Unplugging a telephone on Shabbat

Hi,

Telephone cords are muktzeh, and therefore one may not unplug a telephone on Shabbat, even when it is not in use.

In a case of great need, such as to prevent accidental use of the phone, one may pull the plug with the back of one's hand.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:40:17)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

A mourner at his child's wedding

Hi,

One who lost a parent may attend his son or daughter's wedding during the shivah, since missing the wedding would constitute a major loss.

However, during the meal the mourner should not sit in the place of honour usually reserved for parents of the wedded couple; perhaps they should not even have a specific seat.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:40:16)

Have a good day,
Mordechai

HaGashem or HaGeshem

Hi,

Rav Moshe Feinstein ruled that one says "Mashiv haRuach uMorid haGashem" in the amidah, with a kamatz under the gimel in the last word, in order to indicate the end of a sentence.

Rav Herschel Schachter (Nefesh haRav pg. 121) cites Rav Soloveichik as ruling otherwise, that it should be "haGeshem", since the prayer regarding rain is an integral part of the rest of the berachah in which it appears.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:40:15)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Davening without a yarmulka

Hi,

A man who prays, and then realizes his head was uncovered, must pray again. Because some of the religions of our non-Jewish neighbours require prayer with one's head uncovered, Jews are specifically to avoid that when praying. [See the comments for more regarding women.]

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:40:14)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Speaking on the telephone during shivah

Hi,

A mourner may speak on the telephone during shivah for the sake of his needs, to arrange a minyan, or to accept phone calls of consolation.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:40:11)

Have a good day,
Mordechai

Comforting mourners by telephone

Hi,

The mitzvah of comforting the mourner [nichum aveilim] incorporates three components:
1) Benefiting the mourner;
2) Honouring the mourner;
3) Visiting the place of the deceased.

One who telephones rather than visits does fulfill the first, but not the latter two. Further, one can cause greater benefit by visiting in person. Therefore, calling is viewed as less than ideal, although one does fulfill aspects of the mitzvah.

(R' Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:40:11)

Have a good day,
Mordechai

Printing a Sefer Torah

Hi,

A Sefer Torah may not be produced by photocopying for several reasons, including:

1. The Torah must be actively written; causing the print to appear is not the same as writing;

2. The Torah must be written with a special ink, which is not used in photography;

3. The Torah must have lines etched into the parchment below the text;

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:40:10)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Plunging a sink on Shabbos

Hi,

If one's sink or toilet frequently gets stopped up, such that he will need to plunge it, then he may plunge the sink/toliet when it gets stopped up on Shabbos; this is the equivalent of washing dirtied dishes. Otherwise, though, plunging would be viewed as a form of repair.

[Rav Moshe Feinstein adds several sentences later that one may not plunge a sink which is entirely stopped up, but I am not certain whether he is referring to a sink which frequently gets stopped up, or one who does not get stopped up frequently.]

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:40:9)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

The obligation to hear the Torah Reading

Hi,

On a given day when the Torah is read, one is obligated to hear the appropriate number of readings, at least 3 sentences per reading, but not to hear the blessings recited for the aliyah.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:40:4)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Switching Omer periods of mourning

Hi,

I observed the "first days" of the Omer last year, refraining from a haircut until after Lag ba'Omer. May I switch to the "second days" this year, observing from Rosh Chodesh until the end of the Omer?

Rav Moshe Feinstein ruled that one may switch from one set of 33 days to the other from one year to the next. There are only two caveats:
• One must observe one set of 33 days in entirety; one may not take a haircut before Rosh Chodesh, and again after Lag ba'Omer.
• One may not veer from communal minhag; if a community has a defined practice of observing a specific "half" of the omer, one may not vary from that practice.

(Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim 493:3; Chatam Sofer Orach Chaim 142; Mishneh Berurah 493:17; Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:159)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Writing "Shalom"

Hi,

The word "Shalom" is sometimes written as one of Gd's Names (which may not be erased), but it is not normally written with this intent.

Therefore:
One may write "Shalom" meaning "peace", without concern. However, one should not write it as part of a blessing, as in "Shalom uVerachah", if the text will be treated in a disgraceful way. Either way, it does not require burial, for it is not considered one of the unerasable Names of Gd.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:40:3)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Mezonot by mistake

Hi,

One who recites the berachah of "borei minei mezonot" and then realizes that the food he is about to eat warrants a berachah of "she hakol nihyeh bidvaro" should eat a minimal amount - enough to justify having recited a berachah - and no more. It is not considered a blessing in vain, but the berachah is valid only ex post facto. One should then wait until he moves to another location before reciting the proper berachah and eating again.

