Dose of Halacha

Question: A sofer examined an old sefer Torah in our shul and advised that it is no longer worthwhile to repair. May it remain in the aron hakodesh , or must it be buried? Answer: The Shulchan Aruch (YD 279:1) rules that a sefer Torah that has not been checked may not be kept for more than thirty days. It must either be repaired or placed in geniza . Nevertheless, the Taz (OC 154:7) writes that it is customary to place passul sifrei Torah in the aron . R’ Yechezkel Landau (Noda Biyehuda OC 1:9) likewise notes that when an error is discovered in a sefer Torah during leining , it is returned to the aron and another is taken out. He therefore concludes that there is no inherent problem with keeping a passul sefer Torah in an aron containing kosher sifrei Torah . The Noda Biyehuda does, however, raise a separate concern based on the prohibition against keeping something defective in one’s home. R’ Yaakov Ettlinger (Binyan Tzion 97) challenges this concern, citing the Sef...

Question: I am learning in yeshiva and want to reserve a particular shtender for myself. Am I allowed to leave a sefer open on the shtender to indicate that the place is taken? Answer: Sefer Chassidim gives practical examples of the respect due to sefarim . He writes (902) that one should not place another book above the line he is copying, so that he does not lose his place. Later (904), he writes that one may not use a sefer to protect oneself from the sun, but one may use it to protect another sefer , allowing one to continue learning. The Taz (YD 282:19) writes that one may not take a sefer and place it underneath another sefer in order to raise it to a more comfortable height. Since the same purpose could be achieved with a piece of wood or another ordinary object, using a sefer in this way is considered disrespectful. If the lower sefer was already there, however, one may place another sefer on top of it. The Magen Avraham (154:6), however, disagrees, and permits p...

Questions: One of our teachers encourages us to write ב"ה at the top of our work, while another has advised against it. Which approach is correct? Answer: The Gemara (Rosh Hashana 18b) relates that the Yevanim decreed that the Jewish people must not mention Hashem’s Name. In response, the Chashmonaim instituted that every letter should include Hashem’s Name. However, Chazal later annulled this practice, fearing that such letters might ultimately be discarded. As a result, the Rema (YD 276:13) rules that one must take care not to write sheimos in letters. R’ Ovadia Yosef ( Yechave Daas 3:78) quotes the Chida , who permits writing abbreviations even if they allude to Hashem’s Name. Although the Rogatchover Gaon (Tzafnas Paneach 196) disagrees, R’ Ovadia maintains that writing ב"ה at the top of letters is a longstanding minhag and is permissible. R’ Moshe Feinstein (Igros Moshe YD 2:138) writes that while he is not overly concerned about the destruction of such...

Question: Can I use my old tefillin bag to store my shofar ? Answer: The Gemara (Sanhedrin 48a) teaches that a cloth designated for and subsequently used to wrap tefillin may not later be repurposed to hold money. Once an item has been used for a mitzva -related purpose, it retains its kedusha and may no longer be used for mundane purposes. The Shulchan Aruch (OC 42:3) rules that a bag designated for tefillin may not be used for money if it has been used even once for tefillin. Such a bag is classified as tashmishei kedusha, an accessory that serves a sacred object. The Rema adds that if one explicitly stipulated beforehand that the bag could be used for other purposes, it remains permissible to do so. The Mishna Berura (402:11) clarifies that this restriction does not apply to a tallis bag, even if one regularly places their tefillin bag inside it. Likewise, in Biur Halacha (34:4), he writes that as long as one consistently returns their tefillin to their protective box...

Question: I sometimes receive wedding invitations that include pesukim . Am I allowed to throw them away, or do they need to go in sheimos ? Answer: The Gemara (Shabbos 115b) states that one who writes berachos unnecessarily is as if they have burned the Torah, since such writings are likely to be discarded and treated disrespectfully. For this reason, Rambam (Teshuvos Harambam 268) and the Shulchan Aruch (YD 283:4) rule that pesukim should not be written on a tallis . Regarding the use of short pesukim on documents, the Gemara (Gittin 6b) presents a machlokes as to whether writing three or four consecutive words from a passuk on a document gives it the status of kedusha . As a result, Rambam (Sefer Torah 7:14) and the Shulchan Aruch (YD 283:3) disagree on the matter. The Tashbetz (1:2) clarifies that this concern does not apply when the words are rearranged or written on separate lines rather than in a single, continuous phrase. R’ Moshe Feinstein (Igros Moshe YD 2:1...

Question: How should I dispose of my old sechach , lulav and esrog ? Answer: The Gemara (Megilla 26b) teaches that items that are inherently holy, such as old tefillin , mezuzos and sefer torah and tefillin covers must be treated as sheimos and buried. However, items that were used for a mitzva such as a sukka, lulav, shofar or tzitzis may be discarded after use. Nonetheless, the Rema (OC 21:6) writes that such items must not be treated in a disrespectful manner. Therefore, one should not throw one’s arba minim and sechach into a regular bin after Sukkos. The Mishna Berura (21:6; 638:24; Shaar Hatziyun 664:20) writes that one should be careful not to leave one’s sechach or arba minim around on the floor after Sukkos where others may trample on them. Rather, one should recycle them with other branches, etc. or wrap them before disposing of them. Ideally, one should even treat the sukkah walls respectfully. Likewise, the Aruch Hashulchan (OC 638:12) writes that one sh...

Question: I see that many people are particular to write ‘G-d’. Is there anything wrong with writing ‘God’ out fully? Answer:  There is no issue in writing or printing Hashem’s name properly, providing one knows that it won’t be destroyed. Rambam (Yesodei Hatorah 6:1) writes that there are 7 sheimos (names of Hashem) that mustn’t be erased. There is no issur in erasing a kinui (moniker) such as chanun or rachum, etc. R’ Akiva Eiger (YD 276:9 quoting the Tashbetz) writes that as translations of sheimos have the status of kinuim , there is no issur in erasing them either. The Shach (YD 179:11) writes that Hashem’s name in a foreign language is not considered sheimos and thus may be erased. Likewise, the Mishna Berura (85:10) writes that the issur only applies to erasing sheimos in Hebrew (See Minchas Chinuch 437:5). Nonetheless, the Aruch Hashulchan (CM 27:3) urges people to be extra particular when writing letters with sheimos even in a foreign language. Thus, w...

Question: Am I allowed to dispose of divrei Torah sheets such as these? Answer: The Gemara (Makkos 22a) writes that one who destroys one of the sheimos, names of Hashem, has transgressed the negative commandment of You shall not do this to Hashem your God. (Devarim 12:4) Rambam takes this a step further and writes (Yesoidey Hatorah 6:8) that one must never burn or destroy Torah writings (except for those written by a heretic, etc.) The Netziv (Meshiv Davar 1:80) limits this prohibition to materials that were written to last. Thus, one would be allowed to dispose of one’s rough notes. Based on this, R’ Yitzchok Yaakov Weiss (Minchas Yitzchak 1:17) permits disposing of newspapers that contain Divrei Torah. R’  Shmuel  Wosner (Shevet Halevi 5:162) however, writes that they require burial. R’ Moshe Feinstein (Igros Moshe OC 4:39) writes that often too much is printed, especially in school settings, which just compounds the problem. He writes that if the g edolim in Eret...