Siddurim printed on Shabbat

Hi,

One may not daven from siddurim that were printed on Shabbat, and one may not learn with texts that were printed on Shabbat.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 2:17)

המצפה לישועה,
Mordechai

Interruptions during Psukei d'Zimra

Hi,

One should not respond "Brich Hu" and "Baruch Hu uVaruch Shmo" during Psukei d'Zimra.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 2:16)

המצפה לישועה,
Mordechai

The Order of Psukei d'Zimra

Hi,

One who skips within Psukei d'Zimra to catch up, and then realizes that he has time to say that which he had skipped before Yishtabach, may insert the sections he skipped, out of context. The same is true if one skipped sections by accident.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 2:16)

המצפה לישועה,
Mordechai

Cotton and Polyester Tzitzit

Hi,

According to the Rambam and Shulchan Aruch, four-cornered wool or linen garments require tzitzit biblically, but garments of other material do not require tzitzit biblically. Therefore, one should not use garments of other materials, like cotton and polyester, for tzitzit, since he is not fulfilling the biblical mitzvah.

On the other hand, the Rama ruled that these other woven materials do require tzitzit.

Therefore, one who is suffering from heat would be permitted to rely on the Rama and use garments of these other materials, but this is not ideal in general.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 2:1)

המצפה לישועה,
Mordechai

Lighting the menorah for someone else

Hi,

One may not light the Chanukah menorah on behalf of another person unless that person is actually present, because doing otherwise would mean that some of the blessings could not be recited.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:190)

המצפה לישועה,
Mordechai

A frozen etrog

Hi,

An etrog which has been frozen may still be valid, if one knew that the insides had not been damaged, and would not display damage before the end of Yom Tov. Of course, one would need to experiment in order to determine this.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:185)

המצפה לישועה,
Mordechai

Slats for Schach

Hi,

Wood slats which serve as shutters for windows may not be used as schach for a Succah; they are considered a כלי which is susceptible to impurity.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:177)

המצפה לישועה,
Mordechai

Informing someone of a sin he committed accidentally

Hi,

A man asked about a transgression he and his wife had committed unknowingly, and which he had now discovered. He wanted to know whether he should tell his wife, so that she could repent.

The rule is that accidental sin does require atonement, and therefore he should inform his wife, so that she will have the opportunity to atone.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:175)

המצפה לישועה,
Mordechai

Sanity or Shofar?

Hi,

One who is in a psychiatric hospital and cannot hear shofar there, and whose treatment would be risked if he were to be released for Rosh HaShanah, should remain in the hospital and miss shofar. One should not risk his sanity for the sake of fulfilling a commandment.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:172)

המצפה לישועה,
Mordechai

Forgetting to say HaMelech haKadosh

Hi,

One who forgets to say HaMelech haKadosh on the first night of Rosh HaShanah does not repeat the amidah, assuming he said the rest of the amidah as appropriate. The judgment taking place on Rosh HaShanah, which is commemorated in HaMelech haKadosh, begins in the morning.

Note: Other authorities disagree with this ruling; please consult your local authority.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:170)

המצפה לישועה,
Mordechai

The night of the 17th of Tammuz

Hi,

It is not clear whether the night leading into the 17th of Tammuz is part of the day of national mourning [and it's just that the fast rules wait for morning], or not. Therefore, in a case of need one could hold a wedding that evening.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:168)

צום קל ומועיל,
Mordechai

This Tuesday: 17th of Tammuz

Hi,

Tuesday July 19th is the fast of the 17th day of the month of Tammuz, and it begins a three-week national Jewish mourning period.

On the 17th of Tammuz one neither eats nor drinks, but - unlike the fasts of Tishah b'Av and Yom Kippur - one may wear leather shoes and wash normally.

(Code of Jewish Law Orach Chaim 550:2)

For more on the fast, click here; for more on the Three Weeks of mourning, click here.

