Assaf Wohl
Keep the flames down
Assaf Wohl points to Lag B'Omer’s drawbacks, urges us to make do with more modest fires
Over the years, Lag B'Omer has turned into the greatest damage-producer in the Hebrew calendar. For that reason, when I heard the leading rabbis’ request to delay it so it doesn’t fall on a Saturday night, I came up with a thought. Given that the essence of the holiday is to light bonfires, why shouldn’t we postpone this holiday of fire indefinitely?
Before our God-fearing readers slam me, I should make note of several important points.
First, the custom of lighting bonfires was not decreed by our old sages or by the Torah. It also has nothing to do with the “bonfires lit by Bar Kochva’s fighters.” There is no historical source referring to such custom from that era for a simple reason – no historian documented Bar Kochva’s actions.
Secondly, anyone concerned about gentile customs finding their way into our Torah should be protesting the holiday’s ceremonies. If the siren we hear on Memorial Day is a kind of “gentile custom,” what shall we say about dancing around the fire? The fire was at the focus of the ceremonies of many pagan faiths over the course of history. While the fire is fascinating, hypnotizing, and powerful, it has nothing to do with Judaism.
Thirdly, the holiday causes great damage to our living environment. The day after, Israel looks like a giant ashtray. The children returning from the bonfire in the morning smell like an exhaust pipe, and the laundry stinks as though it spent the night at a fish-smoking factory.
Yet the main issue is not just the environment; we’re dealing with a true life-threatening matter. Every year, dozens of people arrive at emergency rooms after their lungs failed to withstand the holiday’s smoke. There’s an interesting common denominator to all those people who choose this day to depart our world: Almost all of them suffer from respiratory problems.
To sum up: It appears that the custom of lighting huge bonfires in a Middle Eastern state constitutes true madness. If such custom isn’t a religious requirement and even shows hint of other faiths, why do we need it? After all, people die because of this.
I’m not calling for the annulment of all bonfires, because this is a decree which the masses cannot accept. I’m only urging us to make do with more modest fires.
