This is yet another reason why you need a rav.
A close chaver directed my attention to the third Mishna Brura to siman 672. The Shulchan Aruch there says that if you are really busy/preoccupied and need to light Chanuka candles early, then you can light from פלג המנחה. The Mishna Brura notes that the hour and a quarter is measured in שעות זמניות/hours adjusted for the day length. I looked back to my friend wondering what he wanted so show me. He directed me to look again (Baruch HaShem, my friends are patient with me). Sure... The Mishna Brura notes that פלג המנחה is one and a quarter hours before צאת הכוכבים/night fall and the hours are determined by the length or shortness of the day; that is, שעות זמניות. Wait... backup... before צאת הכוכבים/night fall?! We nearly always means before שקיע/sundown; not צאת הכוכבים/night fall! Right, replied my friend; what do you make of that?
The Mishna Brura is not at all shy about mentioning the different ways of calculating פלג המנחה, so that fact that he specifies before צאת הכוכבים/night fall is significant. I checked in siman 679 (what to do on erev Shabbos), and the Mishna Brura says again it means before nightfall. During the week it is not such a big deal, as I don't get home from work that early anyway. But erev Shabbos... well, I have an app that gives the times for פלג המנחה according to the varying opinions. For the פלג המנחה that ends at nightfall, we want the Magen Avraham. For erev Shabbos of Chanuka this year, my app gives two values (depending on what/when you call night fall and what you and what/when you call dawn): 4:32 PM -- which is 13 minutes after שקיע; and 4:18 PM -- well, at least that one is before שקיע, but only by one minute... long after candle lighting times for Shabbos candles! One more calculation... maybe this will help... dawn (as defined as 72 minutes before sunrise) that day is 5:52AM, night fall (according to R' Moshe -- at least in the upper part of the United States -- is 50 minutes after שקיע) is 5:09PM. That makes for 56.4 minute halachic hours; one and a quarter of which is 70 minutes and 30 seconds. That puts the absolutely earliest time to light Chanuka candles on erev Shabbos this year just 30 seconds before Shabbos candles. How generous.
I must be missing something, right? I did a quick check in the Dirshu and didn't find anything. (Note, to my shame: it was a very quick check; which came back to bite me.) I saw R' Fuerst after davening on motzei Shabbos and said, "I see the Mishna Brura says that for Chanuka candles, we calculate פלג המנחה from צאת הכוכבים..." R' Fuerst, with a big smile, said, "Yes, in two places." (Seriously? I knew that because I had spent quite a bit of time on this topic over the last few days. The rabbi knew it of the top of his head in response to a random question out of the blue.) "So," I continued, albeit a bit flustered, "what do we do erev Shabbos?" Again, without missing a beat, off the top of his head: "R' Moshe says that Chazal instituted from the beginning that on erev Shabbos the Chanuka candles may be lighted just before Shabbos candles, even though during the week that would be two early. The t'shuva is in the fourth volume on Orach Chaim. Call me if you can't find it."
With a challenge like that, of course, I made a point of finding it one my own. I don't have a Yad Moshe, so it took some time; but I finally found it! It is in the middle of a lengthy t'shuva -- Number 62; around the Shabbos halachos, not the Chanuka halachos -- on how we should conduct ourselves in America with all the different factions when calculating צאת הכוכבים and how to conduct ourselves for Shabbos, bris mila, and a few other juicy topics with regard to best practice, normative practice, and what to do with the grey areas. (Of course the pun was intended.)
Bottom line: during the week, the earliest you can light Chanuka candles is, indeed, at the פלג המנחה calculated from צאת הכוכבים. So 20.5 minutes before, one minute before, or 13 minutes after שקיע. (Personally, I would use the 20.5 minutes before שקיע in an emergency.) On erev Shabbos, though, Chazal permitted us to light Chanuka candles just before Shabbos candles -- even if one wants to light Shabbos candles as early as the פלג המנחה calculated from שקיע (as usual, for Shabbos candles), which is approximately 3:20PM (nearly and hour before שקיע) this year. The caveat is, though, that the Chanuka candles must be lit immediately before the Shabbos candles. In other words, this is not permission to light Chanuka candles an hour early and then Shabbos candles at the regular time. Whenever you decide it is time to light Shabbos candles, Chanuka candles should be light just before.
So... I went back to check, and found that Dirshu did, indeed, refer to that R' Moshe (and a few other opinions) in Siman 679. I even, I am embarrassed to admit, had seen that side note and started to read it... but abandoned it as not relevant. I was in a rush and it was not worded to answer the question the way I had formulated it in my mind. Honestly, I am happy I missed it and got to ask R' Fuerst. It is always inspiring how he fields such a range of questions with such ease. Moreover, since R' Fuerst has already explained the essence of the t'shuva, I was able to learn with much more ease and depth of understanding.
None the less, it also reinforced a lesson that I seem to have to keep learning:You don't "look up halacha", you learn the topic and come to a conclusion.
