Search results for: ""Hashkafa""

Birkat HaMazon: When To Repeat If Forgot Additions
When saying birkat ha'mazon, you must repeat birkat ha'mazon if you forgot:
  • Retzei on the first two meals of Shabbat.
  • Ya'aleh v'yavo on the first two meals of any Jewish festival day (women only repeat if they forgot it at the Passover seder).
Never repeat birkat ha'mazon if you forgot additions for:
  • Rosh Hashana (during the daytime) or
  • Rosh Chodesh.
Introduction: Amida: Errors: Amida Additions
If you forgot to say, or incorrectly said, a phrase in the amida, you must correct your errors in:
  • Mashiv ha'ruach
  • Ha'el ha'kadosh
  • Tein bracha/Tein tal u'matar l'vracha
  • Ya'ale v'yavo (except Rosh Chodesh night).
Do not correct errors in other additions/changes if you have already said the blessing for that paragraph, such as:
  • Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, and Ten Days of Repentance changes (except ha'melech ha'kadosh)
  • Al ha'nisim
  • Aneinu
  • Ya'ale v'yavo (if Rosh Chodesh night).
Note You may correct any prayer error within 2.5 seconds of making it.
Note If you omitted part of the amida that would normally require you to repeat the amida, you do not need to repeat the amida if you intend (have kavana/concentrate from the beginning of the reader's repetition until the end of the repetition) to have your amida covered by the reader's repetition.
Jewish Festivals: Medicines: When To Take: D’Rabanan Festival Days
You make take medicines for any reason on d'rabanan Jewish festivals--even medicines not allowed on the first day of Jewish festivals--except:
  • Medicines that you smear on skin.
  • If the Jewish festival falls on Shabbat (which can only be second day of Shavuot).
    Note The d'rabanan Jewish festivals are the second day of Jewish festivals except Rosh Hashana (actually, the second day of Rosh Hashana IS d'rabanan but has the status of d'oraita), plus the last day of Passover and Sukkot outside of Eretz Yisrael.
SheHecheyanu
A mourner (avel) is permitted to say she'hecheyanu for himself but should not say she'hecheyanu if required for the congregation.  An avel should say she'hecheyanu on:
  • Eating a “new” fruit.
  • Wearing a new garment.
  • Lighting Chanuka candles at home for the first time that year.
 An avel should not do the following, since he should not say she'hecheyanu unless it is necessary:
  • Light Chanuka candles in synagogue.
  • Read the megila.
  • Blow shofar on Rosh Hashana.
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).
Tearing (Kri'a) on Seeing Temple Ruins
You must tear four vertical inches at the neck of your shirt (and jacket, too, if you wear one) when seeing the ruins of the Temple in Jerusalem for the first time in more than 30 days. You do not need to be close by; do kri'a even if you see the mosques that are on top of the Temple mount.
Note A woman should not tear her garment if it would result in her being immodestly exposed in public. Don't tear your garment on Shabbat, Jewish festivals, chol ha'moed, Rosh Hashana, and Yom Kippur. Do tear even on the afternoons before Shabbat and Jewish festivals.
Jewish Festivals: Evening Kiddush
To fulfill the two requirements for Jewish festival evening kiddush:
  1. Make Kiddush
    Say, or hear, the three Jewish festival evening kiddush blessings/segments:
    1. Borei pri ha'gafen (if on wine or grape juice—preferred option), OR
      Ha'motzi (on two challot if you have no wine or grape juice, since no chamar medina is allowed for Jewish festival evening kiddush; see Jewish Festivals: Kiddush: Challot for Kiddush) AND
    2. Asher bachar banu mi kol am.... mekadeish Yisrael v'hazmanim, AND
    3. She'hecheyanu on all Jewish festival nights, except the last two nights of Passover.  So say she'hecheyanu on:
      • Both nights of Rosh Hashana (in or outside of Eretz Yisrael),
      • First two nights of Passover (1 night in Eretz Yisrael),
      • Both nights of Shavuot (1 night in Eretz Yisrael),
      • First two nights of Sukkot (1 night in Eretz Yisrael), and
      • Nights of Shmini Atzeret and Simchat Torah (same day in Eretz Yisrael).
      Note There is never any requirement on an indvidual to drink kiddush wine (except at the Passover seder), but the kiddush wine must be drunk by one or more persons.
      Note A woman who had said she'hecheyanu when she lit the Jewish festival candles does NOT say she'hecheyanu again if she makes kiddush for herself, even when making kiddush at the Passover seder.
      Note There is no need to eat a new fruit after saying she'hecheyanu on the second night of  Shavuot, Passover, or Sukkot. This is not comparable to Rosh Hashana, since the second festival night was instituted due to uncertainty of the actual date of the holiday, while Rosh Hashana is considered to be one single, long day.
  2. Establish a halachic “meal” (kovei'a se'uda).
    For how to establish a halachic meal, see Introduction to Jewish Festival “Eating a Meal” Requirements.
Note For evening kiddush, the custom is to go straight to the meal without delay (with no mezonot or snacking first).  B'di'avad if you snacked, it is still OK.
Note At night on Jewish festivals (or Shabbat), you may not say kiddush at a place where you will not eat your evening meal (even if you will hear or say kiddush again at the place where you will eat the meal).
Jewish Festivals: Earliest Mincha
The earliest permissible time to say mincha before a Jewish festival is one-half hour after halachic midday, as with all mincha prayers including before Shabbat.
Note You may begin the second day of any Jewish festival as early as plag ha'mincha. You should ideally say mincha before plag and then say ma'ariv after plag; but if you are praying with a minyan, you may say mincha anytime after plag and then say ma'ariv immediately afterward, just as on Shabbat.
Note However, there is nothing gained by saying mincha early before a Jewish festival:
  • We don't want to start Rosh Hashana (Yom HaDin) early and no one wants to start Yom Kippur early.
  • You may not start either seder until after dark on Passover.
  • You could eat in a sukka before dark on either of the first two days of Sukkot, but you would not fulfill the requirement of eating in a sukka since it was not dark.  
  • Likewise, the first day of Shavuot does not begin until after dark.
  • Since you may not say the blessing on eating in a sukka on Shmini Atzeret (which you would have to do if you eat before dark), there is nothing gained by saying mincha and ma'ariv early on that day, either.
So, as a practical matter, the only days on which saying mincha and ma'ariv early would allow beginning the holiday early are the second day of Shavuot, the second day of Rosh Hashana, and the last days of Passover.

