Ask the Rabbi

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: Every year at this time we are bombarded with a proliferation of etrogim merchants lauding their wares. Some also point to the superiority of their specific Moroccan, Greek or Italian etrogim. I usually do not succumb to their pitch as my heart is always set on supporting the State of Israel, and I end up buying an Israeli etrog. This year some have made mention of a problem regarding the shemittah. What do you suggest? Paul Gold 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: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman

Question: My young daughter was recently diagnosed with autism. She does not function well socially and is extremely introverted, but we have noticed that she reacts very well to small animals. We reported this to her therapist who suggested that we get a dog or cat as a pet. We know that most religious people frown upon having pets, but we hate to see our daughter suffer and want to do anything that would make her happy. Would it be okay to own a pet in the circumstances we described? Her Loving Parents (Via E-Mail)

Question: I’ve noticed that some people fill their kiddush and havdallah cups to the point that they overflow. Is there a halachic source for this practice? Doesn’t it amount to bal tashchit? Bernard Gold

Question: Is decorating the sukkah part of the mitzvah, or does the mitzvah only require the sukkah itself? Moshe Jakobowitz Brooklyn, NY

Question: As the shamash in a small community shul with an aging population, I am faced with numerous challenges. The following is only one of them. During sefirah, different people daven for the amud for Ma’ariv. Once, a bar mitzvah was one of them. On another occasion, a very recent ger lead the service. Were these individuals allowed to lead the congregation in counting sefirah? I also wonder, in general, if everyone should be trusted to lead the counting. What if someone forgot to count on one of the previous nights but does not inform anyone of this? No Name (Via E-Mail)

Question: If the fast of Tisha B’Av concludes the mourning period for the destruction of the Temple, why wait until the 15th of Av to rejoice? Sara Gutman

Question: Many people are accustomed to staying awake Shavuot night and learning Torah. Is this recommended even at the expense of having proper kavanah at Shachris the next morning? Wouldn’t it be far better to get a good night’s rest and then learn with more fervor the next day? No Name Please

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: If Abraham was commanded to circumcise his descendants on the eighth day, why do Arabs – who claim to descend from Abraham through Yishmael – wait until their children are 13 to circumcise them? I am aware that this is a matter of little consequence to our people. Nevertheless, this inconsistency is one that piques my curiosity. M. Goldman (Via E-mail)

Question: I understand that at a minyan, the chazzan is required to repeat Shmoneh Esreh out loud so that people who may not know how to daven can fulfill their obligation to daven with the chazzan’s repetition. What, however, should the chazzan do when he reaches Kedushah and Modim? I hear some chazzanim say every word of Kedushah out loud and some only say the last part of the middle two phrases out loud. As far as the congregation is concerned, I hear some congregants say every word of Kedushah and some say only the last part. Finally, some chazzanim and congregants say Modim during chazaras hashatz out loud and some say it quietly. What is the source for these various practices? A Devoted Reader (Via E-Mail)

Question: How do we know that there is an olam haba – a world to come? L. Papirmeister

Why does the Jewish leap year always consist of two Adars? Why specifically Adar? Menachem (Via E-Mail)

QUESTION: When does a mourner complete the year of mourning during a leap year?Zev Stern(Via e-mail)

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: 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: Is one allowed to use an electric slow cooker (such as a Crock-Pot) that fits into another pot for the purpose of maintaining hot food on Shabbos? M. Goldblum

Question: When a son says Kaddish for his parents, can they hear it? Also when he says it, are their souls elevated to a higher place? Ben Glassman

QUESTION: What are the origins and customs of Yom Kippur Katan, lit. "the lesser Yom Kippur?"Ben GlassmanBrooklyn, NY

Question: I recently returned from a trip abroad and wanted to say HaGomel. When I mentioned this to the officers of my synagogue, however, they told me – as per the instructions of the synagogue’s rabbi – that I would have to wait until Shabbos to do so. I was not given any reason for this and did not wish to display my ignorance, so I quietly acquiesced. Can you please explain why I had to wait? Name Withheld (Via E-Mail)

Question: What preparations must one do to have a kosher Pesach amidst this Covid-19 pandemic? Wolf Sender Deerfield Beach, FL

QUESTION: If the rabbi of a shul (or a minyan) does not indicate to the sheliach tzibbur to go ahead at the end of the Shema or at the beginning of Chazarat HaShatz (the Reader's Repetition), should the gabbai tell him to go ahead or does he wait until the rabbi finishes? To which should greater consideration be given by the gabbai: kibbud HaRav or tircha detzibbura?Steven LittwinRiverdale, New York

Question: Before leaving a mourner who is sitting shiva, one says, “HaMakom yenachem et’chem betoch she’ar aveilei Tziyon ViYerushalayim – May you be comforted among the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem. What is the source of this pasuk? Zelig Aronson Via email

QUESTION: I do not understand the practice of blowing so many extra blasts of the shofar, as is done in most synagogues on Rosh Hashana. Is that not in violation of the command bal tosif, as stated in Deuteronomy (13:1), "You shall not add to [G-d's command-ments]"?Elliot Solomon(Via E-Mail)

Question: What did our sages mean when they said that anyone who resides outside the Land Israel is like an idol worshipper? Is that what all of us residing outside Israel are – idol worshippers? M. Goldblum

Question: I recently loaned money to a friend who has been able to repay only part of it. This was an interest-free loan. We exchanged a signed IOU, not a proper shtar with witnesses, since I have always trusted her integrity and only wanted a document that confirms what was loaned and what was repaid. Now that shemittah is approaching, what should I do? Should I forgive the loan? And if my friend is not able to repay it, may I deduct the unpaid money from my ma’aser requirement? Name Withheld

QUESTION: 1) Why were the ten sons of Haman hung with their father on the same gallows?2) The listing of the ten names of the sons of Haman has three Hebrew letters printed in smaller size. What does that indicate? These two questions have been bothering me for some time.Yitzchak Green(via e-mail)

Question: What did our sages mean when they said that anyone who resides outside the Land Israel is like an idol worshipper? Is that what all of us residing outside Israel are – idol worshippers? M. Goldblum (Via E-Mail)