Last Minute Preparations
Shimon and Sarah Gold, together with their seven children,
were planning to travel from Israel to spend Pesach in
America. On the 12th of Nisan, the day of their flight, their
daughter Rachel suddenly became extremely ill and was running
a dangerously high fever. After examining Rachel for a few
minutes, Dr. Brown told the Golds that their daughter could
not travel and they would have to make arrangements to spend
Pesach in Israel.
The next two days were a frantic rush for the Gold family, as
they hurriedly tried to pack four weeks of preparations into
forty-eight hours. After two days of nearly nonstop toil,
they finished their Pesach preparations at five in the
morning on the 14th of Nisan, erev Pesach. Mr. Gold
davened Shacharis, burned his chometz and collapsed
onto his bed.
At about 11:30 a.m. Mr. Gold woke up and realized that there
were a number of things that he had failed to take care of in
his haste. He looked at his watch, and realized that in less
than an hour it would be chatzos (halachic noon). How
should he proceed with his remaining Pesach preparations?
In order to advise Mr. Gold, we will have to investigate the
unique nature of erev Pesach, and understand the
underlying principles that define which melochos are
permitted on that day.
Erev Pesach Afternoon
It is forbidden for one to work on every erev Yom Tov
from the time of Mincha (half an hour after
chatzos), and anyone who does melochoh after
this time will not see brochoh from this work. In
former times, a beis din would have been obligated to
stop him, by force if necessary, though he would not have
been given lashes or ostracized.
On erev Pesach, the halachos are more stringent
than before other festivals on two counts: First, the
prohibition not to do melochoh starts at
chatzos; and second, someone who does melochoh
after this time would receive lashes or be ostracized.
What is the reason for the additional stringency? The
afternoon of erev Pesach is unlike other festival eves
because during this time we performed the shechita of
the korbon Pesach (Rambam, Hilchos Yom Tov 8,
17).
In Temple times, bringing a korbon was more than just
a routine religious ritual; the whole day was considered a
holiday for the person bringing the sacrifice. He was
obligated to observe the work restrictions of Chol
Hamoed for the entire day. With regard to erev
Pesach, since the korbon could only be offered
after noon, the prohibition not to do melochoh started
then (Yerushalmi, Pesochim 4,1).
Today, we do not have the Beis Hamikdash and are
unable to offer a korbon Pesach. If the reason that
erev Pesach was considered a Yom Tov was because of he
korbon Pesach, today this reason is no longer
applicable. So why is melochoh still forbidden? The
Sages prohibited work on erev Pesach even for someone
who was not bringing the korbon Pesach, and thus
melochoh remains forbidden until another beis
din of similar stature revokes this decree (Ran,
Pesochim 50a).
Erev Pesach Morning
Between preparing the Seder plate, getting rid of
chometz and countless other arrangements, erev
Pesach is one of the busiest times of the entire year.
Therefore in addition to the stringent prohibition not to do
melochoh in the afternoon, some have the custom not to
do melochoh in the morning as well. This practice is
not universal and it varies in different communities
(Pesochim 50a according to Rashi and Tzlach).
Nowadays, Jews from all different backgrounds live side-by-
side, so clarifying one community's specific custom is no
easy matter. Each individual should act according to his own
specific custom that he has received from his father or
rabbi; he is usually not bound by the custom of wherever he
lives (Igros Moshe, Even Haezer 1, 59). He must only
forgo his personal practice in a case were all of the rabbis
of an area got together and established a uniform custom
(HaRav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach as cited in Yom Tov Sheini
KeHilchoso, end of note 15).
Some poskim write that today the custom in all places
is to permit melochoh in the morning (Aruch
HaShulchan 468,5). Since in his area most people do
melochoh on erev Pesach morning, and in any
case Mr. Gold was in a highly unusual situation, he may rely
on the lenient opinions that permit doing melochoh
before chatzos. However since Mr. Gold woke up shortly
before noon, he was more concerned with the halachos
regarding after chatzos.
Shave and a Haircut
Mr. Gold's first question was whether he could take a haircut
and shave. He called up his rov, Rabbi Silver, and asked him
about this and all of the other issues that he had forgotten
to take care of in the mad rush to get the house ready for
Pesach. The following is a short synopsis of his answers:
Rav Silver explained that the general principle is that
although the halachos of erev Pesach are more
stringent than other festivals, they are more lenient than
those of Chol Hamoed. Before Yom Tov it is a mitzvah
to take a haircut even after chatzos, and on Chol
Hamoed it is forbidden. Where does erev Pesach fit
in?
On a theoretical level, taking a haircut on Chol
Hamoed should be allowed, since melochos done for
the sake of the holiday are permitted. Nonetheless, our Sages
forbade haircuts and shaving, so that a person should not
postpone them until Chol Hamoed and go into Yom Tov
unkempt. Since erev Pesach is still prior to the
festival, there are a number of leniencies in our case.
