Ask The Rabbi December 24, 1993, Issue #4 ========================================================================= This edition contains: 1. Why we don't wear tefillin all day long. 2. Explanation of accessing the Ohr Somayach List Archives on the Jerusalem1 Gopher. ========================================================================= A reader in New York writes: >Dear Rabbi, > >I recently read in a renowned Jewish weekly, an explanation for >why Tefillin are not worn all-day nowadays, even though the Mitzva of >wearing them is all day long. I read in the press that people began to >wear Tefillin so that they would be considered honest and trustworthy in >peoples' eyes. Some would take advantage of this trust to steal, cheat >and swindle. If this is so, why aren't other external signs of piety >also minimized in order to protect the innocent? > > Truly yours * * * * * * Dear "Truly yours", Your question is excellent. You always have to be careful about what your read, even if it appears in well-known, respected newspapers. The real reason that Tefillin are not worn all day today is for a different reason altogether! It is because a person's body and mind must be "clean" (halachically speaking) while the Tefillin are on the person. See the Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim, 37:2 and the commentaries there where this reason is clearly stated, and the necessary parameters are described. This requirement of "cleanliness" is extremely difficult to fulfill, and therefore Tefillin should not be worn all day (with rare individual exceptions). The source and story quoted in your newspaper do not constitute a halachically binding reason for not fulfilling the Mitzva throughout the day. Rather, they teach us that one should be careful not to be convinced of a person's honesty and righteousness solely based on the fact that the person wears Tefillin (see Tosafot, Tractate Shabbat 49a, "K'Elisha..."). This would indeed seem to equally apply to other external signs of piety, such as a headcovering, modest clothing, Mezuza-kissing, and the like. Trust is a factor of a person's inner nature which can best be measured according to the person's character traits. ========================================================================= Ohr Somayach Institutions is happy to announce that its lists are now being archived on the Jerusalem One Gopher! This means that if you want to retrieve an old issue of ASK THE RABBI, TORAH WEEKLY or PARSHA-Q&A, you can easily download it to your site. There two basic ways in which you can access the J1 Gopher: 1. Type: gopher jerusalem1.datasrv.co.il at your prompt. To do this, your system must have a gopher server on it. Speak with your systems manager if you are not sure, or if this command doesn't work. 2. Access J1 through a gopher to which you already have access. Just look for a directory which says something like: "Gopher around the world" or "Other Gophers" and then go to the "Middle-East Gophers." Jerusalem One is on this list. Additionally, the J1 gopher and the Israel-Nysernet gophers are connected to each other. Once inside the J1 Gopher, you can find the Ohr Somayach publications under "List Archives" Note to CompuServe Users: We are sorry that the above does not apply to you. This is because you can only send and receive Internet mail, but cannot actually access the Net. However, all lists are currently posted in the Religion Forum - Judaism Library (#2). ========================================================================= Jewish L EEEEEEEE Prepared by Ohr Somayach Instutitions J L E 22 Shimon Hatzadik Street, POB 18103 J L Exchange Jerusalem 91180, Israel J J L E Tel: 02-810315 Fax: 02-812890 JJJJ Learning EEEEEEEE Internet: ohr@jer1.co.il =========================================================================