Writing or Buying a Sefer Torah

Hi,

One fulfills the mitzvah of writing a sefer torah by purchasing one that has been written.

There are those who criticize this route because one takes advantage of work that others have done, but generally these sifrei torah do need some repair, and therefore that is not a concern.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:163)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Conversion of a pregnant woman

Hi,

Normally, a woman who converts to Judaism must then wait three months before she can marry, so that she will know with certainty that any subsequent conception occurred after the conversion. However, a woman who is pregnant at the time of conversion need not wait, since the reason for waiting is obviously inapplicable.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:158)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Conversion for the sake of marriage

Hi,

A conversion which is entered into for the sake of marriage is valid after the fact, assuming that the person who converted fully accepted the obligation to perform mitzvot.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:157)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Attending a brit at which Shabbat will be violated

Hi,

One is not supposed to put himself into a position where he will witness violation of the laws of Shabbat. However, one should not lose the opportunity for a mitzvah in order to avoid such a place; therefore, a mohel should go to perform a brit milah in a place where people violate Shabbat, and then leave once the mitzvah is done.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:156)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Lending as tzedakah

Hi,

One may lend money to a pauper, having in mind that should the pauper not pay back then the loan will count toward the maaser kesafim obligation of giving 10% of one's income to tzedakah. Of course, this works only where the pauper is indigent enough to qualify as a recipient of that 10%.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:153; see this responsum for another discussion about retroactively identifying a loan as tzedakah after default)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Use of tzedakah one has received

Hi,

One who receives tzedakah, which was given with the stipulation that it be used for his household's basic needs (food/clothing/utilities), is not permitted to use it for other purposes, even to pay off debts. One may not even borrow from the funds for that purpose.

This may be true even if the money is given without such a stipulation; even within the view of those who contend that an individual recipient may vary from donor intent, a recipient may only use tzedakah for purposes which will enable the donor to fulfill his mitzvah of tzedakah.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:152)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Vows for tzedakah

Hi,

One who takes a vow to give tzedakah if a certain condition is fulfilled, such as, "If I succeed in losing weight, then I will give ________ to tzedakah," then the obligation to give tzedakah begins only upon fulfillment of the condition.

This is true whether or not the individual structures the vow with the technical vow structure identified in the Talmud.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:151)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Umbrella tzedakah organizations

Hi,

It is good to create umbrella tzedakah organizations, staffed by people who will honour the expectations of halachah in their work. Classically, Jewish communities did this with a kupah shel tzedakah. However, this is meant to aid the needy, not to hinder them, and therefore a community may not prevent needy people and institutions from engaging in their own collections, visiting the individual members of the community for aid.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:149)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Clothing collected for tzedakah

Hi,

If one collects clothing for particular needy people, but then circumstances prevent delivery, then he may give that clothing to other needy people, pledging to collect more should the opportunity arise to help the originally intended recipients.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:148)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Tzedakah: Support of one's children?

Hi,

A man may not count support of his children, or of his wife's children, as tzedakah, until they reach the age at which people in society are independent, under normal circumstances.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:143)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Benefit from a charitable deduction

Hi,

When one files a tax return and deducts charitable donations from his income, and therefore he profits by a reduction in his taxes, he need not give tzedakah from that benefit.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:143)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Deductions from one's income, for tzedakah

Hi,

We spend 10% of our income on tzedakah. Money spent for general taxes and sales taxes are not deductible from one's income before calculating the 10%, but money spent on income tax is deducted, because the amount that goes for income tax is viewed as though it had never been earned.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:143)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Calling others by the name of one's parent

Hi,

Normally, one may not call his parent by name; this is a measure of respect. [See the previous post for more on this.]

What about one who is with a group of people which includes his parent as well as someone else who shares his parent's name? This is fine if the name is generic, so that all who are present will realize he likely isn't referring to his parent, or if it is clear from the context that he is not referring to this parent.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:133)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Mentioning a parent's name

Hi,

As a matter of respect, we are taught to refer to a parent as "my father" or "my mother", rather than by name, whether they are present or not. However, one who needs to mention their name as a practical matter in a particular circumstance may do so, taking care to do so with the honourific of "my father" or "my mother".

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:133)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

A painted mikvah

Hi,

A mikvah which is painted with an oil-based paint is kosher. Even where the paint is an entity which can receive impurity, it does not disqualify the mikvah, for it is not a receptacle for the water; if the paint were to disappear, the walls would still retain the water.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:108)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

An observant supervisor

Hi,

Ritual immersion in a mikvah requires, ideally, an on-looker who sees that the immersion is done properly, and particularly that all of the immerser's hair is submerged. The one who is immersing will not be able to determine this.

This observer must be personally observant of the laws of immersion, in order to be credible.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:105)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

A glass eye or contact lens in a mikvah

Hi,

We have said that ritual immersion in a mikvah requires that the water be able to reach every part of the body. An interruption between the body and the water is called a chatzitzah.

Parts of the body which are normally concealed (beit hastarim) must also be open to water, but an interruption only consittutes a chatzitzah if it is of the sort of material that normally adheres to a surface. Therefore, a glass eye does not constitute a chatzitzah.

For the same reason, contact lenses do not constitute a chatzitzah if one left them in while immersing, but it is appropriate to remove them before immersing if possible.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:104)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Fillings and mikvah

Hi,

We have said that ritual immersion in a mikvah requires that the body be exposed directly to the water, such that water could touch every spot. Any physical interruption is called a chatzitzah.

Neither permanent nor temporary dental fillings constitute a chatzitzah, so long as they are quality fillings, such that one could chew with the tooth and feel no discomfort.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:97)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Braces and mikvah

Hi,

Ritual immersion in a mikvah requires that the water be able to come in contact with all surfaces of the body. An interruption between the water and the body is called a chatzitzah.

Orthodontic braces do not constitute a chatzitzah if the wires are somewhat loose. There may be grounds for leniency even where the wires are tight; see the responsum for more.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:96)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Sharing the butter

Hi,

One the harchakah activities prohibited by the sages for a husband and wife when the wife is a niddah is that of eating from the same plate.

This prohibition does not preclude taking from the same serving plate, such as using the same butter dish. One does not eat directly from the butter dish, and one does not put any surplus butter back on the butter dish, from one's plate.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:92; see more there)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Sharing a TV dinner

Hi,

One the harchakah activities prohibited by the sages for a husband and wife when the wife is a niddah is that of eating from the same plate.

If the plate has multiple compartments, but it is the sort of plate which only an intimate couple would share, then a husband and wife may not eat from the separate compartments; one of them should put his/her food on a separate plate and eat it from there.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:91)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Harchakot, beyond niddah

Hi,

The sages prohibited certain interactions between a husband and wife when the wife is a niddah, lest the couple become drawn into biblically prohibited relations due to their normal familiarity with each other. This includes, for example, handing items to each other directly. These actions are called harchakot.

The harchakot are a concern only for a married couple, since they are accustomed to being permitted to each other. These do not apply for any other man and woman.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:90)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Assumption of dam niddah

Hi,

The Talmud (Keritot 10a) states a rule, "The womb does not open without blood emerging," such that a woman whose uterus opens must assume that she is now a niddah. However, this is only if the opening is the width of a finger, at a minimum. Therefore, entry of a medical instrument does not render a woman a niddah, if the opening is that narrow - and certainly if leniency would make procreation more possible.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:89)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Dam betulim

Hi,

If a woman's hymen is pierced by surgery, and blood emerges, she does not need to observe the shivah nekiyyim of the niddah cycle. We are permitted to assume that all of the blood is associated with the wounds.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:87)

Have a great day,
Mordechai