Seudah Shelishit: Halakhah and Aggadah Joshua Kulp

Mahzor Vitry 145

I have found in a responsa of the Geonim: That which the rabbis say: Anyone who drinks water at twilight it is as if he is stealing from the dead. This refers to twilight for the whole year [after his relative's death] for during the twelve months after their death the dead have permission to drink water. And that relative that drinks water at twilight, they won't let other souls related to that person drink. This refers to the seven dead relatives that a priest can be defiled for: Father, mother, brother, sister, son, daughter and wife. And it refers only to the twelve months during which the body still exists and the soul leaves and returns to the body. But after twelve months there is no more prohibition.

Midrash Tehillim (Buber) 11

R. Levi says: Duma refers to the courtyard of death. And why is it called the "courtyard of death"? A courtyard in which the souls of the dead exist. And it is a place like a building. And the courtyard is surrounded by a fence. And in front of the courtyard there is a river. And in front of the river there is a field. And every day Duma takes the souls out and they eat from the field and they drink the water. And anyone who drinks water at twilight steals from the dead.

Mordecai Pesahim, additional material on chapter town, 511

The rabbis of the house of R. Elazar were not particular [not to drink] before havdalah. And that which we say "Anyone who eats before havdalah..." we apply that to other liquids other than water. From here we can see that they would eat between Minhah and Maariv on Shabbat. Nevertheless it seems that we should be careful about this, for as it says in the Midrash "Anyone who drinks water at Minhah, it is as if he is stealing from his dead relatives, for they drink when they want to return to their judgment. R. Meir the father of Rabbenu Tam wrote that in Luthir they began to drink between Minhah and Maariv and this became dangerous until they stopped...

And R. Meshullam instructed in Leon his town to eat after Minhah on Shabbat. And Rabbenu Tam wrote to him: Why are you doing this? And he responded that he found written in his midrash "Anyone who drinks on Friday eve after Minhah." And the reason they [the souls] drink on Minhah on the eve of Shabbat is that they are tired from the judgment they suffered all week. And therefore he was cautious to drink on minchah on erev Shabbat.

In any case we agree with Rabbenu Tam that seudah shelishit was established before Minhah on Shabbat. This is why we say, "And my prayer...(veani tefilati)" David said in front of God: Master of the World, I am not like pagan kings, for pagan kings after they drink and get inebriated they don't mention their master. Rather they go for a stroll in the field. But when I eat and drink, I immediately mention your name. Thus it seems that one should eat on Shabbat before Minhah.

And with great reluctance they allowed eating the day before Tisha B'av that falls on Shabbat after Minhah.

And this is also why we say "And your righteousness" (Tzidkatekha) at Minhah on Shabbat to accept the judgment for the souls return to their judgment after Shabbat. But when Rosh Hodesh falls on Motzei Shabbat we don't say it for the souls do not return to their judgment, as it says in Pesikta: Rabbi Apturiki said: The fire of Gehinom ceases on Shabbat and Rosh Hodesh...

So too we do not say this when a festival occurs after Shabbat even though they do go back to Gehinom, we should not say it because of the honor of the festival, that we should let it be known that they are returning to their judgment on the festival...

But I found in a responsa of the Geonim that the reason we say "tzidkat'kha" at Shabbat Minhah is that Moses died at Shabbat Minhah...

But this seems unlikely to me for with regard to Moses's death it is written, "I am 120 years old today" and in Kiddushin 38a we say "Today the day's of my life were fulfilled," meaning that he wrote this the day he died. But he would not have written on Shabbat.

Sefer Kolbo 24

He further wrote that all of Israel is obligated to eat three meals on Shabbat. And our ancestors had the custom to stop in the morning between one meal and the next, and spread a cloth on the table and bless Birkat Hamazon. And there are those who get up from the table and go outside or stay in the house and say one chapter of Tanakh or a Mishnah or a Psalm. And this is a proper custom

Responsa of R. Meir of Rotenberg

R. Meir of Rotenberg would pray alone before Seudah Shelishit and then when he went to the synagogue he would pretend like he was praying and bow at the correct times.

But in the winter, when the days were shorter, then he would eat seudah shelishit immediately after birkat hamazon, for the time of Minhah had already come.

Sefer Or Zarua, part 2, Laws of Shabbat 52

And if he is not hungry he is not liable to eat three meals, for the only reason to eat three meals is "oneg Shabbat" and since he is full this is not considered "oneg."

And this was the custom of Rabbenu Tam and R. Ephraim that they were not worried about not eating when they were not hungry, for this reason...

And Rabbenu Tam replied to the rabbi of Sympont, that one who wants to be stringent upon himself, he should fulfill his obligation with light snacks.

And there are those who stop in the middle of the morning meal and bless birkat amazon in the middle of the meal and then go back and say "bore peri hagefen" and "hamotzi" even though when they said birkat hamazon they knew they were going to go back and eat and drink. And they say that since they intend to perform a mitzvah of three meal, this is not a vain blessing.

And in the responsum of the geonim I found: And that which you have asked: On Shabbat, after we have blessed birkat hamazon and we have to to make another meal, which is the third meal, do we need to wash our hand and bless before motzi or not. Thus we have see that we need to wash our hands and bless...

But your custom is not so understandable, for what's the point of dividing the meal? That if they are hungry after minhah as is normal for people who eat in the morning and in the afternoon, they must eat due to oneg shabbat. And if they are not hungry, even if they don't divide their morning meal into two, they are not obligated to eat, as I have explained.

Kol Bo

It is written in the Kol Bo, that women have the custom to draw water on Saturday night right after they heard the blessing, for we have found in an Haggadah (see Leviticus Rabbah 22:4; Numbers Rabbah 18:22) that Miriam's well in the sea of Tiberias. And every Saturday night they go to all of the wells and springs, and anyone who is sick and drinks this water, even if his whole body is covered in boils, he is immediately healed. And it happened to a man who was covered with boils and his wife went on Saturday night to draw water, and she stayed there a bit too long, and Miriam's well came and filled her jug with that water. When she came to her husband he was angry with her, and due to his anger the jug fell from her shoulder and broke and some drops of the water fell on his flesh. And anywhere the drops fell his boils were cured. And about this the sages say (Kiddushin, end of 66a): An angry man is rewarded only with anger. And this is why there is a custom to draw water on Saturday night.