Rav Shmuel Eliyahu is Chief Rabbi of Tzfat.
Q. Is it possible to use an oven rack that was used for chametz on Pesach, by simply wrapping it in aluminum foil?
Answer: It is permissible to use aluminum foil for something that is difficult to kasher, such as stove grates, a hotplate, marble surfaces, and the like. All this is because absorbed taste does not pass from one utensil to another without liquid (Rema, Yoreh De’ah 93). Even if food spills onto the foil and is absorbed into it, the chametz taste will not pass from the chametz rack into the foil. Some are meticulous to use thick foil, and some use two layers to avoid the concern of tearing. It is important to clean the rack or the grates and dry them before wrapping them in foil. Otherwise, the absorbed taste in the rack may transfer to the foil and from there to the food.
Q. Is it permissible to sell flour as part of the sale of chametz?
Answer: There is flour that is ground dry, and flour that is ground after the wheat has been soaked in water. The Gemara states that soaking wheat in water does not cause it to become chametz (Pesachim 36), as long as it has not yet been ground. However, since sometimes the grains split during soaking and become chametz, nowadays soaking wheat before grinding for Pesach is not permitted (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 453:5).
The Kaf HaChaim (sec. 82) writes: “Nevertheless, it appears that one may keep the wheat in his home, since according to the strict law of the Talmud, wheat is permitted when moistened so long as it is not close to splitting, as explained later in sub-section 467:9; and this applies only to minimal soaking or washing, but extensive soaking is considered full chametz, like grain that has sunk in a river."
Therefore, it is permissible to sell such flour, since there is a double doubt: perhaps it was not washed; and if it was washed, perhaps it did not split; and if it did split, we have sold it.
Q. Is it permissible to use a chametz toaster when there is a cabinet above it that is designated for Pesach?
Explanation: A kitchen cabinet elevated above the counter is cleaned of chametz and used to store sealed Pesach products. Is it permissible to use a chametz toaster on the counter beneath it, or must one be concerned about steam rising from it?
Answer: It is ruled in the Shulchan Aruch and Rema (Yoreh De’ah 123:24) regarding wine of non-Jews that was distilled and condensed into vapor that it is forbidden to drink, even though it is only steam, for it is considered like the prohibition itself. For this reason, whisky is forbidden on Pesach, since at the beginning barley malt or other grain is mixed with hot water to initiate fermentation. The fermenting liquid undergoes a distillation process that includes heating the liquid, collecting the vapors (which are the evaporated alcohol), cooling them, and aging the liquid in wooden barrels.
Therefore, the Mishnah Berurah rules in Sha’ar HaTziyun (Orach Chaim 444:4) that one should not pour boiling liquid from a Pesach vessel into a chametz vessel, because the steam rising from the chametz in the lower vessel may prohibit the Pesach vessel above it. However, all this applies only when the steam is directly adjacent to the vessel, and not when the vessel is positioned higher above it.
Q. Does toothpaste require Pesach certification?
Answer: It is written in Or LeTzion (vol. 3, 8:26) that it is permissible to use toothpaste that is not certified for Pesach, since it is unfit even for a dog’s consumption. There is no concern that one may ingest it, because only something intentionally designated for eating is prohibited due to the principle of achshevei (assigning it significance). But for taste that is not intended, there is no such designation. Furthermore, some say that in a mixture there is no achshevei.
However, today that toothpaste often has flavoring that may be made from chametz components, and a person desires this taste, it is preferable from the outset to purchase toothpaste that is certified kosher for Pesach.
Q. A Bottle of Olive Oil Certified Kosher for Pesach That Was Used for Chametz - “Reawakening" (Chozer Ve-Ne’or). Explanation: In most places, people do not use a bottle of oil or wine that was used for chametz. The question is: if, after the fact, an open bottle was used, is the food permitted to be eaten?
Answer: Generally, the practice is not to use such a bottle. However, after the fact there is no prohibition, since we do not assume that chametz entered the bottle, as explained below. The reason is related to a dispute over whether a crumb of chametz that became mixed in before Pesach is nullified or not.
The root of the dispute lies in the principle that any prohibition mixed in during the rest of the year is nullified in a ratio of sixty. However, chametz that becomes mixed during Pesach is not nullified even in a thousand, due to the severity of the prohibition. The question is: if chametz was mixed before Pesach and nullified in sixty, when Pesach arrives does it “reawaken" and become prohibited again, or do we say that once it was nullified before Pesach, it remains nullified and does not reawaken?
