יום חמישי, י״א חשוון תשפ״זThursday, October 22, 2026
Follow Us
Rabbi Yaakov Klass, rav of Congregation K’hal Bnei Matisyahu in Flatbush, Brooklyn, is chairman of the presidium of the Rabbinical Alliance of America and Torah Editor of The Jewish Press. He can be contacted at yklass@jewishpress.com or Rabbi@igud.us.
Read More
A Matter Of Ownership ‘Here Too [It Means] Of Your Own’ (Pesachim 37b-38a)
Question: I am an Ashkenazi Jew. I daven nusach Sefarad, but lately I find myself in a congregation that davens nusach Ashkenaz. May I join them in prayer and, if yes, in what manner? Name Withheld by Request
Chametz On Shabbos Erev Pesach (Pesachim 32a)
Question: I am an Ashkenazi Jew. I daven nusach Sefarad, but lately I find myself in a congregation that davens nusach Ashkenaz. May I, and in what manner, join them in prayer? Name Withheld by Request
The Shoemaker’s Children ‘If One Can Eat, One Can Sell’ (Pesachim 21a)
Question: The Gemara says the menorah should be placed outside the front door of one’s house but can be placed inside if one is worried about anti-Semitism. But how does placing the menorah solve this problem? Won’t the candles be seen through the window? And if the gentiles are really hostile, can’t they search our homes? Menachem
Question: Recently the chazzan in my shul created a stir when he didn’t include the proper mention of rain during chazaras hashatz. Our rabbi didn’t require him to repeat the Amidah, but many congregants felt the rabbi erred and murmured their discontent. Who was right and how can we, in a tactful way, prevent such a lapse from occurring again? A Concerned Congregant
For Want Of A Miracle ‘Levi Taught: [It Is The] Liquids of the Altar’ (Pesachim 17a)
Question: Recently the chazzan in my shul created a stir when he didn’t include the proper mention of rain during chazaras hashatz. Our rabbi didn’t require him to repeat the Amidah, but many congregants felt the rabbi erred and murmured their discontent. Who was right and how can we, in a tactful way, prevent such a lapse from occurring again? A Concerned Congregant
Accepted Custom ‘We Burn at the Sixth’ (Pesachim 11b)
A Matter Of Resolve ‘The One Who Searches [For Chametz] Recites A Berachah’ (Pesachim 7a)
Question: Both Adam and Cain repented, yet our sages extol Reuben, who lived many generations later, as the first man to repent. Why? Moshe Jakobowitz
Out Of One’s Box ‘All May Enter the Heichal to Build, Repair…’ (Eruvin 105a)
Question: I’ve been told that I should follow all the directives of the government during the current pandemic even though these directives seem to impinge upon our religious lifestyle. I’ve heard that dina d’malchuta dina is the overriding factor here. Is that so? Zelig Aronson
Question: I see that some people refer to the month of Cheshvan as Marcheshvan. Which is correct? Nachman M.
Question: I see that some people refer to the month of Cheshvan as Marcheshvan. What’s the month’s real name? Nachman M.
Elevated Train Tracks As An Eruv ‘Pi Tikra Reaches’ (Eruvin 94b)
Who’s Fridge? ‘If The Owner Retains a Holding There’ (Eruvin 85b)
Question: This pandemic has created many difficulties for me. One of the most annoying is the mask requirement, especially in shul, where I spend many hours. Aren’t our First Amendment rights being trampled? Shouldn’t this be explained to the authorities in very clear terms? Name Withheld
Detached Or Unrelated ‘He Made an Asheirah Tree Into a Ladder…’ (Eruvin 78b)
Question: Since G-d knows the future, isn’t our choice very limited? If so, how can man be faulted for any missteps he makes? Zvi Kirschner
Question: May one eat etrog jelly on Simchat Torah? A Reader Miami, FL
Do Hotels Need Eruvin? ‘A Separate Contribution From Each Company’ (Eruvin 72b)
Spreading The Wealth ‘Giving to Only One Poor Person’ (Eruvin 63a)
Question: A while back you wrote at length about ibur, the intercalation of the year, and noted that we rely today on a fixed calendar rather than the testimony of witnesses to determine the starting days of various yamim tovim. My question is – and I’m sure I’m not the first to ask this: Why do we continue to celebrate two days of yom tov nowadays when we have a fixed calendar and know exactly when each festival starts? Aryeh Roth
Twin Cities ‘A City Is Given A Karpif’ (Eruvin 57a)
Question: I was recently told by my physician that I shouldn’t fast on Tisha B’Av or Yom Kippur for health reasons. However, I feel very uncomfortable following this directive as I have never eaten on these two fast days in my life. What should I do? No Name Please
A Sage View ‘It Needs An Iron Partition To Divide It’ (Eruvin 47b-48a)
Question: How should we regard the current pandemic with Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur upon us? Is there a special prayer or specific role for prayer when the totality of humanity is in danger? M. Sorkin
An Early Navigational Instrument ‘Rabbi Gamliel Used His Tube To Measure…’ (Eruvin 43b)
Question: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman
Question: How should shuls deal with coronavirus space and time constraints this Rosh Hashanah? Should separate women’s minyanim be organized outside shul? A Reader
Similar To Carrying In A Karmelis ‘This Shall Be Tithed When Night Falls’ (Eruvin 36a)
Question: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman
When Life Is A Zoo ‘The Greater Part…Is Regarded as a Garden’ (Eruvin 23b)
Question: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman
Confirming A Gadol’s View ‘Majority Rules’ (Eruvin 16a)
Question: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman
Carrying At The Kotel ‘Sratya u’Platya’ (Eruvin 7a)
Waiting For Kiddush ‘Mazal Bears No Influence…’ (Shabbos 156a)
Question: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman
Question: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman
Out On A Limb ‘The Halacha Is One May Reset a Fracture’ (Shabbos 148a)
Treif Cows Milk? A Toldah of Dash (Shabbos 144a)
Question: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman
Question: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman
Damsel In Distress ‘A Woman In Labor Is Considered Critically Ill’ (Shabbos 129a)
Question: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman
Neighbors To The Rescue ‘He May Tell Others: Come, Save For Yourselves’ (Shabbos 121a)
Question: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman
Question: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman
The Carpenter’s Folly ‘All [Worn-Out] Holy Writings…’ (Shabbos 115a)
By All Means Rescue! ‘If One Removes a Fish from the Sea’ (Shabbos 107b)
Question: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman
Question: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman
A Murky Dispute ‘Water Does Not Void a Partition’ (Shabbos 100a)
Question: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman
Satisfaction Guaranteed ‘The Divine Presence Rests Only On One Who Is Wise, Strong…’ (Shabbos 92a)
Let’s Talk Size / ‘He Took Out Wood to Cook an Egg…’ / (Shabbos 89b)
Question: Was the Torah actually given on Shavuos? From my study of this question, it seems like the answer is not clear. Leah Weigner
Sow The Seeds Of Repentance ‘This Potted Plant' (Shabbos 81b)
Question: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman
Question: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman
A Matter Of Intention? ‘The Primary Labors Are Forty Less One…’ (Shabbos 73a)
Question: The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to almost all public gatherings; hence, much of Jewish congregational ritual has come to a halt. Is there a way to make up for everything we missed? M. Goldman
For Whom The Bell Tolls ‘Royal Children May Go Out With Bells’ (Shabbos 66b)
October 23, 2026 