A close chaver directed my attention to the third Mishna Brura to siman 672. The Shulchan Aruch there says that if you are really busy/preoccupied and need to light Chanuka candles early, then you can light from פלג המנחה. The Mishna Brura notes that the hour and a quarter is measured in שעות זמניות/hours adjusted for the day length. I looked back to my friend wondering what he wanted so show me. He directed me to look again (Baruch HaShem, my friends are patient with me). Sure... The Mishna Brura notes that פלג המנחה is one and a quarter hours before צאת הכוכבים/night fall and the hours are determined by the length or shortness of the day; that is, שעות זמניות. Wait... backup... before צאת הכוכבים/night fall?! We nearly always means before שקיע/sundown; not צאת הכוכבים/night fall! Right, replied my friend; what do you make of that?
The Mishna Brura is not at all shy about mentioning the different ways of calculating פלג המנחה, so that fact that he specifies before צאת הכוכבים/night fall is significant. I checked in siman 679 (what to do on erev Shabbos), and the Mishna Brura says again it means before nightfall. During the week it is not such a big deal, as I don't get home from work that early anyway. But erev Shabbos... well, I have an app that gives the times for פלג המנחה according to the varying opinions. For the פלג המנחה that ends at nightfall, we want the Magen Avraham. For erev Shabbos of Chanuka this year, my app gives two values (depending on what/when you call night fall and what you and what/when you call dawn): 4:32 PM -- which is 13 minutes after שקיע; and 4:18 PM -- well, at least that one is before שקיע, but only by one minute... long after candle lighting times for Shabbos candles! One more calculation... maybe this will help... dawn (as defined as 72 minutes before sunrise) that day is 5:52AM, night fall (according to R' Moshe -- at least in the upper part of the United States -- is 50 minutes after שקיע) is 5:09PM. That makes for 56.4 minute halachic hours; one and a quarter of which is 70 minutes and 30 seconds. That puts the absolutely earliest time to light Chanuka candles on erev Shabbos this year just 30 seconds before Shabbos candles. How generous.
I must be missing something, right? I did a quick check in the Dirshu and didn't find anything. (Note, to my shame: it was a very quick check; which came back to bite me.) I saw R' Fuerst after davening on motzei Shabbos and said, "I see the Mishna Brura says that for Chanuka candles, we calculate פלג המנחה from צאת הכוכבים..." R' Fuerst, with a big smile, said, "Yes, in two places." (Seriously? I knew that because I had spent quite a bit of time on this topic over the last few days. The rabbi knew it of the top of his head in response to a random question out of the blue.) "So," I continued, albeit a bit flustered, "what do we do erev Shabbos?" Again, without missing a beat, off the top of his head: "R' Moshe says that Chazal instituted from the beginning that on erev Shabbos the Chanuka candles may be lighted just before Shabbos candles, even though during the week that would be two early. The t'shuva is in the fourth volume on Orach Chaim. Call me if you can't find it."
With a challenge like that, of course, I made a point of finding it one my own. I don't have a Yad Moshe, so it took some time; but I finally found it! It is in the middle of a lengthy t'shuva -- Number 62; around the Shabbos halachos, not the Chanuka halachos -- on how we should conduct ourselves in America with all the different factions when calculating צאת הכוכבים and how to conduct ourselves for Shabbos, bris mila, and a few other juicy topics with regard to best practice, normative practice, and what to do with the grey areas. (Of course the pun was intended.)
Bottom line: during the week, the earliest you can light Chanuka candles is, indeed, at the פלג המנחה calculated from צאת הכוכבים. So 20.5 minutes before, one minute before, or 13 minutes after שקיע. (Personally, I would use the 20.5 minutes before שקיע in an emergency.) On erev Shabbos, though, Chazal permitted us to light Chanuka candles just before Shabbos candles -- even if one wants to light Shabbos candles as early as the פלג המנחה calculated from שקיע (as usual, for Shabbos candles), which is approximately 3:20PM (nearly and hour before שקיע) this year. The caveat is, though, that the Chanuka candles must be lit immediately before the Shabbos candles. In other words, this is not permission to light Chanuka candles an hour early and then Shabbos candles at the regular time. Whenever you decide it is time to light Shabbos candles, Chanuka candles should be light just before.
So... I went back to check, and found that Dirshu did, indeed, refer to that R' Moshe (and a few other opinions) in Siman 679. I even, I am embarrassed to admit, had seen that side note and started to read it... but abandoned it as not relevant. I was in a rush and it was not worded to answer the question the way I had formulated it in my mind. Honestly, I am happy I missed it and got to ask R' Fuerst. It is always inspiring how he fields such a range of questions with such ease. Moreover, since R' Fuerst has already explained the essence of the t'shuva, I was able to learn with much more ease and depth of understanding.
None the less, it also reinforced a lesson that I seem to have to keep learning:You don't "look up halacha", you learn the topic and come to a conclusion.
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