Parshas Pikudei and Purim: Intriguing Questions and Answers
Pledged A Certain Amount to Tzedakah and Through the Credit Card Processing, the Recipient Received Less
Q: It is very common for a person to pledge a certain amount to tzedakah, and by sending the money through credit card processing, a percentage of money is taken off. For example, the donor pledges $100 and the recipient only receives $98. Is this considered as if the donor has given his entire pledge?
A: Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv ztz”l stated that if the donor had in mind to send the donation through credit card when he gave the pledge, he doesn’t need to reimburse the difference. However, if when he gave the pledge, he didn’t think of how he will pay the money, he should reimburse the difference. The accepted Halacha amongst other poskim is that the pledger is not required to reimburse the difference in any case, for the following reasons:
- The organization would rather receive more donations even if they will sometimes lose out on a few dollars from credit card charges, and they forgive the donor for those few dollars.
- The Achronim wrote years ago that if someone sends tzedakah money through a messenger, he doesn’t need to reimburse the pledge if the messenger takes a fee. According to the chiddush above, we can add that if one wants to donate his maaser money to a cause through credit card, he does not need to reimburse any differences for his maser obligation if the recipient or cause will receive a few dollars less.
Sports Water Bottle as One Of The Two Required Items to Fulfill Mishloach Manos
Q: I know that the main mitzvah of mishloach manos is to send a minimum of two food or beverage items to at least one person. However, I wanted to know if I could send a food item together with a sport water bottle as a second item since those bottles are a little more expensive than the regular ones, and people like them. Can I use that, or does the beverage need to be more choshuv like wine, juice, soda, or alcohol?
A: In practical halacha we find that when the Mishnah Berurah (Siman 795:20) brings down that beverages could be used for the mitzvah of mishloach manos, it refers to choshuv beverages. This excludes water or seltzer in any form even if they are given in a fancy glass bottle. Water or seltzer is not choshuv enough and therefore you cannot fulfill the mitzvah with that. Rav Elyashiv zt”l would pasken this way, and today Rabbi Avigdor Neventzhal Shlit”a also tells me to pasken to others not to mistake the nice expensive water bottle for a required item in mishloach manos, rather to make sure to give a beverage which is considered choshuv.
Do Costumes for Purim Need to be Checked for Shatnez?
Q: On Purim, people dress up using different costumes like clowns, animals, or expensive suits, which may contain shatnez. Does one need to check rented or purchased costumes before Purim?
A: The Rema (Hilchos Purim Siman 791) writes that with regards to shatnez in clothing that is forbidden miderabanan, one may be lenient, and one may wear such clothing on Purim. The Gr”a explains that this leniency is based on the reasoning that one is wearing the clothing for Simchas Purim and therefore is not thinking about the benefit he is receiving from the clothing that might have shatnez. The Mishna Berurah brings down from the Shlah Hakadosh that, if possible, one should not rely on this leniency. However, in most cases we do not suspect the costumes of having shatnez materials, and therefore in general they do not need to be checked. Although we generally do not rely on this leniency based on whether a majority of costumes don’t carry shatnez, especially since it is easy to get the costumes checked, which is why we checks most suits etc. However, in practice we are lenient for Simchas Purim. Therefore, if the majority of costumes are known to not have shatnez, we can be lenient. Cheap thin, silky colored dresses and fancy dresses are usually plain synthetic cloth with no lining and have no suspicions to having shatnez. They do not need to be checked. In regards to a suit which might have shatnez. Wearing such a suit on top of a shirt means that the body is not getting direct benefit from the suit. This is shatnez which is only forbidden miderabanan, and we can be lenient on purim. However, because pants of the suit are directly benefitting the legs, if it is known that they may have shatnez, they should be checked even for Purim so that one should not transgress the issur of shatnez from the Torah.
Pictures Taken by a Gentile of a Long-Awaited Bris on Shabbos
Q: A couple had a child after many years of waiting, and the bris was on Shabbos. The parents wanted pictures of their simcha that they may never host again, and they asked the janitor of the hall to photograph the event. After Shabbos, someone approached the father of the baby and said that he is not allowed to benefit from the pictures that were taken in a forbidden manner. What is the Halacha in this case?
