Making up Nishmat

Hi,

The praise of Gd in the Nishmat kol chai prayer recited on Shabbat morning is considered an especially elevated and valuable form of prayer. Therefore, one who accidentally followed the weekday format and recited the closing Yishtabach blessing should still make up Nishmat, reciting it right afterward.

Ideally, one should do this before Barchu, so as to leave intact the connection between Barchu and the ensuing blessings.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:208:2)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Timing for the three meals of Shabbat

Hi,

We are taught to eat three meals on Shabbat.

One who is not able to eat a meal Friday night should make it up by eating three meals during the day of Shabbat; this is an acceptable way to catch up. However, the reverse does not work; one who knows that he will not be able to eat two meals during the day of Shabbat may not make it up by eating two meals on Friday night.

The logic may be that the meals of Shabbat are associated with particular times - Friday night, Shabbat morning and Shabbat afternoon. One who has already missed Friday night may make it up by eating an additional meal on Shabbat day, but one may not move the second meal to Friday night when he could do it on Shabbat day.

Alternatively, the reason may lie in our general rule that the honour of the day of Shabbat is greater than the night. [For this reason, one who has the option of making the nighttime meal or the daytime meal greater is supposed to make the daytime meal greater.] Therefore, one should not switch so that he has two meals at night.

Despite the above, one whose only option for three meals is to eat two meals at night should do so.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:207)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Mini-challot for lechem mishneh

Hi,

Ideally, for lechem mishneh on Shabbat one should use two loaves which are each more than an olive-sized amount, because there are authorities who rule that a smaller loaf is not qualified. However, others disagree, and so one who only has mini-loaves may use them.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:204:3)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Bagels for lechem mishneh

Hi,

We use two whole loaves of bread at our Shabbat meals, as "lechem mishneh", commemorating the double portion of manna given to the Jews in the wilderness before they entered Canaan. Bagels may be used for these loaves; although they have holes, they are formed that way and they are considered complete.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:204:2)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Don't share the challah

Hi,

Where there are only two challah loaves available at a Shabbat family, and multiple families are eating, they should have one person recite the blessing on the challah for all of them. The strategy of having multiple people recite the blessing on the challah in sequence before cutting it is not acceptable, for multiple reasons, one of which is the interruption that would generate between reciting the blessing and eating.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:203)

Have a good day,
Mordechai

Dairy Challah at a Meat Meal

Hi,

[Note: Generally, Jewish law prohibits dairy bread, because people often eat meat with bread. However, it is permitted to make dairy bread of a particular shape/size; the specifics are beyond the scope of this post.]

One may use dairy challah as one of the two loaves for a meat meal on Shabbat. Even should one contend that the challah must be bread which could be eaten at that meal, there is no problem in using it. Theoretically, one could eat dairy, and then clean his mouth and eat meat. We don't do this at one meal because it invites error, but it is technically an acceptable practice.

Having said this, it is advisable not to use the dairy bread, if at all possible, at a meat meal.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:202)

המצפה לישועה,
Mordechai

Challah in a bag?

Hi,

There are those who require that one's fingers be in contact with both challah loaves when reciting the HaMotzi blessing upon the bread on Shabbat. However, the imperative behind this is not clear, and halachic sources seem to indicate that full contact is not required.

Therefore, ideally one should not use challah that is in a bag. However, one who has a particular reason to leave a loaf in a bag - such as one who intends to leave one of the loaves for a later meal, and is concerned that exposure to air will affect the challah negatively - may do so.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:201)

המצפה לישועה,
Mordechai

Covering challah for kiddush on individual tables at a large meal

Hi,

Traditionally, we cover challah while kiddush is recited, for at least these three reasons:
1. Technically, the berachah on bread should precede the berachah on wine/grape juice, and we are leapfrogging the bread inappropriately. Therefore, we cover the bread so that it is not in front of us for kiddush. [This is tied to the idea of not "shaming" the bread by having it see the recitation of kiddush.]

2. The two loaves of bread at our Shabbat meals commemorate the manna which fell for our ancestors in the wilderness, and that manna was covered, above and below, by layers of dew. [The layer above is mentioned in Shemot 16:13; the layer below is mentioned in Bamidbar 11:9.] Therefore, we place the challah on a plate or napkin, and cover it.

3. It is considered respectful of Shabbat to wait for kiddush before bringing out the food.

Even if kiddush is recited in another part of the room, with everyone else listening and responding Amen, the bread should still be covered. Reasons 2 and 3 clearly apply. One may contend that Reason 1 applies as well, since they could have recived kiddush on their challah and they chose not to do so.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:200)

Hoping for better news from Israel,
Mordechai

Waiting after kiddush before eating

Hi,

One should not have a long gap between kiddush and the start of one's meal; kiddush is supposed to be part of the meal.

However:
1. Where the wait is necessary because of an element of the meal - such as where many people need to wash their hands in the netilat yadayim rite - then there is no problem.

2. Even if one did have a substantial wait, kiddush is still valid. [Rivivot Ephraim does not present a maximum. - MT]

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:199)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Twixt cup and lip

Hi,

If the person reciting kiddush speaks between the conclusion of the blessing and drinking, neither this person nor any of the listeners have fulfilled the mitzvah of kiddush.

