My basic ideas about lighting the lights for the festival of Lights is that it should be with olive oil and lower than ten hand-breaths next to the door as one enters. The window is OK as long as it is below ten hand-breaths. The height is very important [it must be lower than ten hand-breaths]. Also it should be exact after 72 minutes after sundown because after that there is great doubt if one has fulfilled the obligation at all. Also it is an obligation on the home where one sleeps, not on the person. So if one can not be home then one's wife can light.
I do not have a Gemara Shabat to be able to look this all up but that is what I recall off hand.
It also occurred to me that it does not take 8 days to squeeze a few olives to make olive oil so the whole waiting period must have been because of טומאת מת [uncleanliness ]. But then from where did they get the אפר פרה אדומה The dust of the red cow that one needs? Maybe that was hidden somewhere outside the Temple?
Another issue which comes up is this is, "Let's hate the ancient Greeks week". Not that the problems were from Greeks. The Empire of Alexander was divided and the rulers over Israel were not Greek. Still the culture was imported from Greece. Still the Rambam seems to take a different approach when it comes to Aristotle. [The issue seems to be a debate among Rishonim. Clearly the Ramban [the "n" on the end means that is not the same person as the Rambam.] and all others from that school of thought were against learning anything from the ancient Greeks at all.] I tend to go with the Rambam simply because of personal experience with religious fanaticism which I have seen does not lead to virtue. I am thinking that the Rambam was right.
[The Rambam specifically held that learning Physics and Metaphysics fulfills the commandments of the Tora to love and fear God. Physics I think is clear. The subject matter, not the actual book of Aristotle. Same with Metaphysics I think refers to the subject matter. Thus Physics would mean mainly Quantum Field Theory and String Theory. Metaphysics would include the books of Aristotle by that name but also include Kant and Hegel.]
[I am aware that some people disagree with the Rambam, but I think all evidence shows the Rambam was right. Thus in my mind a proper order of learning with be fourfold-The Oral Law, the Written Law, Physics and Metaphysics and I would add Musar of the Gra and also survival skills.]
I do not have a Gemara Shabat to be able to look this all up but that is what I recall off hand.
It also occurred to me that it does not take 8 days to squeeze a few olives to make olive oil so the whole waiting period must have been because of טומאת מת [uncleanliness ]. But then from where did they get the אפר פרה אדומה The dust of the red cow that one needs? Maybe that was hidden somewhere outside the Temple?
Another issue which comes up is this is, "Let's hate the ancient Greeks week". Not that the problems were from Greeks. The Empire of Alexander was divided and the rulers over Israel were not Greek. Still the culture was imported from Greece. Still the Rambam seems to take a different approach when it comes to Aristotle. [The issue seems to be a debate among Rishonim. Clearly the Ramban [the "n" on the end means that is not the same person as the Rambam.] and all others from that school of thought were against learning anything from the ancient Greeks at all.] I tend to go with the Rambam simply because of personal experience with religious fanaticism which I have seen does not lead to virtue. I am thinking that the Rambam was right.
[The Rambam specifically held that learning Physics and Metaphysics fulfills the commandments of the Tora to love and fear God. Physics I think is clear. The subject matter, not the actual book of Aristotle. Same with Metaphysics I think refers to the subject matter. Thus Physics would mean mainly Quantum Field Theory and String Theory. Metaphysics would include the books of Aristotle by that name but also include Kant and Hegel.]
[I am aware that some people disagree with the Rambam, but I think all evidence shows the Rambam was right. Thus in my mind a proper order of learning with be fourfold-The Oral Law, the Written Law, Physics and Metaphysics and I would add Musar of the Gra and also survival skills.]