A: Firstly, we must point out that it is forbidden to ask a goy before Shabbos to do a melacha that a Jew will benefit from. Even after Shabbos, one may not benefit from the melacha that was done for a Jew, for the amount of time it took to do it. (See Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim Siman 276:1, 307:20.) The person must do teshuva for asking the goy to photograph his event. However, since this was a pressing need and involved a lot of emotion, I was asked to find out if it is permissible to benefit from this, based on the above which seems like they should be stringent. The Rambam brought down in (Shulchan Aruch Siman 325:14) writes that if the melacha was done for the Jew in public it is forbidden to benefit from it forever. According to this, the bris that was photographed in public may be forbidden to benefit from those pictures forever. However, Rabbi Neventzhal Shlit”a suggested a possible heter on this matter. Firstly, he mentioned that people should realize that this is a grave matter and completely forbidden. Although he wanted to suggest a possible chiddush that looking at a picture may not be halachically deemed as a direct benefit from the melacha which was done on Shabbos. Rather, it may be considered a benefit one gains as a result that came about from the looking at the picture, which caused him a benefit, but not directly because of the melacha done on Shabbos. This chiddush could only be applied in a case like this or similar case which is a great need. It could be supported by the heter which was given by Rabbi Tzvi Pesach Frank zt”l author of the Sefer Har Tzvi Yoreh Deah (Siman 278). A religious doctor was learning in medical school from the bones of a deceased Jewish person, which we find in halacha that it is forbidden to benefit from the bones of a deceased body (Yoreh Deah Siman 249). Rav Frank states, that staring at the bones to learn about the human body is not a direct benefit from the bones, rather benefit that came about as a result of the bones. Q&A: With Maran Harav Avigdor Nebentzhal Shlit”a And The Rosh Kollel We must point out that in our case if the gentile came and took pictures on his own without being asked to do so by the Balei Simcha, it is permissible to benefit from it. This is similar to pictures that were taken by goyim for their own benefit, and not for specific Jews, and later printed in newspapers, etc. It is permitted to benefit from them since they were taken by their own will. Based on the above, we could suggest this as a possible way to permit benefiting from the pictures. In any event one should ask a Rav if this should be relied upon even in a case of need.
Could I Drink on Purim When My Parents Asked Me Not To
Q: Every year I get questioned by teenagers who really want to fulfill the mitzvah on Purim to drink wine until they do not know the difference between cursed Haman and blessed Mordechai. As Shulchan Aruch writes in siman 795:2. However, their parents requested of them not to get drunk, and rather fulfill this mitzvah by doing the minimum. The Rema writes (Siman 795:2) that it is enough to drink a glass of wine a little more than usual and sleep for at least a half an hour. Do the children have to listen to the parents and not fulfill what it says in Shulchan Aruch to drink “ad delo yada”?
A: This is not a direct form of kavod towards the parents, like feeding or dressing them. Some Rishonim and Achronim hold that the strict letter of the law is to be lenient, when a parent asks a child to do something that bothers them, but they are not getting a direct benefit from it. For example, to ask a child to wear a sweater outside since they think it is too cold. According to those opinions the strict letter of the law is that the child doesn’t need to obey that request. However, since the parents will have pain from their son who disobeys, one must obey his parent’s request, since many poskim hold that even if the parent isn’t asking for a direct benefit, it is still forbidden to cause them pain. Rabbi Nevetzhal shlit”a tells me each year again that this is how I should pasken to those who ask, to fulfill the opinion of the Rema, to drink a little more than usual, and afterwards to rest in bed. Children shouldn’t get drunk if the parents will have pain from it. This is true even if the child is not known to misbehave and damage things when he is drunk. This was also the opinion of his Rav, Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach ztz”l.
This week’s Q&A is sponsored Lilui Nishmas the Rosh Kollel’s Grandfather, R’ Avrahom Leib Ben Reb Menachem Mendel Chanoch Weksberg Z”L.
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