Search results for: ""Jewish festivals""

Jewish Festivals: Non-Permanent Twist-Ties
You may twist or untwist twist ties on Jewish festivals (and Shabbat), but only if you intend them to be a non-permanent seal.
Note If you will (at any time in the future—even long after the Jewish festival is over) remove the twist-tie, it is considered non-permanent.
Jewish Festivals: Opening Metal Bottle Caps
You may not open metal bottle caps on Jewish festivals if a metal ring will be left after doing so. You may break that ring or simply open the bottle before the Jewish festival (or simply open the bottle and reclose it such that when you open in again, no metal will be broken).  
Note If you need the contents for a Jewish festival (such as if it is a bottle of wine), you may ask a non-Jew to open the bottle for you.  But if it is wine that is not cooked/mevushal, the wine will become non-kosher once opened and handled by the non-Jew.
Jewish Festivals: Opening Plastic Bottles
You may completely open plastic bottle caps on plastic bottles on Jewish festivals (even if doing so will leave a plastic ring on the bottle), as long as it is theoretically possible to dispense the liquid without completely separating the cap from its seal.
Reason Since liquid can be poured with the cap still attached, we have not violated the Jewish festival by making a sealed bottle into a “new utensil.”
Note If you will destroy letters that are printed on the cap, you may not open the bottle.
Jewish Festivals: Asking a Non-Jew To Do Melacha D'Oraita
Although you may not normally tell a non-Jew to do melacha d'oraita on a Jewish festival, even for the purpose of doing a mitzva, the non-Jew is not forbidden from doing melacha if he/she wants to do so.
Note To save a life, even a Jew may do melacha d'oraita.
Jewish Festivals: Having Nails Cut
You may not cut your nails or have your nails cut on Jewish festivals (and Shabbat).
 
Jewish Festivals: Listening to Non-Jewish Musicians
You may listen to non-Jewish musicians performing on Jewish festivals if:
  • You do not need a ticket, and
  • They are not playing particularly for Jews.
 
Jewish Festivals: Kazoos/Whistles
You may not use a kazoo or a whistle on Jewish festivals, but you may whistle with your mouth.
Jewish Festivals: Mopping
You may squeegee a floor--as is commonly done in Israel--on Jewish festivals (or Shabbat)), but you may not push the water onto earth or plants.
You may mop up a local spill, but only without squeezing out the rag or mop.
 
Jewish Festivals: When You May Take a Painkiller
You may take a painkiller on the first day of Jewish festivals if the pain:
  • Affects your entire body, or
  • Keeps you awake.
Note This also becomes the criterion for whether to take the pain killer during the daytime: if the pain you feel during the day would keep you awake if you were trying to sleep.
Note You may take painkillers without any restrictions on the second Jewish festival day (except Rosh Hashana).
Jewish Festivals: Medicine for Non-Chronic Diseases
You may take medicine on Jewish festivals for non-chronic illnesses, if skipping one day will prevent cure.  You may not take medicine for non-chronic illnesses if skipping a day will just delay your being cured (unless the disease affects your entire body--in which case, you may take the medicine).
Jewish Festivals: Medicine for Chronic Diseases
You may take medicine on Jewish festivals for:
  • Chronic diseases, such as Parkinson's disease, or
  • Any disease that affects your entire body.
Jewish Festivals: Squeezing, Dabbing, Smearing
As on Shabbat, you may squeeze a tube of cream on Jewish festivals, but you might not be able to use the cream on the Jewish festival for other reasons—consult a rabbi.
Note Smearing creams or ointments is permitted only in life-threatening situations. Otherwise, you may not smear cream on skin on a Jewish festival (or Shabbat) even using a shinu'i such as using the back of your hand or a toe.
Dabbing is permitted, but only when you are permitted to use medicine. 
Example
You may use cream on a Jewish festival (and Shabbat) by dabbing (you may ONLY dab--you may not SMEAR cream) for a bee sting if it will affect the entire body. You may not use cream for a mosquito bite, since it is only a local irritation.
Jewish Festivals: Removing Makeup
Girls and women may remove makeup or nail polish on Jewish festivals (or Shabbat).
 
Jewish Festivals: Applying Makeup
Girls and women may not put on any nail polish or makeup on Jewish festivals (and Shabbat), including mascara and lipstick.
Note Regarding makeup that consists only of powder (no oil or liquid ingredients) and that comes off easily, ask your rabbi. Beware of “Shabbat makeup” that stays on longer than normal makeup but is forbidden to be applied on Shabbat or Jewish festivals.
Jewish Festivals: Bringing Newspaper inside House
You may bring a newspaper, magazine, or other reading material inside the house on Jewish festivals and read it, UNLESS it was:
  • Printed on Shabbat or a Jewish festival, OR
  • Brought from outside the techum Shabbat, OR
  • Delivered by a Jew.
If any of these conditions apply, you may not move it or use it in any way during the Jewish festival, even if all of the other conditions permit its use. You may use it once the Jewish festival is over.
Note As a policy, you may want to tell delivery services (newspapers, post office, etc.) that you do not need to have the item delivered until after dark.
Reason If delivered on the Jewish festival day, it will not be done at your request and, if it is reading material, you may read the material as long as the other conditions permit it--see above.
Note If you do not know where the reading material came from, you may not use it on the Jewish festival.
Note Although taking possession of the newspaper, magazine, or other reading material is “acquisition” (kinyan), you may do so since you will use it on the Jewish festival.