I have learned that the tzitzit should be laying on the outside of the tallit, but I do not see that people are careful about it. How important is it for it to be done properly?
I am a kohen who comes from America, where a kohen does not duchen (do Birkat Kohanim) if he is chazan. At the yeshiva I am at, even the chazan duchens. What should I do if I am asked to be chazan?
Unfortunately, I did not look at a siddur last night when reciting Al Hamichya. I made a couple mistakes along the way, and I remember specifically leaving out the words “al ha’aretz” in the chatimah (end part). Was I yotzeh?
From early 1843 until August 1859, the only authorized burial location within the city of Chicago was in a location then called City Cemetery. This plot also included the first Jewish cemetery in the city of Chicago. During the Civil War, this graveyard served as the final resting place for thousands of confederate prisoners of war who died in nearby Camp Douglas, which was used as a prison camp. About 145 years ago, this cemetery was closed to new burials, and many of its graves were later exhumed. Subsequently, the city constructed residential and commercial areas, city streets, and a major park, Lincoln Park, which includes a zoo and museums, atop the seventy-two acres of the cemetery. Lincoln Park and its zoo and museums are very popular, particularly as locations for family chol hamoed outings. Our halachic question is: May a kohein visit these parks or must he be concerned about the tumas meis to which he may be exposing himself?
The executor of my mother’s will is starting to distribute funds. I saw in P’ninei Halacha (online) that the beneficiaries should say Hatov V’hameitiv when they receive the funds. In our case, distribution will be piecemeal. When/how often should I recite the beracha?
If one decided to accept a stringency and is refraining from doing something, without a verbal acceptance of a neder (oath), at what point is it considered binding? While for something active, three performances make it binding, how does refraining from action work to accomplish it?
