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News, Info & Resources for the Cleveland Orthodox Jewish Community

What is an Otzar Beis Din, and is it Good for the Jews? By Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff

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(RabbiKaganoff.com)

Well, what do the words “Otzar Beis Din” mean? And, as an old friend of mine would ask, “Is an Otzar Beis Din good for the Jews or bad for the Jews?”

Literally, the words mean “a storehouse operated by Beis Din.” Why would Beis Din operate a warehouse? Is this some type of gmach or warehouse for impounded goods? Or a place where Beis Din stores people who are recalcitrant to follow its rulings? Although these might be good ideas, they have nothing to do with anOtzar Beis Din, which is a halachically approved method of distributing shmittah produce.

Before explaining what is an Otzar Beis Din, we must first review briefly the halachos of shmittah. These rules fall under two general categories:

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The Heter Mechirah Controversy By Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff

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(RabbiKaganoff.com)

Several shmittah cycles ago I was working as a mashgiach for a properly-run American hechsher. One factory that I supervised used to manufacture breading and muffin mixes. This company was extremely careful about checking its incoming ingredients: George, the receiving clerk who also managed the warehouse, kept a careful list of what products he was to allow into the plant and what kosher symbols were acceptable.

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What Happens When We Do Something Wrong? By Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff

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(RabbiKaganoff.com)

Since the Aseres Hadibros which include the laws of Shabbos are in Parshas Va’eschanan, we have an opportunity to discuss what happens when we do something wrong on Shabbos.

What Happens When We Do Something Wrong?

By Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff

Question #1: Cholent caper

Shimon looks rather sheepish when he asks this shaylah on Shabbos morning: During the night, he tasted the cholent and decided it needed some extra spices. Without thinking, he added some pepper and garlic powder, which is clearly an act of desecrating Shabbos. Can the cholent be eaten, or is it prohibited to benefit from this melachah?

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Spilling the Beans – Kitniyos on Pesach

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By Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff (RabbiKaganoff.com)

 Questions:

Is Cottonseed Oil kitniyos?

I know that, in America, everyone uses cottonseed oil on Pesach. However, when I was in Israel for Pesach I was told that they don’t use cottonseed oil because it is kitniyos. Why is there a difference in practice?

 Lecithin in Pesach Products

When I was a child, it was common to find Pesach-dik chocolates containing an ingredient called lecithin. Now I am told that lecithin is not Pesach-dik. Do I need to do tshuva on all the lecithin that I consumed?

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Honor Thy Sefarim!

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By Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff (RabbiKaganoff.com)

A reader recently sent me the following series of questions.

Question #1:

“My teachers taught in Day School that one may not sit on a bench while a sefer rests on it. An elderly man with whom I share a bench in shul often puts his siddur down on the bench on which we are sitting. Do I need to pop out of my seat every time he does this?”

 Question #2:

 “I also learned that one does not place anything on top of sefarim. Yet, even in the frummest of shuls, I see people placing their tefillin bags, watches, and eyeglasses on top of sefarim. Am I mistaken?”

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How Does a Person Convert to Judaism By Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff

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By Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff (RabbiKaganoff.com)

 

When our ancestors accepted responsibility to observe the Torah, they did so by performing bris milah, immersing themselves in a mikveh, and offering korbanos. A non-Jew who chooses to join the Jewish people is entering the same covenant and must follow a similar procedure (Kerisus 9a).

 

 

The privilege of becoming a ger tzedek requires one to follow very exacting guidelines. On a technical level, the ger is accepting responsibility to perform mitzvos. Through the gerus procedure, he creates an obligation upon himself to observe mitzvos (Birchas Shmuel, Kiddushin #15).

 

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The Unfair Fare By Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff

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moneyjar Keith RamseyIn this week’s parsha, our forefather Yaakov must learn to deal with a dishonest person, without compromising his own integrity.

 

(RabbiKaganoff.com)

It had already been a really tough day. Now, on top of that, Mrs. Gartenhaus (all names in this story have been changed) was very unhappy with the cab driver she had hailed. Aside from his discourteous behavior, she sensed a certain shadiness to his personality. She just couldn’t wait to get home and get out of his vehicle.

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Is Seeing Red Kosher?

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redcolorIs Seeing Red Kosher?

By Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff – RabbiKaganoff.com

Eisav is often associated with the color red, which provides an opportunity for the following halacha question: Is a red food color that is manufactured from animal material kosher? Indeed, the master artisans building the Mishkan used a dye, tola’as shani, which is often assumed to be the “blood” of an insect, in the manufacture of the Kohen Gadol’s vestments. Was this color kosher? This color was also used to dye the curtains and coverings of the Mishkan. In addition, processing the ashes of the parah adumah (Bamidbar 19:6), purifying a metzora and decontaminating a house that became tamei all use tola’as shani (Vayikra 14:4, 49). As we will discover, correctly identifying the tola’as shani not only affects these halachos and those of the Beis Hamikdash, but also concerns a wide assortment of foods and beverages that we eat and drink.

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Must I Repeat my Tefillah?

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By Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff

Question #1: First among equals!?

Why is the first beracha of Shemoneh Esrei, which is called Birkas Avos, different from all the other berachos of Shemoneh Esrei?

 

Question #2: Wanderings of the mind

Mutti Kulis* calls me with the following predicament:

Despite my best intentions, my mind sometimes wanders during davening, although I really wish I could focus always on building my relationship with Hashem. I recently discovered that the Mishnah Berurah rules that someone saying Shemoneh Esrei who realizes that he recited the first beracha without kavanah should refrain from proceeding until the chazzan’s repetition, and be very attentive to the chazzan’s davening. I tried this once, but did not find this solution practical.

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When is it a “good idea” to have a double parsha?

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gifts-children-toys-fun-stuff-sefer-torah-large-kjsftl-2327bigSince this week is the first of the “double parshiyos” we will be reading this year, I thought it appropriate to discuss:

Double Parshiyos

By Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff

When is it a good idea to have doubles?

Most doctors and other health professionals agree with the Rambam’s assessment that taking a double portion is not good for our health. Nevertheless, in most calendar years, our policy is to have several weeks when we read a double parsha so that we are able to complete the Torah every year and make a Siyum HaTorah on Simchas Torah.

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