Volume 12 Issue 15 TOPIC Women and Davening SPONSORED BY: KOF-K KOSHER SUPERVISION Compiled by Rabbi Moishe Dovid Lebovits Reviewed by Rabbi Benzion Schiffenbauer Shlita Edited by: Rabbi Chanoch Levi HALACHICALLY SPEAKING Halachically Speaking is a Website Management and Emails: monthly publication compiled by Heshy Blaustein Rabbi Moishe Dovid Lebovits, a former chaver kollel of Yeshiva SPONSORED Torah Vodaath and a musmach of Harav Yisroel Belsky zt”l. Rabbi לזכר נשמת מורי ורבי Lebovits currently works as the הרה"ג רב חיים ישראל Rabbinical Administrator for ב"ר דוב זצ"ל בעלסקי the KOF-K Kosher Supervision. Dedicated in memory of Each issue reviews a different area of contemporary halacha ר' שלמה בן פנחס ע"ה with an emphasis on practical applications of the principles SPONSORED discussed. Significant time is spent ensuring the inclusion of לז"נ מרת רחל בת אליעזר ע"ה all relevant shittos on each topic, SPONSORED as well as the psak of Harav Yisroel Belsky, zt”l on current לעילוי נשמת .issues מרת בריינדל חנה ע"ה בת ר' חיים אריה יבלח"ט גערשטנער WHERE TO SEE HALACHICALLY SPEAKING Halachically Speaking is distributed to many shuls. It can be seen in Flatbush, Lakewood, Five Towns, Far Design by: Rockaway, and Queens, The Flatbush Jewish Journal, baltimorejewishlife.com, The SRULY PERL 845.694.7186 Jewish Home, chazaq.org, and frumtoronto.com. It is sent via email to subscribers across the world. SUBSCRIBE To sponsor an issue please call FOR FREE 718-744-4360 and view archives @ © Copyright 2016 www.thehalacha.com by Halachically Speaking Women and ח.( )ברכות Davening Te halachos that regulate women’s obligation in tefllah are complex. Do they have to daven? Which parts בלבד... הלכה אין לו להקב"ה בעולמו אלא ד' אמות של הלכה בלבד... of davening? Why do many women not daven? Is there a diference between Shacharis, Minchah and Ma’ariv? What about Mussaf, Hallel and other parts of davening? Is there any point in coming to shul during the week to daven with a minyan? Many women have no time to daven the entire Shacharis – is there any point in saying just part? All these questions and many others will be addressed in this issue. Introduction – Mitzvas Asei Shehazman Grama Women are exempt from mitzvas asei shehazman grama,1 mitzvos that are time bound,2 such as tefllin,3 sukkah,4 tzitzis,5 and shofar.6 Tere are some exceptions to this rule, such as the four cups on Pesach night,7 Megillah,8 ner Chanukah,9 and tefllah (see below). Some explain that since a woman is obligated to serve her husband she does not have time for certain mitzvos 1. Maseches Kiddushin 29a, see Rambam Hilchos Avodas Kochavim 12:3. 2. Rashi Maseches Kiddushin ibid “zman.” Also see Ritva Maseches Kiddushin 29a, Sha’agas Aryeh 12, Mitzvas Asei Shehazman Grama pages 24-28. 3. Shulchan Aruch O.C. 38:3. 4. Shulchan Aruch O.C. 640:1, Taz 1. 5. Shulchan Aruch O.C. 17:2. 6. Refer to Maseches Kiddushin 35-36. Also see Mitzvas Asei Shehazman Grama pages 23-28. 7. Maseches Pesachim 108b, Tosafos “af sh’hein.” 8. Maseches Megillah 4a. Refer to Ritva Megillah ibid. 9. Maseches Shabbos 23a. SPONSORED BY: Women and Davening | 3 due to their time constraints.10 Others argue that if Hashem commands us to do a mitzvah it cannot be ignored because she has certain obligations to her husband. Te answer is that running a household is a very time-consuming afair, and someone has to be available to tend to these errands. When a mitzvah arises that is bound by time (mitzvas asei shehazman grama) a dispute may arise in the home as to who should leave the work in the home and do the mitzvah. Te Torah did not want a dispute in this area. Since women are usually the ones busy with the housework, they will do it and the men will do the mitzvah.11 Is Tefllah a D’Oraisa or D’Rabbanan? Tere is a major debate in the poskim if the obligation to daven is d’Oraisa or d’Rabbanan in nature. Te Rambam12 and others hold that it is a d’Oraisa,13 while the Ramban14 and most poskim15 say that it is d’Rabbanan in nature. Even the Rambam agrees that the times to daven are d’Rabbanan.16 Troughout the article, when we refer to tefllah we mean Shemoneh Esrei.17 We will frst discuss Shemoneh Esrei and then discuss other areas in order of the davening. 10. Kol Bo 73. Refer to Halichos Shlomo Tefllah 2:6. 11. Mitzvas Asei Shehazman Grama pages 32-33, Divrei Yatziv O.C. 5:5. 