If one of the listeners speaks before the person reciting kiddush drinks, there is a debate regarding whether that listener has fulfilled the mitzvah of kiddush.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:198)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Diluting wine for kiddush

Hi,

Wine is considered wine even if it is diluted. However, we require that the resulting beverage taste like wine, not like water.

Therefore, one who does not like the taste of wine may not recite kiddush on wine, then pour it into a separate cup and dilute it to the point where the wine cannot be tasted. It would be better to give the wine to another person to drink.

[Note: As recorded in Mishneh Berurah 272:16, Ashkenazim generally try to make sure that the ratio is no greater than 6 parts water, 1 part wine. - MT]

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:196:2)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Pouring off?

Hi,

The person who recites kiddush may pour from the Kiddush cup and drink from that other cup, so long as more than a reviit (about 4 ounces) is poured into that other cup.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:194)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Saying "Baruch Hu uBaruch Shmo" during kiddush

Hi,

One who is fulfilling a mitzvah by hearing another person's blessing, such as for kiddush, should not respond Baruch Hu uBaruch Shmo during the blessing. However, having done so, one has fulfilled his obligation. This is because some authorities do permit responding Baruch Hu uBaruch Shmo, and because reciting the blessing a second time would be inappropriate if it were unnecessary.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:193)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

May I pass the wine?

Hi,

Normally, one may not skip the opportunity to perform a mitzvah (אין מעבירין על המצוות). So if the person who makes kiddush passes a cup of wine to someone, may that person pass it to someone else?

It is possible to contend that one may not pass that cup of wine to someone else. However, where the host specifically asks that the cup of wine be passed to a particular person, or where there is a halachic reason to pass the cup to that person (such as to an honoured guest), then there is no problem in passing it.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:191:2)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Simultaneous kiddush

Hi,

Ideally, two people should not recite kiddush simultaneously in the same space, if others are listening to their blessings and relying on them. It is hard for listeners to distinguish between the two voices. However, such a kiddush recitation would be valid; kiddush is beloved to the listeners, and so they listen carefully.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:191:1)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Poppies for Remembrance Day

Hi,

Is wearing a poppy for Remembrance Day prohibited as chukot akum?

It is certainly appropriate for a Jew to demonstrate gratitude to the Canadian armed forces, by memorializing those who lost their lives in defense of others. This fulfills the mandate of hakarat hatov (recognizing the good provided by others) and darchei shalom (promoting a peaceful society).

The law of chukot akum prohibits wearing clothing which mimics the styles of non-Jews, but it is specific to articles of clothing which (1) violate the Torah's moral standards or (2) are worn for reasons that might trace back to idolatry. The poppy does not violate the Torah's moral standards, and the reason for wearing it is well-known: to evoke the imagery of a World War I poem, In Flanders Fields. Therefore, chukot akum would not prohibit wearing the poppy.

One who wears the poppy might consider removing it for davening; halachic authorities discourage introduction of eye-catching distractions in a shul.

One who will don the poppy on Shabbat should be careful to follow the rules regarding "stitching" on Shabbat, being careful not to pass the straight pin through the garment more than once.

(Chukot Akum: Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Avodat Kochavim 11:1; Maharik 88; Rama Yoreh Deah 178:1; Chashukei Chemed Ketuvot 104b; Davening distractions: Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim 90:23; Mishneh Berurah 90:70; Shabbat stitching: Shemirat Shabbat k'Hilchatah 15:70)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Reciting Magen Avot in a house minyan

Hi,

The blessing of Magen Avot, recited after the amidah on Friday night, was created for recitation only in an established minyan. An ad hoc minyan in a home does not recite Magen Avot.

Deciding to daven in that home every Friday night may confer "established" status on the minyan, but some contend that the minyan must also have a Torah scroll present in order to recite Magen Avot.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:190)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Multi-purpose synagogue spaces

Hi,

I'm very short of time at the moment, so I'm recycling an old post (November 2008):

Ordinarily, the sanctity of a space used for synagogue prayer remains even after that space is no longer used for this purpose, so that the activities forbidden in that space beforehand are still prohibited.

However, if:
a) The synagogue is outside of Israel, and
b) The builders declared it to be a temporary synagogue at the time of the construction,
then after its use is finished, one may use that space for non-prayer activities.

Even then, though, one may not use it for truly non-synagogue activities, like a business or a place to plant.

(Code of Jewish Law Orach Chaim 151:10-11)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Magen avot

Hi,

After the silent amidah on Friday night, the chazan recites a summary of the amidah, beginning with Baruch atah and ending with mekadesh haShabbat. This is one long blessing. Therefore, one does not say Amen after the first paragraph, at Koneh shamayim va'aretz.

Have a great day,
Mordechai

First candle lighting

Hi,

One who lights Shabbat/Yom Tov candles for the first time should recite Shehechiyanu. Where the first time is Yom Tov, the person lighting should recite Shehechiyanu once and have in mind both the first time performing the mitzvah and lighting for Yom Tov.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:182)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Priorities

Hi,

"One is more obligated to be careful not to harm others than to protect himself from harm."

(Tosafot, Bava Kama 23a וליחייב (the second one))

Have a great day,
Mordechai