Living the halachic process

Use of a Salad Slicer on Shabbat

The gemara states, according to the explanation of several Rishonim, that cutting certain vegetables into small pieces is...

Sending Packages on Shabbat or Yom Tov

There are two main issues to deal with here: whether the service providers are considered doing work on...

Separating Challa on Shabbat

It is not clear what you mean by “separated some challa,” and the answer to your question depends...

Use of a Fat Separator on Shabbat

[A fat separator is a regular container, but one which has a spout that comes out from near...

A Child Riding a Bicycle on Shabbat

When bicycles first became popular, many poskim discussed their use on Shabbat. Almost all forbade it, for one...

Garbage Disposal on Shabbat

First we will investigate your assumption that the sanitation workers perform melacha for individual homeowners on Shabbat. The...

LED Shoes for Children on Shabbat

The consensus among the poskim is that activating light-emitting diodes (LEDs) on Shabbat is not a Torah-level prohibition,...

A Beracha on Building a Rooftop Fence?

We will begin with the bottom line: You should not make a beracha. You have already identified some...

Joining an Imperfect Tefillat HaDerech

The gemara asks what the earliest time to recite Tefillat HaDerech is, and it answers, “from the time...

Using an Hourglass on Shabbat

Chazal prohibited measuring on Shabbat. This prohibition is mentioned in the gemara in Massechet Beitza in the context...

The Effect of the Wrong Bitul Chametz

We will begin by examining the purposes and mechanisms of the different bituls. The Torah forbids possession of...

Davening Early on Shavuot Night

The idea of waiting until tzeit hakochavim to start Shavuot is not found in Chazal; it arises first...

Timtum HaLev

We will divide our view and analysis of the sources regarding this excellent question into three parts: 1)...

Reliability Regarding Kashrut

We will answer your question generally, not in detail. In cases in which full testimony is required –...

Double Wrapping Food in a Treif Oven

A proper job of double wrapping solves virtually any problematic issue that arises from heating food up in...

Kashrut of a Tea Bag Holder

Let us analyze what the possible concern is in the case you ask about. If a tea bag...

How Many Eggs Should be Boiled Together?

There are sources for and traditions about being careful to boil at least three eggs together. While at...

Kashering Frozen Liver

Your question touches on several halachic issues, which we will mention only in passing as necessary background for...

Products Containing Minute Quantities of Non-Kosher Food

There are different views about the efficacy of alternative medicine in general. Given that extreme opinions are rarely...

Tevillat Keilim‎ Before Giving a Present

On a certain level, the goal of tevillat keilim is to purify utensils that we obtain from a...

Working in a Bakery on Chol HaMo’ed Pesach

Concerning work on Chol HaMo’ed (e.g., Chol HaMo’ed Sukkot), one of the broad bases for leniency to allow...

Keeping Foods Cooked in Chametzdik Pots

We will first deal with the question of whether it is really forbidden to eat such food on...

Language in Which to Recite the Haggada

The mishna lists texts that may be recited in any language, including Kri’at Shema, tefilla, and Birkat HaMazon,...

Joining a Friday Shushan Purim Seuda

While the primary halacha of refraining from eating a substantial amount before a holy day relates to the...

Early Reading of Megillat Esther

The gemara states that one may follow the opinion that allows davening Ma’ariv from plag hamincha onward. Rabbeinu...

Dividing Megillat Esther Among Readers

The answer depends on what you mean by “proper,” as we will explain. The gemara does discuss having...

Moving Fallen Decorations on Sukkot

This type of muktzeh, called muktzeh l’mitzvato, has different levels. The gemara derives from shared terminology used regarding...

Washing Hands with Soap on Yom Kippur

We will discuss specifically the Yom Kippur elements of the question; we will not touch upon the question...

Non-Leather Footwear on Yom Kippur

The Torah commands us to afflict ourselves (“v’initem”) on Yom Kippur, and Chazal derived from p’sukim which forbidden...

“Ba’omer” or “La’omer”?

We will begin with some simple background. Omer is the measurement of barley brought as a korban on...