, figurines, and...keys.
  • It seems pretty straightforward to suggest that the Jewish custom of _shlissel challah_, where on the first Sabbath after Passover a key is baked in the challah (or in a more recent take, shaping the challah itself as a key), originated from this practice.
  • The Torah commands us not to emulate the practices of the idolatrous nations (Leviticus 18:3 et. al.; Rambam, Hil. Avodah Zarah 11:1ff). Why would Shlissel Challah be permissible?
#1: Initial revision by user avatar DonielF‭ · 2021-01-25T00:13:17Z (almost 4 years ago)
Why are practices such as Shlissel Challah permissible?
In ancient times, the Roman pagan holiday of Saturnalia included a practice of baking some type of cake with a fava bean hidden inside, with a prize for whoever got the piece containing the bean. In medieval times, the prize often included being the ruler of the region for the year, hence why this practice is called the “King’s Cake.”

Over time, the custom became distorted by its adoption into Christianity: rather than a winter custom, the practice was near-universally shifted to the spring and practiced during Epiphany (during Mardi Gras), the day believed to be the conception of their Messiah. Further, the specific object which was hidden (called a fève, after the original fava beans used) changed over time and locale, broadening to whatever fruits were in-season (almonds, dried fig pits), candies, figurines, and...keys. 

It seems pretty straightforward to suggest that the Jewish custom of _shlissel challah_, where on the first Sabbath after Passover a key is baked in the challah (or in a more recent take, shaping the challah itself as a key), originated from this practice. 

The Torah commands us not to emulate the practices of the idolatrous nations (Leviticus 18:3 et. al.; Rambam, Hil. Avodah Zarah 11:1ff). Why would a practice like Shlissel Challah be permissible?