Introduction to Jewish Festivals: Medicines
Jewish Festivals: Medicines: When To Take
Medicine generally may not be used on the d'oraita Jewish festival days.

Jewish Festivals: Medicine for Chronic Diseases
You may take medicine on Jewish festivals (whether d'oraita or d'rabanan) for:
  • Chronic diseases, such as Parkinson's disease, or
  • Any disease that affects your entire body.
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: Medicines: When To Take: D'Oraita Festival Days
Here are the d'oraita Jewish festivals:
  • First day of Sukkot, Passover, and Shavuot
  • Seventh day of Passover
  • Shmini Atzeret (8th day of Sukkot)
  • Yom Kippur
  • Both days of Rosh Hashana (even though the second day is d'rabanan).
On these days, as well as on d'rabanan Jewish festivals, you:
  • MUST take medicine whenever there is any question of a life-threatening disease or condition.
  • MAY take medicine for a condition that affects the entire body (illness, weakness, etc.). Consult a rabbi if possible.
    ExceptionYou may not smear substances on skin UNLESS the illness is life-threatening, in which case even smearing is permitted.
  • MAY use some medicines if only part of your body is affected by a non-life-threatening disease--consult a rabbi.
Jewish Festivals: Medicines: When To Take: D'Rabanan Festival Days
You make take medicines for any reason on d'rabanan Jewish festivals--even medicines not allowed on the first day of Jewish festivals--except:
  • Medicines that you smear on skin.
  • If the Jewish festival falls on Shabbat (which can only be second day of Shavuot).
Note The d'rabanan Jewish festivals are the second day of Jewish festivals except Rosh Hashana (actually, the second day of Rosh Hashana IS d'rabanan but has the status of d'oraita), plus the last day of Passover and Simchat Torah outside of Eretz Yisrael.

