Rabbonim of the Beis Hora'a, Author at Ask The Rabbi - Dinonline

Davening after dishcharge

Question: Thank you for your help. This is very embarrassing to write. I sometimes from even non-inappropriate touching become aroused and a small discharge comes out and I don’t even notice, it sometimes until I use the restroom and see it in my garment. Is this considered zera levatalah? And if it’s not, is there […]

Translate word in Kesubah

Question: Sholom U’Brocho! Thank you in advance for your assistance. I am wondering if you can please translate 2 words written in some versions of a Kesubah. 1 – When it talks about the Kallash belongings she brings with her to the marriage some kesubos use the words “MiBei Avuha” from her father’s home and […]

Definition of a carrying an item on Shabbat

Question: Dear Rabbi I was wondering about the following. When carrying an item on Shabbat, what is the definition of an item which constitiues carrying? For example, let’s say there was some dirt in one’s pocket, would this be defined as carrying? Answer: Hello, You’re asking a good question. The definition of carrying is […]

Cholov Stam in Cyprus

Question: Can I eat Cholov Stam in Cyprus, or do I have to only drink Cholov Yisroel milk? I eat Cholov Stam in America. Answer: Hello, Unfortunately, I have no idea of the level of government supervision on milk farms in Cyprus. you might want to try the OU. Best wishes Sources:

Waiting after eating pareve food baked in meaty oven

Question: In the morning, if I heat parve food in an oven that had been used for meat the night before does the food become fleishig? When I eat that food do I need to wait before eating dairy? Please include sources. Thank you. Answer: Hello, The food heated up in the meaty oven, […]

Vach Nacht

Question: I’d like some clarification on the vach nacht. If it isn’t our minhag to learn the whole night before the baby’s bris (we are litvish), is it still relevant for us to invite the local children to say Shema with our baby boy the night before the bris? This seems to be the accepted […]

Dating

Question: Hi, Is it permissible to blow kisses to date? Answer: Hello, This should not be done. According to halacha, boys and girls should not be talking to each other just for social reasons, because it starts off as talking, and then it proceeds… and it leads to many aveiros. Obviously, boys and girls […]

Mikva

Question: Hi, I asked a question last week on 12/30/2022 titled “Mikva Thara” and I really appreciate the response. However, the question gets a bit more detailed. The response was my wife should go to the Mikva and no need to wait another month for her postpartum appointment to get an approval from the Dr. […]

Siman on Money

Question: If one finds money, for example a ten dollar bill and a five dollar bill, or 15 singles, is the amount of money considered a siman, and I am talking about a case where there is a chance of finding the owner for example in a yeshiva? What about a gift card which is […]

My apartment

Question: I bought an apartment on level -1 with a garden. My lawyer asked the owner to have all of the neighbors sign that the garden belongs to the apartment being that the builders made mistakes and only part of the garden was showing as owned by him. All of the neighbors signed other than […]

Using a free version of an app that was stolen

Question: Are you Allowed to use an app that is the exact duplicate of the original app Except that for the premium plan you automatically get it , because the person your downloading it from has changed the code of the app to make it premium without needing to pay? Answer: Hello, You should […]

Mikvah Thara

Question: Hi, My wife is six weeks after giving birth and has been clean for a couple weeks already. There are no postpartum Dr. appointments available for another month which leaves us with another month not being able to do the Mitzvah. Can my wife go the Mikvah just for the sake of being clean […]

Status of an air fryer

Question: Is an air fryer that was used over 24 hrs ago and cleaned well, was then used for paariv, is the dish (ie potatoes) considered fleishig equipment or can it be eaten with cheese? Thanks Answer: Hello, According to the Sefardi minhag it is permitted. however according to the Ashkenazi minhag, if it […]

Items used in past on Shabbat

Question: Hello, I have a question. I did not observe Sabbath until a few years ago even though I obviously knew that going in cars, etc. were transgressions. So, I own many things that are associated with these transgressions (e.g., clothes I wore in the car on Saturdays, blankets, coolers, etc. that traveled in the […]

Male Vasectomy

Question: After 7 children, my wife does not want to take birth control and we don’t want any more kids. Is a male vasectomy permissible halachically? Answer: Hello, My apologies that it took some time to get back to you. Please do not do this! To make things clear, a male vasectomy is biblically […]

Hefsek between bracha on candles and lighting

Question: If I started saying haneiros hallalu before lighting was it a hefsek and would I have to repeat berachah? Answer: Hello, According to a number of Poskim, ( Minchas Yiztchok 4- 115 (4) and Kovetz Halachos (Chanukah 6-6) it is considered a hefsek, and it would require one to say the bracha again. […]

