State of the Union Revisited

Family, Business, & Jewish Life Through the Prism of Halacha VOLUME 5779 • ISSUE XXI• PARSHAS KI SISAH • A PUBLICATION OF THE BAIS HAVAAD HALACHA CENTER icyholder is giving money to the partnership, The STATE OF which includes other Jews, in exchange for the promise of a return with interest? on the THE UNION In my opinion, this is not a problem at all. Since every policyholder receives equal treatment, Bring the Parsha to Life! REVISITED: none of them is lending to another. Were the company to go bankrupt, no policyholder Adapted from a shiur by Rav Yechiel Biberfield on A follow-up on credit unions and Parshas Ki Sisa cooperatives. would personally have to pay any other policyholder. The promised rate of return is nothing Adapted from a shiur by Rav Shmuel Honigwachs Violating Shabbos to Save a Life more than the company declaring that it is do- ושמרו בני ישראל את השבת לעשות את השבת לדורותם -ing so well and on such strong financial foot לברית עולם Our recent article following the kol korai on credit unions (“State of the Union: May One ing that the cash value of each policyholder’s Join PenFed or First Atlantic?”) prompted stake will certainly increase by that amount. I The Gemara cites eight pesukim, including many questions from readers regarding other presented this argument to R’ Shlomo Miller the pasuk above, to prove that one may vio- entities with similar structures to credit late Shabbos to save a life. But the Gemara says unions, particularly mutual whole life insur- and he concurred. v’chai bahem is the best, since it includes even ance companies. Another issue that was raised, concerns the cases of safek sakanah, while the others only al- A mutual company, also known as a cooper- right of a policyholder to borrow money at in- low for definite danger. ative, is one in which the customers or clients terest from the company, using the cash val- are also the owners. In the case of insurance, ue accumulated within his policy as collateral. Is the permission to violate Shabbos hutra or a mutual company is one owned by its policy- Wouldn’t this present a ribbis problem? As a dechuya? holders, each of whom is therefore both insur- policyholder, isn’t my money potentially going Rosh/Maharam: It is hutra like cooking on Yom er and insured. to be loaned to other Jewish policyholders at Tov, and better than violating other mitzvos. In a traditional whole life insurance policy with interest? Chasam Sofer: This is because v’shamru teach- a guaranteed return, the policyholder is guar- I believe that this is generally not a problem es that Shabbos is hutra, but v’chai bahem anteed, as long as he continues to pay the either, because this loan facility appears not teaches that other mitzvos are only dechuya. premiums, a payout of the policy’s face value to be a true loan but simply the right to par- Vyaan Yosef and Emes Lyaakov: They explain to his beneficiaries upon his death. In addition, tially cash out the policy with the opportunity based on the Rambam that v’chai bahem is a cash value accrues within the policy, and it to buy back in at a slightly higher rate (the “in- based on oness (with no choice), while v’sham- is guaranteed to grow at a designated annual terest”). This is how literature from New York ru is the preferred choice – hutra to violate rate. A policyholder may borrow money from Life explains the feature. Presented with this (continued on back) the insurance company against this cash val- literature, R’ Shlomo accepted this argument ue at low interest. Should he die having never as well. Of course, it may be different with oth- paid back the loan, what he owes is deducted er insurers, so check with the company and a Elevate your Inbox. from the death benefit paid out to the benefi- posek. Scan here to receive the weekly ciary. If a policyholder chooses at any point to email version of the Halacha Journal R’ Shlomo Miller on credit unions: an update surrender his policy, he receives the accrued Corporations were created as a means to cash value less fees. shield participants in a business venture from If credit unions are forbidden because the personal liability. It has shareholders, but (continued on back) members are viewed as partners lending to shareholders are not owners. A corporation each other with interest, readers asked, would a has its own identity and legal “personhood”; mutual life insurance company be viewed this what the corporation does is not attributable way, too? And if so, would an insurance policy to its shareholders or its employees personally. like this be forbidden, because