I read somewhere that bar mitzvah and wedding invitations should not contain pesukim. If one receives a bar mitzvah or wedding invitation that contains pesukim and throws it into the garbage, has the sender transgressed lifnei evair?
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Harel13
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Chiddushei Torah
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Are you talking about the possibility of disposing of Shaimos? Maybe you want to edit this into the question. Also, do these psukim have G-d's name anywhere? The typical "Od Yeshama" on the wedding invite does not mention G-d's name. – DanF Jul 29 '14 at 16:45
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@DanF I recommend you read Ginzei Hakodesh by Rabbi Yechezkel Feinhandler for more on these Halachos. edited by moderator for tone. – Chiddushei Torah Jul 29 '14 at 16:57
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http://adathisraelshul.org/rabbis-study/jewish-lifecycles-in-halacha/65-the-wedding/257-wedding-invitations.html – Double AA Jul 29 '14 at 17:04
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@DanF The Shulchan Arukh (YD 283:4) forbids embroidering verses onto a Tallit lest you bring it into the bathroom. It seems independent of the name of God. – Double AA Jul 29 '14 at 17:05
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Oz Nidbaru 7:65:2 says that one may throw invitations with Pesukim on them into the garbage, so long they are wrapped in something.
Gershon Gold
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@DoubleAA: Yes it does. One may throw it in the garbage so long it is wrapped, thus there is no Lifnei Evair for the sender. – Gershon Gold Jul 29 '14 at 16:58
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- You didn't claim that in the post, so no it doesn't. 2) Why isn't there lifnei iver that he will throw it out unwrapped? Even if there was Vadai Shem HaShem the guy might bury it.
– Double AA Jul 29 '14 at 16:59
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I think that this article will answer your question:
Even three words in a row are considered a pasuk (see Gemara Gittin 6b). However, if the letters are improperly or incompletely formed or spelled it is permitted (Tashbeitz #2). This is the reason why printers sometimes abbreviate pasukim or combine letters like “alef” and “lamed” to form a single letter. (Although most usages of these abbreviations have nothing to do with this halacha.)
For this reason, some people print on invitations the following, “Naaleh es Yerushalayim al rosh simchaseinu,” “We will place our memories of Yerushalayim above our celebrations,” because it is not a quotation of a pasuk, although it is similar to one (Tehillim 137:5). Therefore, this is permitted.
Some authorities permit printing unnecessary pasukim if marks are placed between the words or if the words are not in a straight line. They feel that these arrangements of words are not considered pasukim (cf. Shu”t Tashbeitz #2 who disagrees). Similarly, some poskim allow printing invitations that quote words from pasukim, so long as the pasukim are broken up so that no three words are printed together. (However, it should be noted that many poskim prohibit this.)
The last paragraph would explain why the typical "Od Yeshama" pasuk is often in a curved line. I've also seen the "Kol Sasson / Kol Simcha" with spacing in between. Since it's only 2 words at a time, it would meet permissibility, too, based on that opinion.
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DanF, If "A" sends a bar mitzvah or wedding invitation (with pesukim in it) to "B" and "B" will toss out the invitation, has "A" transgressed “lifnei evair”? – Chiddushei Torah Jul 29 '14 at 19:19
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@ChiddusheiTorah - Tough to answer this b/c there are multiple factors. But, taking just 1 scenario - If the invitation has either the curved format and / or less than 3 psukim together and the sender follows that opinion, the sender has not violated anything. And, if the receiver throws it out, he has not violated anything, either. Ergo, there is no "Lifnei Iver". If it doesn't have the format, then, possibly, yes. The bigger problem is that the sender already violated a prohibition by printing it that way, to start. By mailing it, even if it's not "Lifnei Iver" it may be "machti harabim." – DanF Jul 29 '14 at 20:45