Q. My daughter works in the Yonge & Finch area and since it was a nice day she was sitting on a bench in a small park when the van that killed and harmed so many people run some feet in front of her. A person was struck and the body landed next to her. She was in total shock and is having a hard time recoverin.
Does she have to Bench Goimel? In the ezras noshim on Shabbos? She is not married yet, should I the father bench for her and she listens?
A. On question 10 we wrote; In Shulchan Aruch O.CH. 219,9 and Mishnah Brurah ibid. 32, the Halacha dictates that we should recite Hagomel when encountering and experiencing a factual and real danger, and being saved from it, even if the deliverance was not seen as a miracle, such as a wall falling on someone or an incident with dangerous armed robbers. See also Piskey Teshuvot ibid. and 318, 10.
Harav Shlomo Miller Shlit”a is of the opinion that if someone is indeed in a car that spins out on the highway and miraculously does not get hit by another car, does not recite this Brocho, however if he did hit the guardrail and there was damage done to the vehicle he should bless Hagomel.
In question 843 in regards to a man saved from a black bear about 90 meters away, because the wind was working in his favor, and the bear didn’t pick up his scent, we wrote; Horav Shlomo Miller’s Shlit’”a opinion is that Hagomel should not be recited unless someone was actually in danger and then saved. He further explained that being endangered could be defined as a statistically meaningful probability of being hurt. A situation defined in Halacha as “Miut Hamotzui” a small but significant enough probability to be taken into serious consideration, (some Poskim maintain it is a ten percent probability, but other numbers are also mentioned) The above means, that similar encounters at that distance, wind direction, and species of bears, have resulted in actual injury or trauma, which is clearly not your case.
In this last case, in reality it is unlikely that the van would in purpose deviate from the sidewalk and hit the trees and park benches around her, since the drivers intention was hitting as many people on the sidewalk as he could.
Even when the case warrants reciting Hagomel, if women recite this brocho is debatable, since it has to be said in the presence of a minyan of men. Sephardic women in general do. (Birkei Yosef 219: 2, Kaf Hachaim ibid. 3, Ben Ish Chai – P. Eikev 8, et. al.). Ashkenazim however, differ in their minhagim, but mostly don’t. (Piskei Teshuvos 219: 10). In regards to a woman giving birth or after one’s wife gives birth, when the yoledes attends shul for the first time, some have the minhag that the husband recites Hagomel and has her in mind (Mishna Berura 219: 17 - see question 610).
Horav Shlomo Miller’s Shlit’a opinion is that usually women don’t recite this brocho in chutz laaretz and it suffices if they come to shul and recite with kavanah a Tehilim Mizmor of praise and thanks to Hashem.
Rabbi A. Bartfeld as revised by Horav Shlomo Miller Shlit’a
Important Numbers
