Hot answers tagged employment
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It's not either/or but "both, and".
Judaism has a system of rules, halacha, by which we are to live our lives. Halacha is not negotiable, so that might sound like "all or nothing". Instead, think of it as what you aspire to, even if it's not what you currently do, which is closer to "do what you can" (but not a free pass :-) ).
As Dan noted, there are ...
9
Judaism is indeed a religion with a large number of rules, but it is certainly not "all or nothing." On one hand, the mitzvot are not considered to be simply guidelines. They are strict rules that every Jew should be careful to follow. So, in your example, Judaism says that you should not go to work on Shabbat. We have faith that we will be able to care ...
8
You don't need to jump straight to declining the invitation. There might be things you can eat, and even if not you won't be impolite to the restaurant by joining a paying group. The key is to communicate clearly. You can explain to the person who invited you -- or, more likely, his administrative assistant -- that you would be delighted to come to the ...
7
Shlichus, like described in the Gemara, means that one is sent on a mission and accepts to fulfill it. The Rebbe sent his emissaries out on their mission (and Shliach Oseh Shliach) to make this world a holier, more G-dly place and to usher in the final Redemption, Moshiach.
This explains why Shluchim do not retire, leave their positions, or make Aliyah to ...
6
The difficulty you are experiencing comes about because according to the religious viewpoint, one who does not observe the commandments is a sinning Jew, but still a Jew. The Sages stated, "A Jew, even if he sins, is a Jew" Sanhedrin 44a.
As Rabbi Yaakov Menken expresses it:
A person who is born into the Jewish people, even a sincere convert
who ...
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If you have a chance, listen to this fantastic lecture (mp3) by Rabbi Michael Broyde.
He discusses, for instance, a lawyer who does very boring, standard real-estate contracts, but his employer is a "men's entertainment company."
Inherently it's basically permissible; in most circumstances, it's questionable to what degree you're really facilitating ...
5
For the general rule, Shulchan Aruch Yore Dei’ah Simon 117 reads like this (parentheses are RaMah): “Anything that is forbidden by Torah law, even if it is something that one may derive pleasure thereof, if it is something specifically for food – it is forbidden to do business with it (or to borrow against it. Even to buy it to feed it to his non-Jewish ...
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Don't forget that Kohelet said "For there isn't a righteous person on earth who does only good and never sins". Do as much as you can and always strive to do better. If not being able to keep Shabbat properly upsets you enough, you will find another job that enables you to keep Shabbat, and so on for all the rest. I heard once "How can a Tzaddik sin?" - and ...
5
Quoting from "Rubashkin Revenge: Ethical Certificates at Center of Dispute" (Jewish Journal, Los Angeles, July 25, 2012:
Although the pushback against the Tav appears to be coming primarily, if not exclusively, from individuals affiliated with the Chabad Lubavitch movement, there is no evidence that any official encouragement came from Chabad, according ...
4
I am not sure why people are opposed, as different people give different reasons, and there is no "official" opposition front. Moreover, while no one (to the best of my knowledge) forbids one to place a sticker saying "R' Yanklowitz likes this company", there are several sticky points in this particular case, most stemming from a lack of honesty as to their ...
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Per Revach Rabbi Moshe Sternbuch Shlita says that if they are Mechalel Shabbos B'Farhesia they have the same Halacha as a non Jew and there is no requirement for them to wash their hands. However he concludes that if the owner has control then he should require that they wash their hands three times prior to handling the food.
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When I was an EMT I lived in a place where there were many Jews in the rescue squad. The local rabbis told us to arrange a rotation which ensured that there was always someone to answer calls but that we didnt have more people than we need.
I would say that Jewish firefighters should try not to be on-call on shabbat but if they need to respond to life ...
4
Foods sent via a non-Jewish courier and not sealed are forbidden to the (Jewish) recipient, as a precaution in case the courier switched the kosher food sent with non-kosher food he picked up along the way. However, most pos'kim hold that where there is no incentive for the courier to switch the food, there is no concern; moreover, if there is no opportunity ...
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The best thing to do, by far, is to work with your boss to rearrange your schedule so you're not cutting it anywhere near that tight.
But for theory's sake, if you somehow find yourself stuck: the most-common practice in North America is to publish candle-lighting times that are 18 minutes prior to sunset. (Among other things, this is to accommodate one ...
3
Strictly speaking, as Shalom wrote, you can probably* rely on the 18 minute "window". Many people do.
I have, whenever necessary, arranged with my employers and/or clients to allow me to leave work at a time deemed (by me) adequate to allow me to commute home and prepare for Shabbath and (deemed by them) adequate to allow me to complete my work. This has ...
