Women and Sefiras Haomer
Question: Do I need to count the omer ? If so, should my husband wait to count the omer until he’s home so that he can count with me? Answer: While Rambam (Temidin Umusafin 7:22) and the Sefer Hachinuch (306) hold that the mitzva to count the omer nowadays is mideoraisa , most poskim (Tosafos, Menachos 66a; Rosh, Pesachim 10:40; Ran, end of Pesachim) hold that it is derabanan . The Ran explains that the Torah obligation is dependent on the korban haomer . Nowadays, we continue counting in commemoration of the mikdash . There is another machlokes as to whether women are obligated at all. Ramban (Kiddushin 34a) holds that women are obligated while Rambam (Temidin Umusafin 7:24; Sefer Hamitzvot 161) and the Magen Avraham (OC 489:1) hold that as it is a time-bound mitzva, women are exempt. The Mishna Berura (489:3) quotes the Shulchan Shlomo (489:3) who writes that as women will probably forget to count one night they shouldn’t count with a beracha at all . Nonetheless, t...