08 Oct YOM KIPPUR QUESTIONS: WITH RABBI MOSHE ELEFANT FROM THE OU

What foods should one eat at
the seuda ha’mafsekes (last
meal) on erev Yom Kippur?
Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chaim 608:4)
writes that on erev Yom Kippur, one
should eat light foods that are easily digestible, so one will be
able to daven on Yom Kippur with proper concentration. There
is a common custom to dip challah in honey. Mishnah Berurah
(608:16-18) writes that one should not overeat. It is proper to
serve chicken, but red meat, and especially fatty meat, should
be avoided. Wine and other intoxicating beverages should not
be served. One should avoid foods that are overly spicy or
vinegary. Sesame should be avoided, since it can cause reflux.
Based on the Tur (Orach Chaim 604), some have a minhag
to eat fish on erev Yom Kippur. However Kitzur Shulchan
Aruch (131:12) writes that it should not be served at the seuda
ha’mafsekes, but rather should be eaten earlier in the day.

My children will be eating sandwiches on Yom
Kippur. How should they wash netilas yadayim?
Although regarding washing in the morning, Shulchan
Aruch writes that one should only wash until the knuckles,
poskim point out that if one must eat bread on Yom Kippur,
one should wash the entire hand including the palm, the same
way that they would the rest of the year (Levushei Mordechai
quoted by Shevet HaLevi 8:139 and many other poskim). In this
regard, washing for bread is like the requirement

of Kohanim to wash before reciting Birkas Kohanim. The
Mishnah Berurah (613:7) writes that Kohanim on Yom Kippur
must wash their entire hand before Birkas Kohanim. In all
these cases, there is no violation of washing hands, since the
intent is not for enjoyment.
Lehoros Nosson (2:42) explains the difference between washing
for bread and washing in the morning. Although in both cases
throughout the year, lechatchila (in the first instance) one
should wash the entire hand and bedi’eved (after the fact), it
is enough if one washed up until and including the knuckles,
there is still an important difference between them. Regarding
washing for bread, many Rishonim hold that that this is an
absolute requirement, and although we are lenient if it was
not done, Shulchan Aruch (OC 161:4) writes that one should
be careful to wash the entire hand. However, Shulchan Aruch
makes no mention of washing the entire hand to remove ru’ach
ra’ah. This was only introduced by later poskim, such as the
Magen Avrohom (4:7). Therefore, on Yom Kippur we do not
follow this added stringency, since at the same time it would be
a leniency to wash beyond the knuckles.

May a person who is ill eat or drink on Yom
Kippur?

If a person is a choleh sheyesh bo sakanah (suffering from a life-
threatening illness), it is forbidden to fast. Rather, it is a mitzvah

for such an individual to eat on Yom Kippur. Nonetheless,
halacha stipulates that when possible, the breaking of the fast

should be minimized by eating or drinking less than the shiur
(amount) for which a healthy individual would be liable for
the Divine punishment of kares. In practice, when feasible,
one who is ill should eat less than the volume of a large date
and drink less than a cheek full. Both of these volumes are
somewhere between 1 to 1 1⁄4 fluid ounces.
The Shulchan Aruch states that when a time span of kedai
achilas pas has elapsed, the same amounts can be eaten and
drunk again. There are a wide range of opinions for the length
of this time span, ranging from 2-9 minutes. It is recommended
that the reader consult their local rabbi.
If these amounts do not alleviate the life-threatening situation,
the person who is ill may eat and drink in a normal manner.
Once the danger to one’s health has passed, continued eating
and drinking should be limited to the shiur described above.
(Shulchan Aruch 618-7 and 8 and Beur Halacha s.v. ve’im)