The Shabbos meals and eating chametz

Shulchan Aruch, siman 444, se'ifim 3-4: Erev Pesach that falls on Shabbos

"One may not cook porridge or the like on this Shabbos, and one may not make a thick dough of bread in a bowl. And if one transgressed and cooked, and the food is stuck to the pot and cannot be wiped off, he may rinse it slightly."
(Shulchan Aruch, se'if 3)

The Shabbos meals and eating chametz

Two meals with bread: Even on this Shabbos one is obligated to eat the Friday night meal and the Shabbos morning meal with bread, and chametz may be eaten until the end of the time for eating chametz, roughly ten o'clock.
What the poskim rule today: In practice, all the poskim direct that one should not cook foods on this Shabbos that carry chametz complications.
The problem of the utensils: Whoever cooks chametz foods will then have to wash the utensils, put them away, and move them to the room where the chametz utensils are stored, and all of this on Shabbos itself.
The problem of warming food: The hotplate has already been kashered for Pesach, and warming chametz foods on it is liable to cause spills and further problems.
What may be done: Foods that contain no chametz, such as a kitniyos soup. In earlier generations there were no disposable utensils, so the difficulty was greater.
Thick dough in a bowl: Crumbling bread into a salad or into another food. Even though eating it is permitted during the permitted hours, chametz remnants are left over afterward that have to be disposed of.

If he transgressed and cooked: rinsing the utensils on Shabbos

The leniency: The Shulchan Aruch is lenient and permits rinsing the utensil to which the food is stuck and cannot be wiped off.
The difficulty: Washing dishes on Shabbos for a need that arises after Shabbos is forbidden, and here the utensil will not be used again until after Pesach.
The basis of the leniency: The rinsing is done for the sake of a mitzvah, to be rid of the chametz. Some disagree with this leniency.
The precision of the word "slightly": One may rinse only enough to remove the chametz, not to wash the utensil thoroughly for the use it will have after Pesach.

"After he has eaten the morning meal on Shabbos, he should shake out the tablecloth on which they ate, wipe the bowls with his finger, and store them away with the rest of the chametz utensils."
(Shulchan Aruch, se'if 4)

Shaking out the cloth: He shakes the crumbs off the tablecloth.
Wiping with a finger: Here too the discussion is not about rinsing with water, but only about wiping the bowls with a finger.
Storing the utensils: After wiping, the utensils are put away together with the rest of the chametz utensils.

The practical approach to the morning meal

Two pitas: The simplest approach is to eat just two pitas, to try not to create crumbs, to eat over a cloth, and to finish the bread entirely.
Continuing the meal: Once the bread has been finished off, one may go on to eat whatever he wishes on disposable utensils, which are thrown out in any case.
With regular utensils: Someone using regular utensils should not cook chametz in them, so as not to get into the problems that arise after the meal.

Disposing of the leftover chametz on Shabbos

Bittul and hefker: After eating, one says "kol chamira" and renounces ownership of the chametz, and with that he is freed of the Torah prohibition of "it shall not be seen in your possession."
Why hefker alone is not enough: The Sages were concerned that a meaningful amount of chametz sitting there in front of a person would come to be eaten by mistake, either by him or by a child. It is therefore not enough that the chametz is no longer his.
The shared garbage bin: Some say one may throw the remnants into the building's shared garbage bin, and not everyone agrees with this.
The concern of a cat or dog: Some say that if a cat or a dog is able to pull the chametz out of the bin, that shows it is still fit for a dog to eat, and throwing it there is not biur (destruction of the chametz).
Suggested solutions: To wrap everything up and pour a sharp liquid over it so that it is no longer edible; others say it is enough to seal everything in a plastic sheet or a bag and tie it well.
The practical conclusion: It is better not to get into this whole tangle at all, and not to eat any chametz foods other than the bread itself.

Matzah ashirah on this Shabbos

The Ashkenazi custom: Ashkenazim do not eat matzah ashirah ("rich matzah," dough kneaded with juice rather than water) on Pesach.
Until the end of the time for eating chametz: Up to that point there is no question at all, since at that hour even actual chametz may be eaten.
Where the question really comes from: The question did not arise because of the first two meals, but because of seudah shelishis, the third meal, which people want to eat after the time chametz becomes forbidden.
Why it does not solve the problem for Ashkenazim: According to the Ashkenazi view, matzah ashirah is considered chametz or possible chametz, so one would have to dispose of it just as he does of bread, and nothing has been gained.
Its berachah: If one bases a meal on it, there is a discussion whether he recites Hamotzi lechem min ha'aretz.
Kitniyos: With kitniyos foods there is no problem.