In the Shulchan Aruch (447:4), it appears that the ruling follows the opinion of the Rosh, that chametz which became mixed is nullified and “does not reawaken on Pesach to prohibit even in a minimal amount," though others disagree. The Rema also wrote that one does not adopt stringency in a liquid-with-liquid mixture, and “the custom is to follow the first opinion in any mixture that is liquid with liquid (i.e., completely blended). However, in a dry mixture one should be concerned, such as bread that fell into wine; even if it was removed, the wine is prohibited on Pesach, because we are concerned that crumbs may remain and impart taste on Pesach."
The Chida wrote (Birkei Yosef 447:14; Machazik Berachah 467:5) that the custom of most people is to be lenient regarding the law of “reawakening," following the ruling of Maran that we do not say that chametz reawakens once nullified before Pesach, whether dry in dry or liquid in liquid. This is also the opinion of many early authorities. However, most sages adopted stringency on this matter, not in accordance with Maran, and were concerned for the opinion of many great authorities who disagreed with him, including the Rambam at the end of Hilchot Chametz u-Matzah, as explained by the Maggid Mishneh, who wrote that many of the Geonim held this view.
This is likewise the opinion of the Rashba, as brought by the Beit Yosef, and in the responsa of the Rashba (siman 485). Many later authorities also wrote to be stringent regarding this law of “reawakening," including the Radbaz (Vol. 5, sub-section 2,229), who wrote that there is strong reasoning for those who say it reawakens, since “one permissibility cannot be nullified by another permissibility," and chametz before Pesach is technically permitted and thus not subject to nullification; once Pesach begins, it becomes prohibited in any amount. The Pri Chadash (447:5) also wrote stringently and held that it does reawaken. Rav Yehoshua Chazan (Chikrei Lev, p. 154b) likewise wrote that it is difficult to be lenient against the Geonim who ruled that it reawakens.
In the work Eretz Chaim (447), it is recorded that in our times the stringency regarding “reawakening" has spread even among the general populace, as cited by Rav Kafi Aharon. He added that even in the holy city of Tzfat in his time, all the people were stringent in this matter, and this became widespread because most Torah scholars who were stringent would refrain from eating in the homes of those who were lenient. Consequently, the generation was “made fit," and all became united in stringency.
Accordingly, one might have reason to be stringent about a crumb of chametz that fell into olive oil. However, in reality there is no certainty that a crumb fell into the oil; it is only a distant doubt. In cases of doubt, one does not adopt stringency against the ruling of Maran regarding “reawakening." Thus wrote the Chida and Rabbi Chaim Palaggi, who ruled that when there is uncertainty whether a mixture occurred, it is permitted, since it is a double doubt.
Q. How do we check for Chametz in a Yeshiva?
Answer: The obligation to check for chametz in sleeping quarters rests upon the students. If they did not check, they must return and check or send someone to check on their behalf. However, if they left for reserve duty to save lives, they are not required to perform bedikat chametz. As the Gemara states and this is the halachah: “One who goes on the fourteenth [of Nisan] for the sake of a mitzvah, such as to circumcise his son or to partake in an engagement feast at his father-in-law’s home, and remembers that he has chametz in his house - if he can return to his home, eliminate it, and then return to his mitzvah, he should return and eliminate it; but if not, he should nullify it in his heart."
Note that this refers to great mitzvot such as circumcision or marriage; nevertheless, if he can return to check, he should do so. However, one who goes to save lives is not burdened at all with checking, and it suffices for him to nullify the chametz.
“If he was going to save someone from a river, from a fire, from a collapsed building, or from an attacker, he should nullify it in his heart and not return even if there is time."
All this is so that his mind should not be preoccupied with his chametz while engaged in the mitzvah that he is doing.
Q. Can a Teflon-Coated Frying Pan Be Made Koshered for Pesach by Hagalah?
Can a frying pan on which pancakes (actual chametz) were cooked with very little oil be kashered, given that it is coated with a non-stick material?
In the Shulchan Aruch (451:11) it is ruled that a frying pan used for frying may be kashered by hagalah and does not require libun (direct heating), since frying is done with oil. The Rema writes that some are stringent to apply libun to a frying pan because sometimes frying is done with little oil, which resembles baking. “However, minimal libun, such as burning straw on its exterior, is sufficient." This is the preferred practice initially, but if the pan is clean, it is sufficient to kasher it with boiling water. Certainly, if it is a Teflon pan that may be damaged, it should be made kosher with boiling water.
Q. A Sephardi Woman Married to an Ashkenazi - May She Eat Kitniyot?
Answer: In principle, a Sephardi woman married to an Ashkenazi man who does not eat kitniyot on Pesach should not eat kitniyot in their home during Pesach, so as not to confuse the children, who must continue in their father’s custom. However, in her parents’ home she may eat kitniyot that are forbidden to her husband, since when she marries she does not fully adopt all of her husband’s customs. Therefore, she may also continue to pray according to her own liturgical rite, and so on.