Be well,
Mordechai

Fasting on the day before a wedding

Hi,

If a wedding is held on the day following a fast day, the man and woman getting married are obligated to fast on the day of the wedding itself, despite their fast of the previous day.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:167)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Music without a Beit haMikdash

Hi,

In a time when there is no Beit haMikdash, when the sages of the Talmud prohibit music, singing is permitted outside of a pub, but justification for permitting instrumental music - outside of a mitzvah context like a wedding - is harder to find.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:166)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Eulogies on Chol haMoed

Hi,

Although the general rule is that eulogies are prohibited on Chol haMoed, there might be room to permit a halachic mourner to eulogize, since he is obligated to grieve and to show respect to the person who passed away.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:165)

Have a good day,
Mordechai

Keriah on Chol haMoed

Hi,

If a burial takes place on the second day of Yom Tov, then mourners do not tear keriah until after the entire Yom Tov (including intervening chol hamoed days) concludes.

If a burial takes place on chol hamoed, though, then one tears keriah during the funeral on chol hamoed.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:164)

Have a good day,
Mordechai

Shaving on Chol haMoed

Hi,

In lands where people shave daily or near-daily, one who is required to shave due to discomfort or other needs may do so. One should not protest against a person who shaves just for aesthetic reasons.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:163)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

A siyum on a book of Tanach

Hi,

One may perform a siyyum on a book of Tanach, if the study took an extended period of time. The meal is a "seudat mitzvah [mitzvah meal]" as is any meal marking completing of a mitzvah which required a great deal of time.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:157)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Eating egg at the Seder

Hi,

Some have the practice of eating the egg from the Seder plate at the Seder; this is a quasi-mitzvah, part of the commemoration of the korban chagigah which causes us to use the egg on the plate in the first place.

This is not related to any practice of eating non-Seder-plate eggs at the Seder.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:156)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Eating matzah on Erev Pesach which is Shabbat

Hi,

One may not use matzah for Shabbat morning meals, when Erev Pesach is Shabbat, because of the rule prohibiting consumption of matzah on Erev Pesach. There is room for leniency to permit use of matzah for the Friday night meal, but it would be best to avoid it because of the view that one should not eat matzah even on night before Pesach.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:155)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Gauging a Prutah

Hi,

For various laws (such as kiddushin, and payment for meaningful contracts as in the sale of chametz), we require a transfer of funds no less than a perutah. A prutah is the value of a certain volume of "pure" silver.

If the smallest unit of currency in a given land is worth more than a prutah, then that smallest unit counts as one prutah.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:150)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Jewish-owned stores which sell chametz on Pesach

Hi,

If a Jewish store-owner sells his chametz to a non-Jew before Pesach, but then keeps his store open during Pesach and markets his chametz there, the pre-Pesach sale is still valid and Jews may buy that chametz from the store after Pesach. The owner lacks halachic authority to cancel the original sale, and we don't take the later actions as an indication that the original sale was less than serious.

However: One may not purchase chametz which the Jewish store-owner purchased during Pesach.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:149, Orach Chaim 2:91, Orach Chaim 4:95)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Concern for chametz and milk

Hi,

Regarding milk from a non-Jew's cow which was fed chametz on Pesach: One may use such milk on Pesach.

[I believe that this is only about the kashrut of the milk itself; one would not be permitted to consume or own any chametz that made its way into the milk.]

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:147)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

The chametz is in the mail

Hi,

If a Jew sends chametz to another Jew before Pesach, and the package is delayed such that it is in transit during Pesach, neither the sender nor the intended recipient can solve the problem of owning chametz during Pesach by selling it to a non-Jew. This is because neither has access to the package; were the sender to notify the post office that he wanted to rescind the shipment, or were the intended recipient to request that the shipment be re-directed, the post office would not listen.

One who needs to send such a shipment should give it as a full gift to a non-Jew before sending it, and then send it. However, one should not do so when shipping to Israel if it might arrive there during Pesach, since the Jews working in the Israeli mail will be required to accept responsibility for it when it arrives there.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:146)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Page number displays on Shabbat

Hi,

One may post individual cards displaying digits in order to show people the proper page number during davening on Shabbat, even though one is thereby "writing" a coherent message in placing the cards side-by-side. This is permitted so long as the cards are not joined to each other.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:135)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Accompanying a woman in labor to the hospital

Hi,

A woman's husband or mother may accompany her to the hospital in a vehicle on Shabbat when she is in labor, if she requests it and she would be panicked without that person present. Although that person is not providing medical treatment, we are concerned that the panic might make her medical situation worse.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:132)

Have a great day,
Mordechai