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Three Weeks: Swimming
If you are swimming for:
- Pleasure, you may swim during the Three Weeks but not during the Nine Days.
- Exercise (you don't particularly enjoy swimming or you are not doing it for fun or to cool off), you may be permitted to swim even during the Nine Days. Consult a rabbi.
Attire: Married Women: Hair-Covering Guidelines
Married women should cover their hair when they leave their “chatzeir,” which may mean house, yard, or domain. Married women should not appear in public without covering their hair.
Note It is an act of piety for married women to always cover their hair. (For extenuating circumstances, consult a rabbi for exceptions).
NoteA married woman may have her hair exposed as long as its area is less than 1 square tefach (3.5” x 3.5”, or about 9 cm x 9 cm). To measure this, add up all exposed hair to get a total area, flattened to two dimensions, as if it were a silhouette. It is an act of piety for married women to completely cover their hair.
To measure braided or bunched-up hair or hair in a pony tail, simply measure the cross-sectional area as it is. You do not need to measure the hair as if it were spread out flat.
When wearing a baseball-type hat, hair may be exposed on all sides, as long as the total exposed hair is less than 3.5” X 3.5.”
To wear a "kipa sheitl," you may wrap your real hair around the sheitl, but only up to a total of 3.5” x 3.5.”
NoteA married woman may have her hair exposed as long as its area is less than 1 square tefach (3.5” x 3.5”, or about 9 cm x 9 cm). To measure this, add up all exposed hair to get a total area, flattened to two dimensions, as if it were a silhouette. It is an act of piety for married women to completely cover their hair.
To measure braided or bunched-up hair or hair in a pony tail, simply measure the cross-sectional area as it is. You do not need to measure the hair as if it were spread out flat.
When wearing a baseball-type hat, hair may be exposed on all sides, as long as the total exposed hair is less than 3.5” X 3.5.”
To wear a "kipa sheitl," you may wrap your real hair around the sheitl, but only up to a total of 3.5” x 3.5.”
Kashrut: Dairy/Meat: Cutting Boards
Situation You cut a spicy/charif item of one gender on a cutting board (whether wood or plastic), and then cut the opposite-gender spicy/charif food on that same cutting board.
Status Generally, the board and the knife and whichever food was cut second becomes non-kosher. Consult a rabbi for exceptions.
What To Do If you can sand off the surface to below the level of any knife cuts, the board might be kosher. Consult a rabbi.
Status Generally, the board and the knife and whichever food was cut second becomes non-kosher. Consult a rabbi for exceptions.
What To Do If you can sand off the surface to below the level of any knife cuts, the board might be kosher. Consult a rabbi.
Baking Opposite Gender in Oven with Spills
Situation One gender of food spills in an oven. You later heat utensils and food of the opposite gender in that oven to 120° F (49° C) or more.
Status The utensils and food may become non-kosher, due to the residue's vapor.
What To Do Consult a rabbi.
Note This applies whether the oven is kosher or non-kosher, the residue is dry or liquid, or the utensils or food later placed in the oven are covered or not covered.
Status The utensils and food may become non-kosher, due to the residue's vapor.
What To Do Consult a rabbi.
Note This applies whether the oven is kosher or non-kosher, the residue is dry or liquid, or the utensils or food later placed in the oven are covered or not covered.
Attire: Wearing Other Gender's Clothing
Clothes that are worn by both genders may be worn by either gender, even if they were intended to be worn by just one gender. So women may wear clothes that have been made and intended for men (begged ish) if women wear those garments, too. There are some exceptions--consult a rabbi.
Non-Kosher Microwave Oven: Hot Oven, Liquid or Solid Food
If the walls of a non-kosher microwave oven get hotter than 120° F, you must double wrap any liquid or solid food you cook in that oven.
Note If you did not double wrap liquid or solid food cooked in a non-kosher microwave oven, consult a rabbi about whether you may eat the food.
Kashrut: Dairy/Meat: Pot Lids
Pot lids are treated as if they are utensils.
Situation
- You put a lid of one gender on a pot of the opposite gender.
- The pot is more than 120° F (49° C).
Asking Non-Jew To Do Melacha D'Rabanan
You may directly instruct or ask a non-Jew to do melacha d'rabanan for you on Shabbat, but only:
-
To prevent a large financial loss.
Note A large loss is subjective to the individual's actual wealth and also to that person's perception of what is a large loss. Consult a rabbi.
-
For Shabbat needs.
Example You may ask a non-Jew to unlock an electric hotel door or trigger an entrance door on Shabbat, since this is for a Shabbat need and the action is not prohibited d'oraita.
Situation A new guest arrives and you need the space on the table occupied by your Shabbat candlesticks.
What To Do You may not move the candlesticks, but you may ask a non-Jew to do so.
Situation You left a non-muktza item that you now need for Shabbat on a tree branch (or a child left one in a tree house!).