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.
Introduction to Shmita
Every seventh year, fruits, vegetables, grains, and legumes grown in Eretz Yisrael are subject to the laws of “shmita,” which entail letting the land rest.
Holiness of Shmita Produce
Fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes, etc., grown in Eretz Yisrael holiness.  This holiness determines how we may treat fruit during shmita, including how to eat it and how to dispose of it.
Which Produce Is Subject to Shmita Laws?
All fruits, vegetables, grains, and legumes that grow in Eretz Yisrael are subject to shmita laws.  However, since there is a rabbinic decree that we may not eat vegetables and grains (called “sfichin”) that grow in Eretz Yisrael during shmita year, we will mainly be discussing fruits.
Note Vegetables, grains, and legumes that are not raised in halachic Eretz Yisrael are never subject to shmita laws.  So if a fruit or vegetable was grown outside the borders of Second Temple period Eretz Yisrael, you may eat that fruit or vegetable with no shmita concerns.  Such areas may include much of the southern part of the State of Israel, including the Arava and southern Negev all the way to Eilat, land south of Gaza, etc.  Some people include the Golan. Many people also include any land currently “owned” by Arabs.
Plants grown off the ground or inside a house are also not subject to shmita.
When Is Shmita?
The next shmita year will be observed beginning Rosh Hashana, September 2014.
Introduction to Fast Days
Introduction to Fast Days
The purpose of Jewish fast days is to make us reflect on our behavior and improve it by:
  • Eliminating negative actions and thoughts, and
  • Taking more care in our observance of the commandments.
God told the Jewish people on many occasions that He did not want their pointless sacrifices or fast days but rather wanted the Jews to improve their behavior. If people fast but still have reprehensible behavior, the people have missed the point and purpose of bringing sacrifices and having fast days.
All fast days may be circumvented for health reasons. Consult a rabbi.
Fast days come in several varieties:
  • Major fast days: Yom Kippur and the Ninth of Av (Tish'a B'Av). 
  • Minor fast days: There are four minor fast days; see below.
  • Fast for First-Born
  • Individual Fasts

The Major Fasts
Yom Kippur and the Ninth of Av begin before sunset and are both slightly longer than 24 hours. Yom Kippur is a festive day while, on the Ninth of Av, Jews mourn for the destruction of both Jerusalem Temples (the first was destroyed by Babylonians; the second, by the Romans). On both fasts, it is forbidden to:
  • Eat or drink.
  • Wear leather shoes (but you may wear any other clothing made of leather).
  • Bathe (or even to wash anything more than fingers; you may not use a deodorant--not even a spray type--since it is similar to washing).
  • Have marital relations.
  • Use cosmetics or body scents.

The Minor Fasts
The four minor fasts begin 72 minutes before local sunrise. They technically end at dark but functionally end after ma'ariv (and for the Fast of Esther, after hearing the megila). Unlike most times in the Jewish calendar, this 72 minutes is normal time and NOT based on the current length of the day (sha'a zmanit):
  • Fast of Esther (Ta'anit Esther): Day preceding Purim (or sometimes earlier).
  • Fast of Gedalia (Tzom Gedalia): Usually the day after Rosh Hashana.
  • Tenth of Tevet (Asara b' Tevet):
  • Seventeenth of Tamuz (Shiv'asar b'Tamuz): Beginning of the Three Weeks of semi-mourning beforeTish'a b'Av.
On all fast days, eating and drinking are forbidden. The Tenth of Tevet and the Seventeenth of Tamuz additionally have the same restrictions as the Nine Days. So you may wash or bathe on the Fast of Esther and on Tzom Gedalia but not on the Tenth of Tevet and the Seventeenth of Tamuz. (See Nine Days: Restrictions).
Note On a fast day that has been delayed for Shabbat, there may be leniencies for:
  • The mohel, sandak, and father of a baby getting a brit mila to eat after mincha.
  • Pregnant or nursing women (this leniency applies to eating throughout the day).
Fast for First Born
Fast for first-born males 13 years old and older, on the day before Passover. This includes first-born cohanim and Levites (levi'im). The fast begins 72 normal minutes before sunrise and ends with kiddush at the seder. However, the widespread custom is to attend a siyum on the day before the first seder so that the first-born men do not need to fast on that day.
 
Personal Fasts
Fast by a groom and bride on their wedding day is an example of personal fasts. This fast begins 72 normal minutes before sunrise and ends with drinking wine under the chuppa.