Q & A: Netilat Yadayim If One Didn’t Sleep At Night (Part I)
Question: Should a person who only went to sleep after dawn say a berachah after netilat yadayim when he wakes up?
M. Goldman
Miami Beach
Q & A: A Sabbath Desecrator Leading Services (Part VIII)
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)
Q & A: The Hoopoe
QUESTION: Why is the hoopoe (lapwing) bird, known in the Bible as the duchifat, considered unclean (see Leviticus 11:19 and Deuteronomy 14:18)? It does not seem to be a bird of prey or a carrion- eating bird. There's a purpose for everything G-d commanded us and I would like to understand the reason for this law.Robert A. WeilerBlue Grass, IA
Q & A: Arabs Circumcise At 13 (Part XVIII)
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)
Q & A: Kaddish Recited Properly (Part I)
Question: In the many shuls that I've attended, I observe that there are people who recite the Kaddish silently. Is this correct? I’ve also seen Kaddish recited by some at a cemetery without a minyan. Is there any reason to sanction this?
Charles Rosen
Via Email
Q & A: Offering Tefillin To Passersby (Part III)
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
Q & A: Steps Back At Amidah’s Conclusion
Question: I read with much interest your Q & A columns, especially those that relate to tefillah. I have a related question: In shul I’ve noticed that at the conclusion of the Shemoneh Esrei, some people take three steps backward but then they do not take the three steps forward as required. Is this an actual sanctioned practice?
Zelig Aronson
Via E-mail
Q & A: Two Adars (Part I)
QUESTION: I have a few questions regarding the Jewish leap year. Why is Adar the month that is picked for this purpose? Why do we call it Adar Alef? Why is Purim celebrated in the second Adar? Which one of them is the real Adar?Shea Aronovitch(Via E-Mail)
Q & A: Sefirat HaOmer In Shul (Part I)
Question: I enjoy your weekly column. In addition to answering questions, you also discuss the subjects you are asked about in depth, covering many different views. My question is as follows: In my synagogue, and I assume in most others, everyone stands at attention as the rabbi or chazzan recites the blessing for Sefiras HaOmer and then counts the Omer. How can we recite the blessing afterwards ourselves when we already heard it (and thus, presumably, were yotzei with it)?
M. Goldblum
Miami Beach, FL
Q & A: Birkat HaGomel (Part IV)
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)
Q & A: Praying For The Government During Tefillah
Question: Should we be reciting the prayer for the welfare of the government? Is it a hefsek during the tefillah, or is it important during wartime?
Martin Kahn
Via email
Q & A: A Matter Of Custom? (Conclusion)
QUESTION: We are a happy newly married couple who have a few disagreements concerning the upcoming holidays. My wife insists that on Erev Yom Kippur there is no need to eat more than one meal - right before the fast. She also insists that there is no need for her to eat in the sukka on Sukkot, while my custom is for a woman to do so. Who is correct?Name withheld by request
Q & A: Selichot Prayers (Part II)
Question: I have read in the Kitzur Shulchan Aruch that an individual praying without a minyan does not recite the Selichot written in Aramaic. What is the reason?
Moshe Jakobowitz
Brooklyn, NY
Q & A: Simchahs During Sefirah (Part I)
Question: I’ve been invited to numerous simchas during Sefirah in the past few years that did not seem to conform to the halachic restrictions of this period. I’ve been told that you addressed this topic in the past. Can you address it again as I don't want to offend anyone?
Name Withheld By Request
Q & A: Saying ‘Amen’ Right Before Shema (Part IV)
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
Q & A: World Reaction To October 7 Is No Surprise
Question: How has it been that in such a world where we are but a very small minority, and after so many generations though the world keeps changing, yet the Jew remains and is the same constant whipping boy? What is the miracle of our survival?
Gedalia Estra
Via Email
Q & A: Tefillin On Chol HaMo’ed
Question: My family custom is not to don tefillin on Chol HaMo’ed. What should I do if I come to a shul where it’s the custom to don tefillin on these days?
M. Jakobowitz
Q & A: Prayer And Its Origins (Part I)
Question: The Gemara in Berachot states that the sages authored our prayers. Does that mean we didn’t pray beforehand?
Menachem
(Via E-Mail)
Q & A: Preparing For Pesach
Question: What preparations must one do to have a kosher Pesach amidst this Covid-19 pandemic?
Wolf Sender
Deerfield Beach, FL
Q & A: Making Up For What We Missed (Part XII)
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
Q & A: Arabs Circumcise At 13 (Part IV)
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)
Q & A: Which Is Preferred For Kiddush Levana: B’rov Am Or Zerizin?
Question: When approaching the mitzvah of Kiddush Levana, should priority be granted to performing the mitzvah at the earliest time – Zerizin u’makdimin l’mitzvot – or to such time as the most people would be available to join in together – B’rov Am hadrat Melech?
Michael Katz
Via Email
Q & A: Matanot La’evyonim
To whom does one give on Purim? Must one give to someone who, one suspects, may not really be poor? Is there a minimal amount one must give? Also, what about boys collecting for yeshivot or other institutions – may one discharge one’s obligation by giving to them?
Menachem
Q & A: Early Shabbat During Sefirah
Question: What if one forgot to count Sefirah Thursday night and didn’t remember until Friday eve after accepting Shabbat early? May he count at that point before it turns dark and then continue saying the berachah for the Omer the next evening?
Pesach Bernstein
Q & A: Amen (Part IX)
What is the exact meaning of amen and where does the word come from?
David H.
(Via E-Mail)
Q & A: Marrying A Girl With The Same Name As His Mother
Question: Please see my personal situation. If you have time to answer that would be great. I am seriously dating a girl who has a similar name to my mother. Would this present a problem?
Name Withheld
Via email
Q & A: Proper Ritual At Netilat Yadayim (Part III)
Question: Should we wash our hands in the bathroom with soap and water, or by pouring water from a vessel with handles three times,...
Q & A: An Enigmatic Prayer
Question: We often pray to Hashem for yiras shamayim (e.g., in Birkas Rosh Chodesh). But how can we ask Hashem to give us fear of Him?
Martin Freundlich
Q & A: Tzedakah (Part XXII)
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)
Q & A: Sefirat HaOmer: Which Day? (Part II)
Question: We celebrate two days of Passover in chutz la’aretz [the Diaspora – outside the land of Israel] because we are unsure which one is the first day of the holiday. If so, what is the basis for beginning the count of sefirat ha’omer in chutz la’aretz on the second night of Passover?
M. Goldman
Via email
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