Kiddushin Archives | Rosh Yeshiva Responds

1 08, 2024

May a Child Financially Support Their Parent from Ma’aser?

August 1st, 2024|Family, Kibbud Av Ve'Eim, Tzedakah & Social Justice, Yoreh De'ah|

QUESTION

New York, NY

What are your thoughts on a teenager earning money and using ma’aser to support a financially struggling parent (while the teenager is still a dependent of that parent)? Is there already an obligation on the child under kibbud av va’em (honoring parents) to support the financially struggling parent? If that’s the case, does that mean that ma’aser cannot be used, or is there a reason to allow it?

ANSWER

The short answer is yes.

6 03, 2021

Orlah and Kilayim outside of Israel

March 6th, 2021|Agricultural Mitzvot, Yoreh De'ah|

QUESTION

California, USA

We are looking at planting some new trees in our backyard and I found some fruit trees that I am interested in.

There are some trees that are grafted with multiple varieties of the same fruit (e.g fuji, gravenstein, red delicious, etc) so all are apples and similarly there are some with a variety of plums.

Additionally, I also found a tree, in a different nursery, that is called “the fruit salad”, as it is grafted with multiple types of fruit (e.g. 1 tree with a branch for each fruit; peach, nectarine, plum, and apricot).

Can you please clarify any halakhic issues

25 12, 2020

When does a Kallah Say Harei Ani Mekabelet?

December 25th, 2020|Even HaEzer, Kiddushin and Ketubah|

QUESTION

Brooklyn, NY

At a chuppah in which, after the chatan says harei at, the kallah responds with harei ani mekabelet etc. when should the kallah say it? Before the ring is given? After he places ring on her finger?

ANSWER

I would have her say it before accepting the ring, as it communicates her da’at before undergoing the act. However, some have concerns around נתן הוא ואמרה היא when she says it before to frame the kiddushin (NB: this sugya in the Gemara (kiddushin 5b)and Rishonim is

Should a Father Personally Circumcise His Son? – The Mitzvot of Bris and Milah

17 10, 2018

Should a Father Personally Circumcise His Son? – The Mitzvot of Bris and Milah

October 17th, 2018|Marriage and Family, Milah|

QUESTION: I am the father of a newborn beautiful baby boy. The bris is coming up in a few days. Since I have a mitzvah to give my son a bris, and the mohel is just an agent, is it better that I do the bris myself (after the mohel sets everything up, of course)?

ANSWER: Mazal Tov to you, your wife, your new son, and your whole family.

A good way to approach your question is to start by looking at the blessing that the father makes during the bris ceremony, while the mohel is performing the circumcision. “Blessed are you

1 02, 2018

Honoring an Abusive Parent?

February 1st, 2018|Aveilut, Kibbud Av Ve'Eim, Yoreh De'ah|

Must a Person Honor and Mourn for an Abusive Parent?

The short answer is “no.” One of the core principles in halakha when it comes to our obligation to others is hayekha kodmin, meaning our first ethical obligation is to ourselves. One must prioritize her own physical, emotional and psychological health, even if this means that kibbud av v’em must be set aside.

Let’s explore this in more detail.

Honoring one’s parents is a mitzvah that can demand a great deal from us. This is particularly true for the sandwich generation, adults who have responsibilities to their spouses and children, and yet who

May a Woman Recite Birkat Eirusin?

6 03, 2017

May a Woman Recite Birkat Eirusin?

March 6th, 2017|Kiddushin and Ketubah, Lifecycles, Marriage and Family, Women|

Question:

I am a woman serving as a member of the clergy in an Orthodox synagogue. I have been asked to officiate at a wedding. I would like to say Birkat Eirusin, the blessing before the giving of the ring. Although I could be the mesaderet and not say this b’rakhah, neither I nor the couple like the message that would be implied, were I to step aside for someone else to recite the b’rakhah. It signals that I am not truly the one officiating at the wedding. Is it permissible for me as a woman to recite the Birkat Eirusin?

Answer:

Thank

Can a Person Who Is Blind Receive an Aliyah?: A Teshuva of Maseit Binyamin

5 09, 2016

Can a Person Who Is Blind Receive an Aliyah?: A Teshuva of Maseit Binyamin

September 5th, 2016|Disabilities|

Can a person who is blind receive an aliyah? The question, from a conceptual and analytic point of view, is how to understand the post-Talmudic practice of having one person (the one receiving the aliyah) making a brakha on the Torah, and having another person (the shaliach tzibbur) doing the actual reading from the scroll. In Talmudic times, the person who would receive the aliyah would also read directly from the scroll, and thus it was obvious that a person who was blind could not read

Tzniut, Halakha and the Male Gaze: Lecture and Sources

10 08, 2016

Tzniut, Halakha and the Male Gaze: Lecture and Sources

August 10th, 2016|Tzeniut, Women|

This lecture was composed in the context of this op-ed in the New York Times. These sources also accompany the Season 2 Episode 7 episode of the Joy of Text podcast.

Introduction

There is a general sense in the frum community that tzniut is a concept that applies almost exclusively to women and to how they dress. In some more Haredi communities, young girls are taught that tzniut is there special mitzvah – that they must dress modestly at all times so that men will not look at them and

Yichud in a Shul

26 07, 2016

Yichud in a Shul

July 26th, 2016|Sex|

Question:

לגרסה העברית לחצו כאן / Read this teshuva in Hebrew

I am the rabbi of a shul, and recently I was working there after it had already grown dark outside. I realized only later that there were two women working in the shul office on a different floor at the same time. To avoid yichud, I thought that she could lock her door and I could lock mine, but realized as I have a master key that wasn’t much use. One woman is married and the other is single. There are cameras in the building

Ani LiDodi, VDodi Li: Towards a More Balanced Wedding Ceremony

5 07, 2016

Ani LiDodi, VDodi Li: Towards a More Balanced Wedding Ceremony

July 5th, 2016|Marriage and Family, Women|

This article was originally published on My Jewish Learning.

In the traditional wedding ceremony, men play a more prominent role than women. This can be troubling for couples who, while wishing to be respectful of tradition and community, are also looking for ways to have a ceremony that reflects their vision of marriage as an equal partnership. In this article, I will discuss some opportunities that exist within halakhah [Jewish law] for creating a more balanced wedding ceremony.

As with any area of halakhah, there is a range of opinions, and these issues need to be discussed with the couple’s officiating rabbi. Beyond

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