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Some study pirke Avos weekly through the summer, from Pesach to Rosh Hashana. Others do so only for the six Shabasos between Pesach and Shavuos, one chapter a week. I've heard the latter custom explained as providing moral preparation for Shavuos, though I don't know a source for this offhand.

In Israel, in some years, there are seven Shabasos between Pesach and Shavuos. (This occurs when the first day of Pesach is Shabas.) My question is about those who normally study pirke Avos only until Shavuos: what do they do in those years? Study chapter 1 the seventh week? Start the second week (studying nothing the first)? Something else? And why?

A source would be appreciated (especially for the "why").

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Calendrically and geographically related: judaism.stackexchange.com/questions/14263 and judaism.stackexchange.com/questions/15254. –  msh210 Mar 19 '12 at 17:07

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Nitei Gavriel cites sources that say that in that case the people in Eretz Yisrael indeed start saying Pirkei Avos on Shabbos the 22nd of Nissan and continue from there, so that they recite the sixth chapter on the sixth Shabbos of the Omer. For the seventh Shabbos, then, they study the first chapter of Maseches Derech Eretz Zuta.

(He actually says ויש שנוהגים בא״י להשוות אח״כ סדר אמירת פרקי אבות בא״י וחו״ל, and I have to confess I don't know what that means: the Noheg Katzon Yosef that he cites seems to say the other way around - he suggests that in such years people outside E.Y. should say the first chapter of DEZ on Acharon Shel Pesach so that they're not missing anything that the E.Y. people are saying.]

On the other hand, R. Yehoshua Mondshine, in Otzar Minhagei Chabad, quotes Luach Colel Chabad and other sources that seem to imply that in such a case the people in E.Y. indeed wait a week and begin Pirkei Avos only on 29 Nissan, so as to stay in step with people outside the Land.

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The Tikun Yissachar (quoted by the Nitei Gavriel and also the source for the Noheg Katzon Yosef) does not say that those in Chu"l should say DEZ on the last day of Pesach. He only says that they reason they say it in E.Y. is to match up with those in Chu"l and other years. hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=21647&pgnum=103 -- It could be that the Nitei Gavriel is saying that we want to equalize the second round of Avot (brought 2 pages earlier as minhag ashkenaz). I wasn't able to find the 3rd source, maybe this: hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=41295&st=&pgnum=114 –  Menachem Sep 8 '11 at 1:23
in Otzar Minhagei Chabad: I didn't learn the sources, but it's interesting that the sources where the Rebbe says that E.Y. starts right away were said after the Sicho in Likutei Sichos that is brought as one of the proofs that E.Y. waits a week –  Menachem Sep 8 '11 at 1:28
Alex, thank you for the great answer! @Menachem: I suspected that was the NG's intent also (after I read the NG, before I read the quote from the NKY). Re timing of sichos: were the later ones mughim (checked) by the rebbe zt"l? [This comment was edited after people responded to it.] –  msh210 Sep 8 '11 at 2:40
@msh210: the first one is not, but explicitly says that E.Y is a week ahead of Chu"l: hebrewbooks.org/… . The one from 1989 is Mugah, and the Rebbe's words are interesting, but don't explicitly say that E.Y. starts right away. The Rebbe points out that there are different opinions about what to do, and makes a distinction between E.Y and Chu"l, but is focusing more on the amount of weeks between Pesach and Shavuot. See footnote 66: hebrewbooks.org/… . –  Menachem Sep 8 '11 at 3:26
The editions of the Hiskashrus publication that discuss this (quoted by Mondshine) aren't online, at least not here: chabad.org.il/General/Item.asp?ArticleID=51&CategoryID=512 –  Menachem Sep 8 '11 at 3:41

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