Is there a limit to the amount of candles one may light on
Yom Tov?
In days of
old, the more light in one’s home the merrier, consequently
there would be no limit as to the amount of candles one may
light on Yom Tov. Nowadays candles are not used (in most
places) for light and candlelight seems superfluous. If
however candlelight has some use, whether to heat food or
for aesthetic reasons or if it enhances one’s Yom Tov, or
for the sake of a mitzvah, for example, one who normally
lights candles according to the number of children etc, it
is permitted.
Should one light Yom Tov candles
before Yom Tov?
Some say
that since candlelight is not needed for light one should
light Yom Tov candles before Yom Tov. When Yom Tov falls on
a Friday it is problematic to light Shabbos candles when
electric lights are blazing,
or in chutz la’aretz on the second night.
The answer
is that candlelight adds to the ambience and festivity of
Yom Tov and without candlelight the meal is not the same.
Dining on Yom Tov night without candles is not the same as
with candles, even though they are not needed for light.
Accordingly one may light candles on Friday Yom Tov for
Shabbos; on Yom Tov night and on second night Yom Tov.
Is it permitted to light candles in
shul?
Many are
accustomed to light candles in shul on the chazzan’s
podium even though it is not for light (during the day etc.)
and it is permitted on Yom Tov as well.
The same with lighting candles at a b’ris milah, even
though it is not for light.
May one light a ner neshama (yohrtzeit
candle) on Yom Tov?
A candle
lit on yohrtzeit must be lit before Yom Tov as
benefiting from the light is not the purpose. If however,
one forgot to light the yohrtzeit candle, one should
light in the dining room thereby deriving benefit from the
candlelight or even better it should be lit in shul.
The Bi’ur Halacha concludes that in time of need it
is possible that one may light it because it is associated
with a mitzvah – in honor of one’s parents.
May one smoke on Yom Tov?
Much has
been written on the subject, so we will just present the
basics.
The
stringent opinion bases himself on a halacha in
Shulchan Aruch
that says the following: one may not burn incense on coals
on Yom Tov, whether to smell or to add fragrance to the
house or clothes. The chidush (innovation) of this
se’if is that even though one derives direct benefit
from incense on Yom Tov, it is not
ùåä ìëì ðôù – (not performed by the majority of the
populace).
A major
halacha pertaining to melachos on Yom Tov says
that a melacha is permitted only when the majority of
the populace are accustomed to it -
ãáø äùåä ìëì ðôù, but
something that only finicky or the nobility do is
prohibited. Only aristocrats burn incense and therefore it
is prohibited on Yom Tov.
Consequently, the majority of the populace do not smoke
thereby rendering smoking something is not
ùåä ìëì ðôù. The Bi’ur
Halacha states that the stringent opinion includes
other problematic issues.
The lenient
opinion (at the time of the Mishna Berura it was the
majority opinion) holds either because many people smoke,
making it ùåä ìëì ðôù, or
because those who unfortunately smoke suffer without it.
Nowadays,
many poskim agree that smoking is prohibited on Yom
Tov because of the health risk involved and the enormous
decline in smoking habits throughout the world – making it
not ùåä ìëì ðôù.
May one burn chometz found on Yom
Tov Pesach?
It would
appear to be a great mitzvah of burning chometz,
however the halacha is to the contrary. The
Shulchan Aruch writes
that one who finds chometz on Yom Tov must cover it.
It may not be handled on account of muktze, nor may
it be burned (even without handling it), because it is not a
fire necessary on Yom Tov, as one can dispose of the
chometz without burning it.
The
Mishna Berura
however cites poskim who are of the opinion that one
who did not annul his chometz may discard it and some
even hold that it may be burned, based on the law of
îúåê – meaning since
burning is permitted when necessary, it is permitted even
when not necessary, (notice that even they do not say that
it is called needed).
He
concludes that most poskim agree that halacha
is like the Shulchan Aruch.