the Jewish pol- As Leon Metzger, adjunct Professor of Finance OR SIGN UP AT BHHJ.ORG (continued on back) ADDRESS 105 River Avenue, #301, Lakewood, NJ 08701 • PHONE 1.888.485.VAAD (8223) • WEBSITE www.baishavaad.org • EMAIL [email protected] SUGGESTED SOLUTIONS be ineffective and thus exempt. Based on this, The first thing to clarify is whether or not it re- some suggest that if the utensil will break by GENERAL ally needs tevila. The Torah only enumerates immersing it, it too will be exempt. However metals in the chiyuv of tevila, and the Rab- the comparison is definitely disputatious, for HALACHA banan added glass. Plastic is customarily not while in the case of Rema the tevila is ineffec- toveled. In general the Keurig [i.e. the parts tive, in the case of the Keurig the tevila is just A Kosher Keurig? that touch water] is almost entirely plastic, fine. It’s the machine that is ineffective. By: Rabbi Baruch Fried with the exception of the two pins that punc- ture the coffee packet, and an internal met- ALMOST BUT NOT QUITE... This does however lead us to a possible solu- al bowl that actually heats the water. Since, tion, and that is to sell a share of the machine however, those metal parts are intrinsic to to a non-Jew, rendering him a partner and thus the preparation and come in contact with gaining the heter of the Rema. Although this the water, according to most poskim the en- seems like a great idea, there are various ear- tire machine is considered to be of a material lier teshuvos discussing utensils that were too that needs tevila. big to be toveled, and we don’t find this solu- Another consideration is that it needs elec- tion given. The question is why? Some present tricity to function, which requires a connec- Introduction day Poskim suggest that even the Rema never tion to an outlet at all times. Therefore some In this week’s Parsha [31:21-23] we are meant that you may do so l’chatchila, rather if Poskim suggest that we can consider it at- introduced to the requirement of purify- you already bought it together with the gentile tached to the ground and thus not obligat- ing utensils acquired from a non-Jew. The then by default you are exempt. Gemara in Avoda Zara 75B tells us that each ed to be toveled. It is very difficult to rely on Ok, so let’s go a step further and sell the whole “kashering” must include immersion in a this for two reasons. First, many early Poskim Kosher Mikva. Although the process is fairly thing to a non-Jew, and just borrow it back are of the opinion that attaching a utensil to straightforward, modern application can be indefinitely. Certainly everyone agrees that quite complex. the ground does not absolve its chiyuv tevila. something belonging to a non-Jew is exempt Secondly, many Poskim think it outright ri- even l’chatchila? The catch there is that by bor- diculous that plugging in an appliance would WHAT COULD BE WRONG...? rowing it back for that long it would seem to be considered attaching it to the ground [see Over the past few years, the coffee indus- fall under the category of a non-Jew’s collateral Shevet HaLevi Vol 2, 57]. try has been transformed with the advent of entrusted indefinitely to a Jew. In this instance the Keurig. These single serve coffee packets WHEN THERE IS NO SOLUTION... the Gemara tells us it must be toveled despite [K-cups] and their brewers can almost in- A different line of reasoning contends that its non-Jewish ownership. In fact even if lent stantly provide a cup of always fresh perfectly since it cannot be immersed without break- for a mere 30 days the Taz already requires brewed hot coffee, in an endless variety of fla- ing it, that itself absolves you from doing so. tevila, if only miderabanan. [Although we do vors. For the true coffee lover, it’s the answer to There are two ways to understand this leni- find this idea of sale to a non-Jew to exempt most of life’s problems. ency. One, since it is a positive mitzva, it is from tevila in earlier sources, it is generally only As with every new fad, the observant Jew has similar to all positive mitzvos that an “Onais” used together with other factors]. more on his mind. While the various agencies [lit. Coerced] is exempt. For instance, we find have successfully taken on the kashrus angle, that someone whose tzitzis tear in a public A WAY OUT... There is one solution that seems to be accept- some other areas are left to the consumer. domain on Shabbos may continue wearing ed by all poskim, though it does seem uncon- Chief among them is the issue of tevila.

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