3
One may not do business with food objects as food if they are biblically forbidden to eat, except Chelev (certain forbidden fats) which are specially excluded (Leviticus 7:24) from this prohibition. If one happened to acquire such foods he may sell them, but should do so immediately. (my summary of Shulchan Aruch YD 117)
Accordingly, one should not raise ...
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H/T Rabbi Torczyner.
Binyan Tzion I:75 (Rabbi Yaakov Ettlinger) addresses a rabbi who was asked "may I deliver my sister-in-law's baby?" Halachically, inappropriately touching your sister-in-law is no different than inappropriately touching random married-to-someone-else woman, but there's perhaps a certain "eww" factor that prompted the question.
His ...
3
I would advise that a person consult their rabbi before taking such a job, but if you tell me that someone has done so, I'm not particularly shocked nor concerned.
One issue is a prohibition not just on eating non-kosher, but on deriving tangible benefit from it. (Which would mean you couldn't sell it.) There are very few categories of non-kosher that fall ...
3
It would seem (because I don't see it in the Mishna) that the earliest usage is the Tosefta Brachot 6:12 (7:12 in some editions):
המוהל צריך ברכה לעצמו או' ברוך על המילה
The Mohel must make a blessing himself [even if he is not the father?]. He says, "Baruch [...] Al HaMilah."
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You ask two questions:
Is there a halachic reason to be opposed to Uri L'Tzedek and Tav haYosher? Why do some frum Jews oppose it?
I cannot answer the first. As to the second, the culture of the orthodox Jewish community is that it is resistant to change and that new trends tend to meet opposition at first. Here, for example, rabbis for centuries, and ...
2
There was an initiative very similar to this from non-halachic groups, and in general an objection raised about a non-Torah true organization imposing requirements in the guise of a hechsher. Perhaps there is perception that the objection raised in that case apply here. I am not informed if the same issues apply here or not. They inlcude: Being founded ...
2
There is a concept in halacha called "habal'ah"; lit. swallowing up. Although it is forbidden to pay someone for work they did for you on Shabbos, if you are paying a weekly rate and Shabbos happens to be one of the seven days, it's permitted. In the hotel case, the Jewish waiters must work a little before or after Shabbos and be paid for the entire job ...
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Both answers you received are correct. Judaism is a religion of laws and the goal is for each person to follow the rules completely. But that "completely" is changeable. It is well established that in order to save a life, one may push aside other laws including the sabbath. If Judaism were purely "all or nothing" then that could not be the case -- one would ...
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Abarbanel explains this verse - that one may work the other 6 days - not that one is required to work.
http://www.hebrewbooks.org/pagefeed/hebrewbooks_org_33655_43.pdf
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The Tzitz Eliezer, a posek who specialized in medical issues, dealt with the issue at length, unfortunately I don't have access to the index or Bar Ilan search engine currently. However, from a anecdotal side the Rabbis of the PUAH institutes decided that only men, and not women, should be speakers at a gynecological conference.
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As Ariel stated, in theory one can perform services (not physically-creative actions like plowing, planting, cooking, writing, burning and the like) such as childcare, waiting/bussing tables, teaching/sermonizing/performing prayer services if there is a lump payment for a period of time that includes some non-Shabbat.
Thus you could pay a babysitter for ...
1
The Mishneh Berurah (448:11) writes that regarding chametz owned by a Jew over Pesach, from which one cannot benefit normally, if the chametz was sold to an apostate Jew because he is a friend and you know that he will return the chametz to you after Pesach, and you figured (in error) that an apostate Jew is for all matters considered to be a non-Jew, then ...
1
See Aruch HaShulchan YD 117:27 where he makes clear that people can rely on the kula to operate a store in which they sell some non-kosher products, since the majority of their business is with kosher things, and the only reason they are selling the non-kosher things also is because they would lose business if they didn't have these things available also. ...
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Seemingly the answer could be inferred from what it says in Choshen Mishpat Siman 58 Sif 4.
The Machaber says that if one owes 2 separate debts to someone, the creditor may collect the money from the one who owes the debts and decide which debt he is collecting on. Not only that, says the Machaber: even if the person says he is giving the money to pay back a ...
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You may use the water from the tap.
The Rema writes (YD 105:3):
אסור לערות מכלי שיש בו שומן כשר לנר דולק שיש בו חלב או שומן איסור
ובדיעבד אין לחוש.
It is forbidden to pour from a utensil that contains kosher fats into
a lit candle that contains non-kosher fats, but after the fact one
should not be concerned about it.
This seems to be ...
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