If the food is water or salt, then one should not eat any at all on the basis of this berachah, for "borei minei mezonot" refers to a class of foods which satisfy and nourish.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:40)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Recycling "Sheimos"

Hi,

Printed works which contain Gd's Name ("sheimos") may not be submitted for recycling. It is possible that this might be acceptable for Torah texts which do not contain Gd's Name and which are no longer usable due to wear, but that requires examination.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:39)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Housing a pasul [disqualified] Torah

Hi,

A disqualified Torah may be kept in the Aron Kodesh [Ark] in the synagogue.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:38)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Room rentals in a synagogue

Hi,

A synagogue may not rent out rooms for activities which will disrupt regular minyanim, such as through noise.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:37)

Have a great night,
Mordechai

Synagogue Social Halls

Hi,

A synagogue social hall does not have the sanctity of the sanctuary, and may be used for mundane purposes. However, Rav Moshe Feinstein condemned its use for card games and Bingo, which he labelled "the company of scorners" - although he stated that there is no clear-cut transgression involved.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:35)

מועדים לשמחה,
Mordechai

Mechitzah - Height? Part II

Hi,

As with the previous two posts, this may be subject to debate, but Rav Moshe Feinstein ruled that a mechitzah's height is measured from the floor of the adjoining sections. Therefore, a shul with a 60-inch mechitzah, but with a women's section raised 10 inches, would only have a 50-inch mechitzah.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:31)

מועדים לשמחה,
Mordechai

Mechitzah - Height?

Hi,

This is subject to debate, but the opinion of Rav Moshe Feinstein was that a mechitzah should be higher than shoulder height, and so he recommended 60 inches.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:29-31)

מועדים לשמחה,
Mordechai

Mechitzah - Opaque?

Hi,

This is a controversial topic, but the position of Rav Moshe Feinstein was that a mechitzah for prayer should be entirely opaque, although there could be small holes which would not encourage frivolity.

Rav Moshe did acknowledge that some accept a mechitzah which has gaps of less than three inches.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:29, 32)

מועדים לשמחה,
Mordechai

Counting the Omer

Hello,

The Torah instructs the Jewish people to bring a barley offering out of the new crop of barley, on the 2nd day of Passover. They are then to count seven weeks, 49 days, and then celebrate Shavuot - on which they bring a wheat offering from the new crop of wheat.

To continue this practice even without a Temple and its offerings, we count 49 days from the 2nd night of Passover through the night preceding Shavuot. The recitation may be found on page 282 in the standard Artscroll Siddur.

If a person forgets to count the Omer at night, he can make it up the next day without reciting the associated blessing, and then continue to count normally that night.

(Code of Jewish Law Orach Chaim 489:7)

חג כשר ושמח,
Mordechai

Ashkenaz and Sephard leining

Hi,

All accents are acceptable as "lashon hakodesh", and so one can fulfill Kriat haTorah by hearing it in any synagoguge, regardless of its Ashkenaz, Sephard or other accent. However, the person who leins (reads from the Torah) should use the accent of that synagogue.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:23)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Hallel in shul on Pesach night

Hi,

What should I do if I daven on Pesach night in a shul which says Hallel, and my minhag is not to say Hallel?

Various reasons are cited for saying Hallel in shul on Pesach night; some suggest this fulfills the mitzvah for those who are not expert enough to recite it properly at the seder, while others suggest it is because we split Hallel into two parts in our Haggadah. The practice is cited by major Sephardic authorities and some Ashkenazic authorities, although it is not universal.

One who personally does not recite Hallel, but who is in a shul which does, should recite Hallel to avoid varying visibly from their practice. Some authorities even say that he should recite Hallel with a berachah, if the community would notice its omission.

One who personally recites Hallel, but is in a shul which does not, should recite Hallel quietly in private.

(Ran to Pesachim 118a; Tur Orach Chaim 473; Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim 487:4; Birkei Yosef 487:9; Kaf haChaim 487:38-39; Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 2:94; Moadim uZmanim 7:179; Piskei Teshuvos 487:5)

חג כשר ושמח,
Mordechai

Missing part of the Torah reading

Hi,

One who misses part of the Torah reading on Shabbat, so that he doesn't hear the entire parshah, should endeavor to hear it read again if that would be possible without great strain. This will enable him to fulfill the custom of hearing the entire Torah annually.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 4:23)

Have a great day,
Mordechai