But when teaching her children to pray or to recite Birkat HaMazon, she should teach them according to her husband’s custom, in order not to create confusion.
Regarding green peas, my father and teacher, Israel Chief Rabbi Eliyahu, of blessed memory, once told me that the Ashkenazim of the Old City of Jerusalem had the custom of eating green legumes and were stringent only regarding dried legumes. Therefore, he would rule that Ashkenazim may be lenient with green legumes if they wish, since this was the custom of Jerusalem.
Q. Is it Permissible to Give Kitniyot to a Minor?
Answer: Obviously, the question refers to a case where the parents themselves observe the custom of refraining from kitniyot. The answer is that it is permitted. The Rambam (Hilchot Ma’achalot Assurot, ch. 17, hal. 27) wrote that something prohibited by rabbinic decree may not be fed directly to infants. The Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chaim 343) rules accordingly. In contrast, the Rashba (Responsa, Vol. I, sub-section 92) ruled that a rabbinic prohibition may be fed to a minor, and so wrote the Ran (Shabbat 121a). Kitniyot are not a rabbinic prohibition but rather a matter forbidden only by custom. Therefore, there is no basis to forbid feeding them to infants where there is a need.
I recall that once my late father, of blessed memory, showed me when I was a child an advertisement for baby food containing kitniyot, which stated that it must be cooked in separate utensils. My father said that this advertisement was mistaken, since the source of the prohibition of kitniyot is the Rema (453), who wrote regarding rice and other legumes that some prohibit them. “However, it is clear that they are not forbidden after the fact if they fall into a dish. Likewise, it is permitted to light with oils made from them, and they do not prohibit a dish if they fall into it. Likewise, it is permitted to keep types of legumes in the home," etc.
Q. What about Sephardim Who Have Adopted Stringency Regarding Rice?
Answer: The Pri Chadash (siman 496) wrote that Sephardim who adopted a custom to be stringent regarding rice or kitniyot annul their custom through hatarat nedarim, as ruled in Responsa Rav Pe’alim (Vol. III, Orach Chaim 30). The reason is that this is not an enactment of the Sages but a custom accepted due to a concern in a particular place. Just as there were places where people refrained from dairy products or sugar due to concern, and when the concern passed it could be annulled through hatarat nedarim before three individuals.
Q. May Chametz Be Sold to a Non-Jew During Wartime?
A person bought a relatively large quantity of beer or a party, but because many of the invited guests are not coming because they are in reserve army duty, he won’t be able to finish the beer before Pesach.
Answer: Beer is actual chametz, and one should not keep actual chametz in one’s home, as written in the Shulchan Aruch (448:3): chametz belonging to a Jew over which Pesach passed is forbidden for benefit, even if it was left unintentionally or under duress.
If it was sold or given to a non-Jew outside the home before Pesach, even if the Jew sold it to a non-Jew knowing that he would not touch it at all but would merely safeguard it until after Pesach and then return it, it is permitted, provided that he gives it as a complete gift without any condition, or sells it as a full sale even for a minimal sum. But a gift on condition that it be returned is ineffective.
The Shulchan Aruch permits a sale only if the chametz is not in the Jew’s home. Today, it is customary to write in the sale document that one sells the chametz to the non-Jew or rents him the space in which it is located. In truth, this appears like a legal fiction, especially during wartime. Who will allow a non-Jew to enter his home at night to use the chametz stored there? Therefore, it is better to return it to the store before Pesach.
Q. Finding Chametz Lying in the Street - what to do?
Answer: The Torah says: “Chametz shall not be seen by you." Our Sages explained: “Your own you may not see, but that of others you may see." Therefore, there is no prohibition in seeing chametz lying in the street that is not one’s own. Even if it was once his and he declared it ownerless, it is no longer his. Therefore, he should not lift it in order to remove it, since by lifting it he may acquire it and transgress the prohibition.
However, if a person fears that his child or someone else may take it and eat it, he should lift it while mentally stating that he does not intend to acquire it. If the chametz is repulsive and unfit even for a dog’s consumption, there is no concern in lifting it and placing it in the trash.
Q. Can one Recite Hallel Individually on Seder Night?
The Shulchan Aruch (487:4) states: “On the first night of Pesach the full Hallel is recited in the congregation with melody, with a blessing before and after, and likewise on the second night in the Diaspora." The Rema writes: “However, we do not follow this practice, for we do not recite Hallel at night in the synagogue at all."
Today there are many Ashkenazic communities that do recite Hallel on the night of Pesach during the evening service in the synagogue and its merit is very great.
