Ask The Rabbi

Ask The Rabbi

category:  Other

Bathing on Shabbat and Yomtov, and concerns regarding food ingredients.

With the last two days of Pesach being from Thursday night until Saturday night this week, and knowing that we must bathe for Shabbat, are we to bathe before sunset on Thursday and not bathe again until after nightfall on Saturday? Please advise. Thanks!

Also, are food additives, like “gums,” such as acacia gum, gellen gum, carrageenan, etc., to be avoided during this time? It seems like almost everything contains them, including iced coffee, yogurt, almond milk, and even many organic products. Thank you!

There are no hard and fast rules about white shirts. In general, a white shirt is considered to be a modest but respectable garment, and a person should wear clothing that is respectable.


Also, part of the day is spent standing in prayer in front of the Creator, and this certainly warrants respectable attire.


In any case, the main thing is not the external garments, but rather the spiritual ones, namely, a person’s thought, speech, and deed. Physical clothing is only a means to the end, the goal being purity of spiritual garments.

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