What To Do You may not climb the tree to retrieve the item, but you may ask a non-Jew to retrieve it. Example You may ask a non-Jew to turn on air conditioning.
ExampleYou may ask a non-Jew (directly, no need to hint) to turn off a light if it interferes with someone's sleeping.- To allow doing a mitzva.
- For other pressing (and certainly for life-threatening) needs, such as health, even if the person not sick.
Kashrut: Dairy/Meat: Pot Spatters and Pareve
Situation
Status The utensil assumes the spatter's gender UNLESS the spatter was less than 1/60th of the volume of the metal in the pareve utensil (not 1/60th of the volume the container usually holds). Consult a rabbi.
- Food of one gender spatters onto the outside of a pareve utensil.
- Either the food and/or the utensil are hot.
Status The utensil assumes the spatter's gender UNLESS the spatter was less than 1/60th of the volume of the metal in the pareve utensil (not 1/60th of the volume the container usually holds). Consult a rabbi.
Kashrut: Dairy/Meat: Baking at Same Time: Liquid, UNCOVERED
Situation Two uncovered pans of food—one dairy, one meat—are baked at the same time in an oven. The contents of both pans are liquid (liquid before AND after cooking; even if not spicy).
Status They are both non-kosher, even if one pan is covered (but consult a rabbi for possible leniencies).
Situation Two pans—one dairy, one meat—bake at same time in same oven:
Situation Two pans—one dairy, one meat—bake at same time in same oven:
Status They are both non-kosher, even if one pan is covered (but consult a rabbi for possible leniencies).
Situation Two pans—one dairy, one meat—bake at same time in same oven:
- One is covered and contains liquid (even if not spicy);
- One is not covered and contains solid food.
Situation Two pans—one dairy, one meat—bake at same time in same oven:
- One is covered and contains solid food.
- One is not covered and contains liquid (even if not spicy).
Passover: Selling Chametz: Different Countries for You and Your Chametz
If you live in one country and go to another country for Passover, you must sell your chametz so that the chametz in each country is sold and re-acquired at the correct time based on where you are located but also on where your chametz is. Consult a rabbi.
Brit Mila: When Is Eighth Day
As long as the boy was born before sunset (even one minute before), this time period counts as the first day. Normally, the brit mila will be performed on the following week on that same day of the week (the baby's eighth day). If the baby was born between sunset and dark, consult a rabbi or mohel.
Kashrut: Dairy/Meat: Dishwashers: Neutral/Pareve Item
You may not wash a neutral/ pareve dish in a meat or milk dishwasher--even if there are no dirty dishes with milk or meat on them and even if there are no other dishes in the dishwasher. If you did, the neutral/pareve dish may have become the gender of the dishwasher, but consult a rabbi for leniencies.
Situation You have a meat or milk dishwasher and you washed a neutral/pareve utensil in it.
What To Do If the dishwasher has dirty dishes containing milk or meat food, the neutral/pareve utensil will become that gender. However, if the dishwasher does not have any dirty dishes with food of either gender on them and the dishwasher has not been used for at least 24 hours, the pareve dish will remain pareve.
NoteThis is a b'di'avad (after the fact) case. You may not intentionally (l'chatchila) wash the pareve utensil in a gendered dishwasher.
What To Do If the dishwasher has dirty dishes containing milk or meat food, the neutral/pareve utensil will become that gender. However, if the dishwasher does not have any dirty dishes with food of either gender on them and the dishwasher has not been used for at least 24 hours, the pareve dish will remain pareve.
NoteThis is a b'di'avad (after the fact) case. You may not intentionally (l'chatchila) wash the pareve utensil in a gendered dishwasher.
Baking Challa at Same Time as Chicken with Sauce
Situation You baked challa with chicken, both uncovered, in the same oven (the chicken DID have sauce).
Status The challa becomes non-kosher even if the sauce was dry by the end of cooking.
Reason A rabbinic enactment requires that challa be pareve, lest someone eat it with the opposite gender food. Consult a rabbi for exceptions.
Note The rabbinic enactment applies to all bread, unless it looks different from normal bread or is small enough to eat at one meal.
Status The challa becomes non-kosher even if the sauce was dry by the end of cooking.
Reason A rabbinic enactment requires that challa be pareve, lest someone eat it with the opposite gender food. Consult a rabbi for exceptions.
Note The rabbinic enactment applies to all bread, unless it looks different from normal bread or is small enough to eat at one meal.
Shabbat Domain/Techum Shabbat: Item Brought from Outside
You may not use any item brought to you on Shabbat from outside techum Shabbat.
Example
Even if a non-Jew brings you misdirected luggage sent on a flight that did not land until after sunset on Friday, you may not use the items inside until after Shabbat has ended, even if you need the items for Shabbat. Consult a rabbi for exceptions.
Example
Even if a non-Jew brings you misdirected luggage sent on a flight that did not land until after sunset on Friday, you may not use the items inside until after Shabbat has ended, even if you need the items for Shabbat. Consult a rabbi for exceptions.