A Shabbos followed by Yom Tov: the prohibition of hachanah (preparation)

This subject is not unique to this Shabbos; it applies to any Shabbos that is followed by Yom Tov.

The principle: Shabbos is holier than Yom Tov, and therefore one may not do anything on Shabbos for the needs of Yom Tov.
Setting the table for the Seder: There is a halachah in the Shulchan Aruch to set up the Seder in advance, and in a year when erev Pesach falls on Shabbos this cannot be done on Shabbos, since it is preparation for Yom Tov.
Preparing on Friday: Even preparing on Friday presents a difficulty, unless there is a separate room in which everything is set up and which is not used on Shabbos.
When one may begin: No preparation for the Seder night may be done until Shabbos has gone out and Yom Tov has begun.

Melachos that are forbidden even on Yom Tov

There are things that may not be done even on Yom Tov itself, and therefore they must be prepared before Shabbos.

Maror: Someone who uses lettuce has no problem. Someone who uses horseradish, which is normally ground, faces the fact that some poskim forbid grinding on Yom Tov.
Charoses: Cutting, the way one prepares a salad, is permitted on Yom Tov, but grinding is forbidden; therefore charoses that is made by grinding must be prepared beforehand.
Salt: Some say that even preparing salt is forbidden on Yom Tov.
The practical rule: Anything that involves grinding should be prepared on Friday.

The Shabbos clock (timer)

The problem: The timer was set to shut the lights off at twelve, and the Seder runs until two in the morning.
According to Shemiras Shabbos Kehilchasah: It depends on the type of timer, and with most of today's timers one may extend it.
The rule: An action that is already in progress may be extended, for example by moving the pins so that the lights stay on until two; and on Yom Tov this is certainly not a problem.

Candles, tea lights, and having a flame for Yom Tov

Muktzeh with tea lights: With tea lights a piece of metal is left at the bottom, and most poskim forbid removing it, since it is muktzeh and may not be moved.
The solution: Prepare other candles, or "Chinese" candles, and replace them rather than removing the leftovers.
A flame for Yom Tov: One must prepare before Shabbos a candle that burns for more than twenty four hours, since a flame is needed on Yom Tov. Some prepare a forty eight hour candle, and sometimes it turns out that a candle labeled twenty four hours actually burns only twenty two.
An oil lamp with a fixed wick: Here there is no problem, since he is only adding oil and the wick stays in its place.

The laws of the first cup

"One pours the first cup, recites Kiddush over it, and recites the berachah of Shehecheyanu."
(Shulchan Aruch, the laws of the first cup)

"Before he recites Kiddush he should have in mind that he wishes to fulfill the mitzvah of Kiddush and also the mitzvah of the four cups."
(Mishnah Berurah, in his introduction to the siman)

(The Mishnah Berurah places these words before his commentary on the language of the Shulchan Aruch.)

The cup of Kiddush is one of the four cups

The essential halachah: The Kiddush cup is not merely a cup of Kiddush; it is one of the four cups, and it carries the status of a cup of the Seder.
The practical difference: On an ordinary Shabbos there is tosefes Shabbos, and a person may accept Shabbos an hour early, make Kiddush, and eat. On the Seder night this cannot be done.
Why one may not start early: Even though the matzah is eaten at night in any case, and even if he makes Kiddush at six o'clock he will only reach the matzah after two hours of the Haggadah, the Kiddush itself is the obstacle, because it is one of the four cups and must take place at night.
The source of the halachah: The Torah says that the matzah is eaten on this night, and the matzah is linked to the korban Pesach: "with matzos and bitter herbs they shall eat it." The korban Pesach was slaughtered in the afternoon and eaten only at night, and the entire ceremony is subordinate to the korban; therefore the cups and the drinking must also be at night.
The practical result: The whole Seder is pushed to a late hour. The minyan begins around seven thirty, davening ends at eight fifteen, and by the time people get home and arrange things the Seder begins at a quarter to nine, and there is no way to start earlier.