12. Sefer Hamitzvos 5 and 10. For more on this discussion see Meiri Maseches Brachos ibid, Pri Chadash 89:1, Yabia Omer O.C. 6:17, Higyonei Haparshah 1:pages 286-294. 13. Refer to Kaf Hachaim 70:7. 14. On Sefer Hamitzvos 5. 15. Refer to Beis Yosef O.C. 106, Taz 1-2, Pri Megadim M.Z. 2, Magen Avraham 2, Sha’agas Aryeh 14, Sha’arei Teshuvah 1, Mishnah Berurah 3, Kaf Hachaim 7. 16. Rashi Maseches Brachos 17b, 20a, Shulchan Aruch Harav 2, Mishnah Berurah 106:4. See Aruch Hashulchan O.C. 89:1-7 on this in depth. Refer to Halichos Beisah .pages 37-38:6 עג.( הבא... )נדה הלכות בכל יום מובטח לו שהוא בן עולם כל השונה הלכות בכל יום מובטח לו שהוא בן עולם הבא... )נדה עג.( 17. Refer to Magen Avraham 106:1. As far as women and krias haTorah see Rivevos Ephraim 6:62, 153:12, 7:314. In regard to their own minyan see Minchas Yitzchak 9:11, Igros Moshe O.C. 4:70:5, Ohr L’tzion 2:9:5:footnote 5, Rivevos Ephraim 6:153:12, Eretz SPONSORED Hatzvi page 99:13, B’ikvei Hatzon pages 21-37 in depth. BY: 4 | HAlAchicAllY SpeAKiNg Source / Reason Te Mishnah18 says that women are exempt from Krias Shema and tefllin, and are obligated in tefllah and mezuzah. ח.( )ברכות ח.( Tis is codifed by the poskim as well (regarding tefllah, see below regarding other areas of davening).19 Te Gemara20 explains that one would assume that women are obligated בלבד... הלכה אין לו להקב"ה בעולמו אלא ד' אמות של in Krias Shema even though it is a mitzvas asei shehazman grama, since it involves kabbalas Malchus Shamayim. Terefore, the Mishnah needs to say that they are exempt. Te Gemara21 continues that women are obligated in tefllah although it is considered a mitzvas asei shehazman grama, because tefllah is asking for mercy (and we all need mercy). Tis reason is quoted by Rashi22 and others.23 Te Rambam exempts women from tefllah because it is considered a mitzvas asei shelo zman grama.24 Tis reason is quoted by others as well.25 Leniency Te Magen Avraham26 says that the Rambam’s obligation of tefllah d’Oraisa is to daven once a day, without any particular nusach. Terefore, those women who do not daven on a regular basis rely on a short tefllah that they 18. Maseches Brachos 17b, Brachos 20-20b. Refer to Rashba 20a. 19. Rambam Hilchos Tefllah 1:2, 6:10, Shulchan Aruch 106:2. Refer to Yalkut Shimoni Shmuel 80. 20. Maseches Brachos 20b. 21. Ibid. 22. Rashi Maseches Brachos “v’chayavin.” Refer to Tosafos “b’teilah.” 23. Levush 106:2, Taz 106:2, Pri Chadash 89:1, Shulchan Aruch Harav 106:2, Mishnah Berurah 4, Shulchan Hatohar (Karmarna) 106:1. Refer to Aruch Hashulchan O.C. 106:5-6. See Megadim introduction to Hilchos Tefllah O.C. 89. 24. Hilchos Tefllah 1:2. Refer to Yabia Omer O.C. 6:17. 25. Rif on Maseches Brachos 20b, Shulchan Aruch 106:2, Levush 70:2, Yufei Leleiv 106:2, Shulchan Aruch Harav 2, Yaskil Avdi O.C. 6:14 in depth, see Pri Chadash 1. 26. 106:2. Refer to Pri Megadim Eishel Avraham 106:2, Sha’ar Hatzion 106:5. SPONSORED BY: Women and Davening | 5 recite when they awaken in the morning (we will discuss what this is later on). Tis is quoted by other poskim as well.27 Tose who hold like the majority that tefllah is a d’Rabbanan would not agree with this.28 Accordingly, some are hard pressed to explain why women do not daven every day (see below).29 Te custom in some circles is to rely on the opinion of the Magen Avraham.30 Another Leniency In earlier years, women did not go to school and were not able to read Lashon Kodesh.31 Terefore, they were not able to daven. Tis is not the case today when girls go to school.32 Terefore, girls should daven (see below).33 Which Kind of Short Tefllah According to the leniency of the Magen Avraham quoted above, there must be some sort of bakashah (asking for needs) to constitute a tefllah.34 Others say that praise of 27. Shulchan Aruch Harav 2, Chessed L’alafm 106:1, Mishnah Berurah 106:4, Eretz Tzvi 34:page 82, Emes L’Yaakov 106:footnote 131, see Igros Moshe O.C. 4:101:2. 28. Shulchan Aruch Harav 2, Mishnah Berurah 106:4. 29. Aruch Hashulchan 106:7. 30. Vayevarech Dovid Tefllah page 44. Te Nemukei Orach Chaim (47:1) says that the custom is that women do not daven every day, except the very modest ones and the elderly. It could be that women do not daven based on the halachah that a woman may become a niddah (impure) or see blood when she is a niddah during Shemoneh Esrei and will not be able to daven (Rema O.C.