The Kaf HaChaim (sec. 42) writes that if the congregation forgot to recite Hallel on the nights of Pesach, when one returns home and remembers, he should immediately recite Hallel with a blessing before anything else. Thus, it is recited even individually.
Q. Is It Permissible to Moisten Matzah on Pesach?
Anwer: The Gemara (Pesachim 39b) states that baked matzah that is later cooked does not become chametz, since once the matzah has been fully baked there is no concern of leavening through moisture or cooking. So ruled the Rambam (Hilchot Chametz u-Matzah 3:5) and the Shulchan Aruch (463), that flour made from baked and ground matzah may be cooked, and we do not fear that it will be confused with regular wheat flour.
However, some avoid using matzah meal lest it be confused in places where people are not learned (Pesachim 40a). Some have the custom not to eat matzah that has come into contact with water, lest there be unbaked flour on or within the matzah (Responsa at the end of Shulchan Aruch HaRav). Shulchan Aruch HaRav wrote: “Indeed, although this is not a clear and absolute prohibition according to the law, nevertheless one who is stringent is praiseworthy, and it is not to be wondered at or called a baseless stringency."
This custom did not spread throughout all Israel. Maran Rav Eliyahu of blessed memory had the custom to moisten matzah for those who found it difficult to eat hard matzah, all in honor of and for the joy of the festival, which is also a Torah commandment.
Q.Can a Coffee Machine be Kashered for Pesach?
A coffee machine may be kashered for Pesach. Most users do not use capsules of coffee substitutes made from grains, nor milk substitutes made from oats. In such machines it is sufficient to clean them so that no crumb of chametz remains.
In machines where oat milk was boiled, one must kasher the part that came into contact with the milk by immersing it in boiling water, or by boiling water in it with a drop of liquid soap. If capsules made from grain-based coffee substitutes were used, the same should be done with the coffee-heating section.
Q. May One Use a Coffee Machine Used by a Non-Jew?
Answer: It is permitted to use a coffee machine that a non-Jew has used.
- He does not render the machine non-kosher.
- One need not be stringent after the fact regarding bishul akum in coffee for two reasons:
- Coffee is already roasted before it reaches the machine, and in pressing circumstances it may be used without further cooking simply to help a person to feel awake.
- Ground coffee is not eaten as is, but in a mixture with boiling water, which is in far greater quantity. There is no prohibition of bishul akum in water, and the coffee is nullified in it.
Q. How should we deal with a Public Shelter That Also Serves as a Synagogue Where People Enter with Phones and Dogs.
A synagogue located in a public shelter is a guest in the shelter and not a permanent house of worship. Therefore, worshippers may not prevent people from entering, even if they come on Shabbat without a kippah or with a phone turned on, etc. It is appropriate to use this time, when people are present in the synagogue, to show them warmth rather than rebuke. Certainly, their positive encounter with the worshippers will bring them closer to their Father in Heaven.
Therefore, it is fitting that every gabbai prepare the congregants not to act zealously by rebuking those entering the shelter. He should prepare sweets and refreshments for all who arrive, and designate someone to tell stories about righteous people to the children. One can also organize a recitation of Psalms or an engaging talk if they are receptive. This can be done in any shelter or protected space. It is highly appropriate in every building to use the shared time in the shelter to foster closeness of hearts, which is often neglected at other times.
Story - Chametz on Pesach
My mother related: Several weeks before Pesach I would clean the house thoroughly so that no crumb of chametz remained. The Rabbi, of blessed memory (HaRav Mordechai Eliahu) himself would conduct the chametz search for several hours, examining every corner of the house to ensure there was not the slightest trace of chametz. One year on the Seder Night he could not sleep. He said to me: “I dreamed that there is chametz in the house." I replied: “If so, I will not sleep in the house even for a moment. But this cannot be, for I cleaned the entire house and there was not a corner you did not check." I asked him to tell me exactly where it was, and he said: “It must be checked!" I searched the entire house again and found nothing. I returned to him and asked that he perform a dream-inquiry. He said: “Open the book." He handed me a Tanach and told me to count pages. I counted and flipped, then he told me to count lines, and I did. Then he told me to count words. I did so. He asked: “What word is there?" I said: “Remedies."
“Go to the medicine cabinet," he said.
I went and found there wheat oil in a small bag that a doctor had brought me on the eve of Pesach as a remedy I had requested for one of the children. He had brought it after the chametz search, not realizing there was a chametz issue. In the rush before the Seder, I had placed it in the medicine cabinet without checking the contents. Had it not been for the Rabbi’s dream, I would never have known there was chametz in the house.