One of the highest forms of charity is to give someone a job,
enabling him to earn money while preserving his dignity. In
certain situations our Sages permitted one to hire an
impoverished Jewish worker on Chol Hamoed, to do
melochos which would have been otherwise prohibited.
Although a haircut is forbidden on Chol Hamoed, a
person may hire a Jewish worker to give him a haircut on
erev Pesach if the worker does not have adequate means
to celebrate Yom Tov in a respectable manner.
May one take a haircut from a non-Jewish barber? In many
instances our Sages forbid one to ask a non-Jew to perform
melochoh on Shabbos and Yom Tov, for this could bring
one to constantly get him to do melochos. This
prohibition also applies on Chol Hamoed where the same
concern is relevant. The authorities disagree with regard to
erev Pesach, and the consensus is to be lenient.
Therefore, Mr. Gold can take a haircut from a non-Jewish
barber (Rema 468,1).
Last-Minute Laundry
Just as our Sages forbade haircuts and shaving on Chol
Hamoed, they also prohibited washing clothes, so that it
would be taken care of beforehand. Therefore Mr. Gold may not
take his suit in to be dry cleaned by a Jewish-operated
store. If the store is run by non-Jews, then he may give them
his suit after chatzos.
Just before chatzos, Mrs. Gold loaded up the washing
machine with laundry. Even though the load will not be
finished until after midday, as long as she pushes the button
to start the machine before noon, the subsequent wash cycle
is not considered her action. If Mrs. Gold can get to a
Laundromat, she may load up as many machines as she likes
before chatzos (Shemiras Shabbos Kehilchoso
42,139).
Certain types of clothing may be washed on Chol
Hamoed. These include baby clothes which constantly get
dirty. Since erev Pesach is less stringent than
Chol Hamoed, these would certainly be permissible to
wash (Hilchos Chag BeChag 14,13).
Blood Tests
Mr. Gold finished his Yom Tov preparations, and breathed a
sigh of relief that he had completed everything in time.
Suddenly, he remembered one thing he had not yet done; Dr.
Brown had recommended that he should get a blood test for his
daughter. Mr. Gold coaxed the girl into a taxi, and headed
for the clinic to get this done before Yom Tov.
On the way, he phoned Rav Silver to tell him that all was
well, and that he had managed to get all of his preparations
done. When he mentioned to him that he was on his way to get
a blood test for his daughter, Mr. Gold was slightly taken
aback when the rav asked him how urgent it was. Assuming that
the concern was that he would run out of time, Mr. Gold
replied that he thought that they could complete the test and
be home well before candle lighting.
Rav Silver replied that it was not the time that concerned
him. Our Sages revealed that at the time the Jewish people
were offered the Torah, Hashem sent out a special heavenly
agent whose name was Tovach (butcher), who would have
annihilated them had they refused to accept the Torah. Every
year on erev Shavuos this spiritual being roams the
world and it is dangerous to draw blood at that time lest
this spirit seize the opportunity to cause harm. Our Sages
prohibited this on every erev Yom Tov, lest one come
to take blood on erev Shavuos when it could be
dangerous (Rema 468,10).
Nonetheless, Rav Silver told Shimon to go ahead with the
blood test. Since this was a case of need, and the primary
danger is drawing blood on erev Shavuos, it was safe
to do the blood test. Furthermore, some poskim limit
this halochoh to an actual operation or blood
donation, and do not consider a routine blood test, where
very little blood is drawn, to be included in this
prohibition (Rivevos Ephraim 1,340).
Gradual Transitions
Family, health, livelihood, and education — all year
long we are preoccupied with so many important issues. At
times even our spiritual endeavors use up so much of our time
and energy that we forget the end goal of all of our
activity. Three times a year all other cares fall by the
wayside, and our mind is freed to concentrate on our primary
reason for existence — our relationship with Hashem.
Considering the hectic lifestyle of the average 21st-century
Jew, most people find it hard to tranquilly welcome Pesach
with absolute peace of mind. Realistically speaking, we
should be happy if we are able to get everything done with
enough time to rest up to prepare ourselves for one of the
most important nights of the year, Seder night. The more that
we prepare ourselves physically, emotionally and spiritually,
the more we will gain from this special experience.
Our Sages displayed tremendous wisdom in forbidding
melochoh on erev Yom Tov. It is simply not
possible to go straight from deep involvement in worldly
endeavor to total focus on the spiritual. It is also
extremely difficult to savor spiritual liberation while one
is exhausted and distracted by worldly cares. Ceasing work at
chatzos is essential if we are to fully appreciate the
once-a-year experience of Seder night.
