לעילוי נשמת

יואל אפרים בן אברהם עוזיאל זלצמן ז”ל

Question: Before leaving the house on Shabbat, may I select a hat from a box of hats in case I will be cold on the way home, or is that a borer problem, because the selection is not for immediate use?

Answer: The three requirements (each required by Torah law) of permitted borer (selection), when separating two things that are “mixed together” (taarovet) are: 1. One takes what he wants from what he does not want; 2. He does not use a special separating utensil; 3. The separated item will be used “immediately” (l’altar) (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim 319:1-2). You ask about whether one who does not plan to wear the hat for quite a while but is leaving the house now is considered “l’altar.” At first glance, if you will not use the hat anytime soon, it is not “l’altar” and is, therefore, forbidden (“How long?” is a good question—see Rama ad loc.). Possible arguments that it is still “l’altar” are: A. Since you do not have an opportunity to do it later, the last possible time might be l’altar; B. Maybe leaving the house “properly equipped” is considered a use as you leave. Are these arguments correct?

Shemirat Shabbat Kehilchata (3:(190)) posits that the fact that this is the last opportunity to select does not turn the selection into “l’altar.” As far as leaving the house equipped, he cites (3:(185)) Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach as saying something similar (not all agree): “If one selects something to lend to a friend, it is fine if he selects soon before giving it even if the friend will use it only later because, from the lender’s perspective, his use (giving to his friend) is done right away. In your case, though, you are not thinking of ‘helping yourself’ but about being ready if you are cold later, and this is not “l’altar.””

There are, however, other reasons that might permit taking the hat, in certain cases. While the Gemara talks about separating good and bad (pesolet), Rishonim apply it also to separating two things that are both good (but one is wanted now), if the two items are of different minim (types) (Terumat Hadeshen I;57; Rama, Orach Chayim 319:3). Two different species of fish are two minim (ibid.); one species of fish but one is cooked and one is fried are two minim (Chayei Adam II, 16:5; Mishna Berura 319:15); if the difference between the pieces is size, it is one min (ibid.).

If the contents of the box are all interchangeably usable hats (women are often more discerning), they are likely to be one min and there will be no borer. Poskim say that if one wants to choose a specific book or article of clothing, borer does apply (Shemirat Shabbat Kehilchata 3:68-69). It is unclear where to draw the line on the question of how different the hats are from each other and how thought out your preference of one is (e.g., color match, quality, appropriate for Shabbat). If you cannot determine there is one min, if you are willing to take the first one that comes to hand without choosing (and without repeating until you are satisfied), it is not borer (see ibid. 78).

While we assume there can be a taarovet of relatively large objects (see Terumat Hadeshen ibid.), borer is less likely with large objects (see Shevitat Hashabbat, Borer 11). It is possible, then, that if the hats are arranged in an orderly manner, there is no taarovet (see Orchot Shabbat 3:23).

There are two possible ways to solve an existing borer problem. According to Rav Moshe Feinstein (Igrot Moshe, Orach Chayim IV 74), one can undo the taarovet by randomly throwing its contents in a manner that the items become clearly distinct, and then there are no requirements. Not all agree to this “divide and conquer” approach (see Orchot Shabbat III:119).

Another suggestion is to “create” an immediate use, by wearing the hat you choose for a short time. It can be a contrived use (see Shemirat Shabbat Kehilchata 3:69)—like the Biur Halacha’s (to 319:4) idea—as in one removing bones from meat to lick them before discarding them. A prominent rabbi told me that you would not need to enjoy wearing the hat at all, but there might be some bar to reach (see Piskei Teshuvot 319:12).

Rabbi Mann is a dayan for Eretz Hemdah and a staff member of Yeshiva University’s Gruss Kollel in Israel. He is a senior member of the Eretz Hemdah responder staff, editor of Hemdat Yamim and the author of “Living the Halachic Process, Volumes 1 and 2” and “A Glimpse of Greatness.”