Neros Chanukah shamash

Question: If one lights Chanukah neiros outside, is there a need for a shamash ? It seems that it is only required indoors ? Thank you. Answer: Hello, The reason why we use a shamash is since we may not benefit from the lights of the neiros, we light another extra candle which is […]

teshuvah

Question: Hi Rabbi, When doing teshuva and it’s time to accept never to do it again do I say “Bli Neder I will not do… again” or do i say “I will not do…ever again”???? please get back to me as soon as possible The reason I am asking is because just in case I […]

Gifts to grandchildren during Aveilus

Question: Can an Aveil for a parent give presents to her grandchildren? Does after 11 months make it more lenient? Answer: Hello, Normally it is not permitted for an avel to give gift during the aveilus year. However, it is permitted for the avel to give gifts in situations when it is not merely […]

Kasher new pots

Question: Hi. Do I have to kasher a new pot that I bought in a gentile department store because they accept returns so it could be it has been used by a gentile? Answer: Thank you for your question. If you want you may kasher any new pots etc. that you buy, and there is […]

Kallah question and nidia

Question: I’m getting married next Monday I forgot to check last night and I checked this morning is it still ok ? Answer: Mazal Tov, You should be zoche to build a bayis neeman b’Yisroel. It is still ok. We have to be careful not to miss any of the bedikos, however, being that […]

Lighting on Chanuka when not at home

Question: I am a yeshiva bachur in city x. Erev Shabbos chanuka I will IyH travel to a yeshiva in city y for Shabbos and possibly one or two more days and stay in the dorm where it is not feasible to light because of safety. May I light by my Friday night host instead? […]

Raffle on Shabbos

Question: I run an Avos Ubanim learning program in which we raffle off prizes to the children at the end, Half of the year the program takes place on Shabbos, I just came across a halacha that sounds like it might be a problem doing a raffle on Shabbos. Is it allowed? Answer: Hello, […]

Shehechianu on neice

Question: Mayikar hadin, a) if my sister has a baby that makes me very happy, would that be a shmuah tovah that I would make a shehechianu for ? b) if so, would it be more appropriate to make a hatov vehamaytiv ? Thank you Answer: Hello, In theory it is true that you […]

Lashon Harah About An Anonymous Jew?

Question: Is it LH to say e.g. “You don’t know this man and will never meet him so I can tell you that he’s….” Where ‘the man’ and the speaker and listener are all Jews and the info is derogatory? TIA. Answer: Hello, According to the Chofetz Chaim, if the person will not be […]

Alcohol Consumption and Prayer

Question: Dear Rabbi, I have a few questions regarding alcohol consumption and prayer. 1. How long after drinking 1 or 2 drinks can one pray Amidah, personal prayer and Shema? 2. Is it ok to do morning prayers if I had a drink at night? 3. Can one pray if they feel hungover in any […]

Non-kosher contact

Question: If I touch something not kosher and then inadvertently touch something in the kitchen (no heat involved), is it sufficient to simply wash the utensil in cold water? Answer: Hello, Yes, that is sufficient. If the item was oily, then wash it with soap. Best wishes

Verbally accepting package on Shabbos?

Question: A delivery person came to the door on Friday night and my child answered the door. When he asked for the parents, I called from behind the door that I was not available to come to the door. He said, “I have a large package here, can I leave it on the porch?”. I […]

Avel getting Maftir

Question: I’ve been told that the Rama says that an avel should receive Maftir. It doesn’t seem to me in my experiences that maftir always goes to an avel in the shuls that I have been to. What is the accepted minhag in Klal Yisroel to do? What is the best thing to do? Answer: […]

Suggesting a match to people that don’t act properly

Question: Is there a halachic (or other) problem with suggesting a match if one is not sure how careful one of the parties will be regarding halacha? (I heard once that if one is not sure if the couple will keep taharas hamishpacha, one should not suggest a match?) How far would this go? If […]

Frozen Challah for Lechem Mishneh

Question: Can a frozen challah used for lechem mishneh be returned to the freezer after making hamotzei, if you know it won’t be eaten on that Shabbos and you want to save the challah for use on a future Shabbos? Answer: Hello, According to most poskim it is permitted to use a frozen challah […]

Blessing of a rabbi meaning:

Question: When I was 16 a rabbi saw greatness in my personality. He blessed me to one day find of my deserving partner in life. He added to buy a tallit and blessed it. He mentioned to reserve it in a shelf until once found. What is the reason of being blessed by a rabbi? […]

Mikvah for objects

Question: Hello rabbi, I know metal needs to be cleansed and a prayer needs to be said when purchasing it or using it from an unknown source. Do clothes need that same process too? Washing in a mikvah? Or are clothes ok to wear, even from a store? Answer: There is no need to […]

Using meat blender for milkshake, allowed or not?