Stating the intention before Kiddush

The wording: Some have the practice of saying, "I hereby am prepared to recite Kiddush and to fulfill the mitzvah of the four cups," in order to remind the person that this cup is part of the four cups.
When to say it: One must be careful to say this before Kiddush and not after it, since once he has recited Borei pri hagafen he may not interrupt between the berachah and drinking, and any additional statement is an interruption.

Kavanah for the mitzvah of telling the story, and saying Leshem Yichud

The language of the Mishnah Berurah: Before Kiddush and before the Haggadah he should have in mind, or state, that he is fulfilling the mitzvah of recounting the Exodus from Egypt.
When no statement is needed: When the act itself demonstrates the intention, there is no need to say Leshem Yichud. A person who goes to the trouble of bringing a lulav to shul on Sukkos, or a shofar on Rosh Hashanah, clearly intends to fulfill his obligation.
When it is needed: For something that involves no act, or where the act is not self evident, such as a person reading from a book, there is no proof that his intention is to fulfill the mitzvah of recounting the Exodus, and therefore it is preferable to say Leshem Yichud.
Another view: Some hold that speech itself is like an act, and according to that there is no need for any statement. Some follow one practice and some the other.

Kiddush on motzei Shabbos: Yaknehaz

The Mishnah Berurah notes that if Yom Tov falls on Shabbos one says Vayechulu, and if it falls at the conclusion of Shabbos one recites Kiddush with the Yaknehaz order. This year Kiddush is this special version, as it is for every Yom Tov that follows Shabbos.

Yayin (wine) - he takes the cup of wine and recites Borei pri hagafen.
Kiddush - the special Kiddush text of Yom Tov.
Ner (candle) - Borei me'orei ha'eish.
Havdalah - the text of Havdalah, which distinguishes between one holiness and another.
Zman (time) - the berachah of Shehecheyanu.

The candle used for Havdalah

The difficulty: One may not light a special candle for Havdalah the way we do at the conclusion of an ordinary Shabbos, since it may not be extinguished on Yom Tov.
The twenty four hour candle: One lights before Shabbos a candle that burns for more than twenty four hours, but it has only a single flame, whereas for Havdalah it is preferable to have a torch, that is, two flames.
The solution: Some bring the candle close to the Yom Tov candles and recite Borei me'orei ha'eish over the Yom Tov candles that the wife lit, or over the combination of the flames together, which amounts to the same thing.
The order of lighting: There is an approach that the wife lights the candles first, and those candles are the Yom Tov candles.

The wife lighting candles at the conclusion of Shabbos

The difficulty: She is lighting Yom Tov candles before she has heard Havdalah, while it is still Shabbos for her.
What she must do: She must wait until the time of Shabbos has passed, say "Hamavdil bein kodesh lekodesh," and after that she may light and attend to all the needs of the Yom Tov.
A practical point: Half an hour goes by until the husband returns from shul, and during that time she can prepare all sorts of things, once she has said Hamavdil bein kodesh lekodesh. This rule applies to every Yom Tov that follows Shabbos.

Why no berachah is made on besamim

The halachah: At this Havdalah there are no besamim (spices).
The reason: There is no neshamah yeseirah (additional soul) on Yom Tov, and therefore nothing is lost when one moves from Shabbos into Yom Tov.
The reason for besamim at the end of an ordinary Shabbos: The neshamah yeseirah departs, and the Gemara expounds "Shabbos: vai nefesh," woe, the soul is gone, and a person is pained by the loss of that extra soul. The Rambam and others say that so he should not be pained, he smells spices, since fragrance is something spiritual and some measure of that feeling remains in it.
The proof that there is no neshamah yeseirah on Yom Tov: At the Havdalah from Yom Tov to Chol HaMoed, at the conclusion of the first day of Pesach, we recite Havdalah over wine alone, without a candle and without besamim. This shows that Yom Tov has no neshamah yeseirah, and therefore even at the conclusion of a Shabbos that leads into Yom Tov we do not make a berachah on besamim.

In passing · related matters

Outside Eretz Yisrael

Three consecutive days: Outside Eretz Yisrael this year produces three consecutive days, and they are used to preparing candles for two and three days, so it is nothing new for them.

The advantage of erev Pesach falling on Shabbos

The chance to rest: Some say that erev Pesach falling on Shabbos is a good thing, because in other years people arrive at the Seder exhausted, whereas here one can rest on Shabbos and sleep in the afternoon, and that also solves the food problem, since someone who is sleeping is not hungry.

(The continuation of this subject will be explained in the next shiur.)