Ask the Rabbi

Question: When a stranger approaches a congregant in shul asking for tzedakah, should the congregant verify that the person’s need is genuine? Furthermore, what constitutes tzedakah? Is a donation to a synagogue, yeshiva, or hospital considered tzedakah? Zvi Kirschner (Via E-Mail)

Question: Should the congregation say “Amen” after the berachah of “habocher b’amo Yisrael b’ahavah” (right before Shema)? I have seen different shuls do different things. M. Goldman

Question: Non-Jews distribute gifts at Christmas to their friends and family. What is the halacha about and reasoning for Jews to distribute gifts at Chanukah to friends and family? Growing up, we used to get Chanukah gelt rather than gifts from my parents. Larry Marks Via E-Mail

Question: May someone who desecrates the Sabbath lead the services if he has yahrzeit? If yes, may he replace someone else who has yahrzeit? Hayim Grosz (Via E-Mail)

Question: In the course of my travels, I have discovered that some chazzanim say “Ga’al Yisrael” right before Shemoneh Esreh aloud while others say it with their voices fading. Is one practice correct and the other incorrect? M. Goldman

QUESTION: This year Tu B'Shevat falls on Shabbat. I recall that you discussed this holiday a while back, but since it falls on Shabbat this year, could you please review the topic again?M. GoldmanMiami, FL

Question: Looking back at the past Yomim Tovim, I am left with the following question: What is the reason for the unusual practice of the chazzan reciting shehecheyanu on Yom Kippur night? Elimelech Feldman Via email

How do we schedule two bar mitzvahs in shul on the same Shabbos as well as two catered affairs on their birthday?... The Rabbi in a Small Community

Question: When reciting a berachah in English, does a person fulfill his obligation if he says “Hashem” instead of “L-rd” or “G-d”? Yosef

Question: What if one counted the omer but forgot to utter the blessing – has the obligation been fulfilled? Why do we recite a blessing for this counting, when we find that for the zayin nekiyim – the seven clean days – there is no such blessing? Is the counting not similar? M. Goldman Miami Beach, FL

Question: Why do we cover the challah when we make Kiddush? Why don’t we cover any other foods on the table? Zelig Aronson

Question: Does one fulfill the mitzvah of lighting Chanukah candles with an electric menorah? Can one recite the blessings before lighting it? A. Gordon

Question: Where I live, I see Chabad shluchim offering Jewish passerby to put on tefillin, is this of any value if they are otherwise non-observant, additionally is doing so in a street – a public thoroughfare proper kavod for the tefillin? Menachem Via email

Question: Why do we celebrate two days of Yom Tov if we have a fixed calendar today and know when Yom Tov truly is? Aryeh Roth

Question: If a person was ill on Shabbos and unable to go to shul to hear Keri’at haTorah, must he have someone read it to him in shul upon his recovery? Sincerely, Isaac Greenberg

Question: The Gemara in Berachot teaches that the Sages authored our prayers. If so, it would seem that we did not pray before this time. Did we pray before their innovation or not? Menachem Via Email

Question: I am a psychology professor at McGill University who is doing an MA in Jewish studies. My thesis topic is the history of interpretation of the story of Rachav Hazona. In the course of my research I was trying to understand how the Midrash derived that Rahab converted.

Question: Since Erev Pesach is on Shabbos this year, when does one burn the chametz? Also, can you discuss some of the other Pesach laws unique to Erev Pesach that falls on Shabbos? M. Aronowitz

Question: When reciting a berachah in English, does a person fulfill his obligation if he says “Hashem” instead of “L-rd” or “G-d”? Yosef

Question: May someone who desecrates the Sabbath lead the services if he has yahrzeit? If yes, may he replace someone else who has yahrzeit? Hayim Grosz (Via E-Mail)

Question: I was recently discussing the sorry state of religion in Eretz Yisrael with some friends, noting that unfortunately a majority of the population...

QUESTION: I am about to get married and it appears that my name is the same as my fianc?'s mother's name. I've been told that this is problematic. Please advise as I urgently need an answer.No Name, Please

Question: I recently attended a lecture where the speaker discussed great Jewish women in history. He specifically singled out the biblical heroine Rahab who, he said, married the great leader and prophet Joshua. I had previously heard that Rahab was a woman of ill repute, a harlot, who surely was not suitable for a righteous person like Joshua. Also, when Rahab is mentioned (Joshua ch. 2), there is no indication that she married Joshua. How do we know it? Sandy Hart

Question: What constitutes the actual Haggadah, the mitzvah to retell the story of our slavery in Egypt and how Hashem redeemed us and delivered us from there? Also, if the head of household reads the Haggadah to the assembled, has he discharged their obligation? Yosef Slomovicz Via email

QUESTION: I have a few questions regarding the Jewish leap year. Why do we always add a second Adar as opposed to adding a second Tevet or Iyar for example? Why do we call it Adar Alef? Why is Purim celebrated in the second Adar? And which Adar is the real Adar?Shea Aronovitch(Via E-Mail)

QUESTION: I have numerous questions regarding Pirkei Avot. First, is there a specific reason that the last chapter is read on the Sabbath before Shavuot, or is this just a quirk of the calendar? Second, in that last chapter we find a listing of qualities that enable one to acquire Torah knowledge, including anava (humility). I find this difficult to believe in light of the Gemara in Gittin that chastises one of the scholars for his anava, which ultimately caused the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash.Zvi Kirschner(Via E-Mail)

Question: What is the significance of Tu B'Av, the 15th of Av? David Bernstein Via email

Question: Should we wash our hands in the bathroom with soap and water, or by pouring water from a vessel with handles three times, alternating hands? I have heard it said that a vessel is used only in the morning upon awakening. What are the rules pertaining to young children? What is the protocol if no vessel is available? Additionally, may we dry our hands via an electric dryer? Harry Koenigsberg (Via E-Mail)

Question: I have two questions regarding Pirkei Avot. First, is there a specific reason that the last chapter is read on the Sabbath before Shavuot, or is this just a quirk of the calendar? Second, in that last chapter we find a list of qualities that enable one to acquire Torah knowledge, including anavah, humility. I find this difficult to believe in light of the Gemara in Gittin that chastises one of the scholars for his anavah, saying that it ultimately caused the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash. Zvi Kirschner (Via E-Mail)

Question: First, why aren’t we obligated to recite Shema on Pesach night? Second, why doesn’t the Haggadah mention Moses, who was instrumental in rescuing us from Egypt and was the greatest Jew of all time? Zvi Kirschner