Question: Can one one use a meat blender to make a cold milkshake if blender is absolutely clean? Answer: Hello, The blade of the blender is a knife, and a knife used for meat should not be used for milk, even if it is clean. Best wishes

Hanukkah candles

Question: Hello, I see clients in the late afternoon as a psychologist. I have some appointments at 4:30 and 5:30 during Hanukkah. Should I cancel/reschedule them so I can light candles at sunset? If not, but if I have one at 5:30 but not 4:30 should I wait until 6:30 or light at 4:30 and […]

Drinking from a water bottle that was used for washing

Question: Hello, I used a hard plastic reusable water bottle to wash my hands when I was out and needed to daven. Am I allowed to use this bottle for drinking (refilling it with new water) or do I need to discard it? Thank you, Answer: Hello, When a person washes thier hands for […]

OCD in the Kitchen

Question: This is a follow up question contained in this link: https://dinonline.org/2022/11/15/ocd-and-kashering-kitchen/ Unfortunately, my OCD continues to be triggered by kashrut issues. Since the weekend, I have had persistent doubt that some food heated in the oven was not kosher. Again, my wife who bought and prepared the food assures me it was and I […]

Ribis to goy

Question: Is it muttar to borrow money from a goy (no yid wants to lend me the money and I need it to fight pikuch nefesh for custody of my children that my husband stole and is abusing) the goy would lend it, but with interest please answer asap ty Answer: Hello, From a […]

Lighting Menorah

Question: If 2 girls are sharing an apartment together, can one girl be motzei the second girl with Menorah lighting? Answer: Hello, If the two girls are supported form separate places, then essentially, they are two separate people, and each one has her own obligation to light. If, however they buy the candles, etc. […]

Mechitza in Shul

Question: I daven in a shul where the ladies daven upstairs and the window overlooking the Bais Medrash serves as a one way see out, but the men can’t see in. I find on occasion some ladies (might be guests etc.) might open the window to see the davening sometimes halfway and sometimes all the […]

Honoring Older Sibling vs. Vekidashtoi

Question: Hope you are well, I was wondering: What is the halachah if someone is a kohen and he has an older sister, and there is two pieces of cake. One bigger than the other. Do we say, there is a mitzvah for the boy to honor his older sister, or perhaps do we say […]

Misrepresenting residency

Question: Hi Rabbi, I live in Israel, but also have citizenship in the United States, as I used to live there. I want the US government to advance pro-Jewish causes. To do this, I at various times try to reach the member of congress who is represents my former hometown. When I do this, am […]

Completing minyan

Question: I learn in a kollel across the street from a Shul. During the winter Mincha minyan is very early so the shul struggles to get a minyan. Is one of the yungerleit obligated to be mashlim the minyan for them or is it better not to be mevatel from seder and the shul just […]

Yichud in overnight babysitting

Question: Hi, Can I babysit overnight in the following situation? There is a 16yr old girl, 15 yr old boy, 12 yr old girl, 8 yr old girl, 6 yr old girl, and 2 yr old boy. Answer: Hello, It is not considered yichud, because there are four girls here, and theyt are the boy’s […]

Moch Dochuk

Question: Is one allowed to go to the bathroom between shkiah and zeis while the moch dachuk is still inside. If one did, does it invalidate the moch? Answer: Hello, With the obvious understanding that she hs to be careful with herself, it is permitted for her to use the bathroom while the moch […]

Cut sharp item with milky knife on meaty plate

Question: Someone took a milchig knife and sliced a lemon on a fleishig plate. The plate may have possibly been used for hot fleishig within 24 hours. What is the status of the utensils now? Answer: Hello, We should l’chatchila be careful not to cut sharp things with a milchig knife on a fleishig […]

Sitting Shiva for intermarriage

Question: Is there any basis (in Halacha or otherwise) for the custom to sit shiva for somebody who intermarried or converted to another religion? Answer: Hello, While I don’t know if this is the custom or not, however here are some sources for this. It is brought in Hagahos Ashrei (Moed Katan 59), (also […]

Smelling a Shmita etrog

Question: Can a person smell with a Bracha a Shimita etrog for enjoyment? Answer: Hello, Yes a person can smell an esrog during shemitta for enjoyment, and he can also make a bracha on it. Although smelling an esrog is not it’s primary function, as it is meant to be eaten as a fruit […]

Saying Targum at night?

Question: Shalom Harav , Whats the Halacha regarding reading TARGUM at night during the week please?Ty Chazak Baruch Answer: Hello, According to Kabbalah, a person should abstain from reading Mikra and Targum at night. However, halachically it is permitted, as stated on Mishna Berura Shar Hatzion 238-1, that although it is preferred not to learn […]

Dress guidelines in the Torah

Question: There is a Modern Orthodox woman who is a personal trainer with a large following on Instagram. She recently posted a video where she whips off her sheitel and dances in revealing exercise clothing, claiming proudly that this is what orthodox judaism is. People criticised her for her lack of tniyus and she says […]