Living the halachic process

Traveling Before Davening

There are a number of activities that one is to avoid before davening. The main issues are eating,...

Waking Up to Daven

You raise a fascinating question: Do mitzva obligations apply to a person while he is sleeping? Considering that...

Pressuring Participants in a Minyan Not to Miss

While a major component of the concept of makom kavua (having a set place for davening) is to...

A Make-Believe Minyan for Children

There is a machloket among the Rishonim about the nature of the obligation of chinuch (education) for children...

Davening at the Same Time as a Minyan

There are several sources about connecting one’s tefilla to that of the tzibbur and the means of achieving...

Does One Starting Shemoneh Esrei with the Chazan Count for a Minyan?

If eight people plus the chazan had already finished Shemoneh Esrei, they could have started without your active...

Priorities in Last-Minute Shacharit for Women

We will leave the educational part of the question to you and address the halachic elements. Women are...

When the Tenth Man Will Leave Early

As you seem to be aware, when there are ten men present to begin a part of tefilla...

Short Pants for Davening on Shabbat

Halachot involving proper clothing tend to be more subjective than most areas of Halacha. However, the discussion must...

Kri’at HaTorah of Shabbat Mincha at Non-Standard Times

The poskim discuss whether people who missed kri’at haTorah at Shacharit during the week can make it up...

Giving a Yisrael an Aliya When a Kohen Remains in Shul

The gemara presents possible sources for the halacha that a kohen is to be honored by receiving the...

Running Out of P’sukim after the Second Aliya

We will begin with the possibility of repeating, which would have been easier for the ba’al korei if...

Should a Kohen Prefer a Minyan with an Additional Kohen?

The gemara derives from the Torah’s language in the context of Birkat Kohanim, “say to them,” that the...

Mistakes in the Order of Kaddish and Barchu

To answer these questions, we must first understand the roles of Kaddish Titkabel and Barchu. Different Kaddeishim serve...

Children in Diapers in Shul During Davening

Your question about diapered children in shul during tefilla involves two possible issues: 1) Preserving the honor of...

Reading Kri’at Shema With Trop

We will begin our discussion with the main sources before moving on to practical considerations. The gemara criticizes...

Beracha on Homeopathic Medicine?

The topic of alternative medicine is subject to much disagreement. As in most realms, extreme opinions are rarely...

The Beracha on Vegetable Soup Broth

We will not presently discuss soups with “Mezonot elements,” such as croutons or noodles, which introduce other halachic...

The Beracha on Pureed Vegetable Soup

As we noted, according to most fundamental approaches, based on the gemara, the beracha on clear broth of...

Beracha Acharona on Fruits of Different Categories

The beracha acharona of Al HaEtz, the Me’ein Shalosh for fruit of the seven species for which Eretz...

Zimun of Those who Ate Milk with Those who Ate Meat

(Our answer does not address the precautions that should be taken when some are eating dairy while others...

Shehecheyanu on Fruit for a Visitor from a Place with Constant Access

We will begin with some background. The beracha of Shehecheyanu is a proper response to the happiness of...

Fulfilling HaGomel with a Different Beracha

Answer (part I): in which we posited that a woman...

Making Berachot upon Seeing Animals

(We will not discuss the beracha for beautiful animals, which the Mishna Berura writes is not in practice...

HaMapil for those Who Go to Sleep Before Night

The gemara mentions HaMapil for one “entering to sleep on his bed,” without noting the time of day....

Sunbathing on Shabbat

We will focus here only on the Shabbat-related issues, about which you ask. Relatively recent poskim have discussed...

Doing Work for Someone for Whom it is Still Shabbat

We have ruled in the past that Americans may carry out stock orders on behalf of Israelis on...

Reheating Microwaved Food on Shabbat

From your question, it is evident that you are aware that once a food is fully cooked, cooking...

Returning Food to an Oven with a Shabbat Mode

In order to answer your question, we will try to clarify what the Shabbat mode does and what...

Use of a Ladle for Hot Soup on Shabbat

We will begin by reviewing the terminology and basic halachot. A pot sitting on the fire is termed...