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It took me a long time to upgrade my technology, but I admit that lately, I have been using my smart phone during davening.

My rav doesn't object, but some of my friends told me that it's prohibited or not recommended. Though, when asked, they haven't been able to really explain why other than that "I heard this".

I'm open to reading some opinions from notable rabbis or poskim that explain why it's absolutely forbidden or permitted but not recommended, with an explanation of their reasoning. This assumes that it's fine to use a smart phone, altogether. Just not for davening from it. Are there any such opinions?

I can't quite see the problem, but, then again, my smart phone may be making me dumber than I think I am :-)

Isaac Moses
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DanF
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  • Perhaps it might be a matter of having gotten into the habit an forgetting not to use it on Shabbos or Yom Tov. Then again, does it make sounds or interfere with someone else's concentration on davening (for example if a call comes in during davening)? – sabbahillel Dec 08 '15 at 19:42
  • @sabbahillel I don't think any of those are the issue. Most frum people know not to use the phone on Shabbat. As for the ringing, well, many people who use siddurim still have their phones ring, esp. in the middle of Shmoneh Esreh. And, from what I've seen, in one case, the rav is the one who is getting the most calls! If that were a concern, they would request turning off the phones before davening begun. Then, again, perhaps, that would encourage more schmoozing instead of texting, which is what people tend to do now. At least davening is now a bit quieter! – DanF Dec 08 '15 at 20:40
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    Haskafically I can see Rabbis objecting to cell phones during davening just like they objected to wearing a coat or rain boot covers during davening,since one wouldn't dress like that an important meeting,so to one can extend that to a cell phone since it would be inappropriate to look at ones cell phone during an important meeting even if one was looking something up that pertains to the meeting – sam Dec 09 '15 at 01:00
  • @sabbahillel I have a siddur app which has an option to automatically forward calls to voicemail while the app is open. I suspect that if there are rabbis who are opposed (which I have little doubt there are), the objection is probably more along the lines of what sam suggested. – Daniel Dec 09 '15 at 15:18
  • @sam I'm not discounting your comment, and the analogy to the meeting is ALMOST doing it, but not quite. I've attended many meetings. Some people use their smart phones for things during the meeting, and, sometimes, that's expected, actually. (My office touts "paperless" and some managers obey that far better than others.) Here, it is clear that you're suing the phone for the purpose of the "meeting" with G-d. I don't think He really minds, but, then again, I tried calling HIM this morning to ask him, and he hasn't yet responded. I had to leave a message on His voice mail :-) – DanF Dec 09 '15 at 15:20
  • Let us continue this discussion in chat. – DanF Dec 09 '15 at 16:24
  • one doesnt have the same yishuv daat (calmness) from a sidur whose only purpose is for davening than a smart phone. all the memories of what you did with the smart phone and thoughts of what you will do tend to flood your mind. one can see this also when writing an email on a computer. it's just not the same as sitting down with pen and paper and writing a letter. – ray Sep 26 '16 at 21:42
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    @sam But wouldn't it also be inappropriate to spend an entire conversation staring at a book? Wouldn't it also be inappropriate to spend an entire conversation swaying? – mevaqesh Sep 26 '16 at 23:42
  • For what it's worth, R. Tsvi Berkowitz is fine with it... – mevaqesh Sep 26 '16 at 23:42
  • In general if nobody can demonstrate that something is forbidden, or give any reason why it might be forbidden, I would not worry about it. – mevaqesh Sep 26 '16 at 23:44
  • @DanF Did you ask the friends where they heard this? You may be close to the source of the information already. – WAF Sep 27 '16 at 00:08
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    Many people who use their phones to daven end up using their phones for other things as well during davening. For instance, they're waiting for the sh"tz anyway, so they decide to check their e-mail, etc. Obviously, such activity is neither conducive to kavannah nor appropriate behavior during prayer.

    This would be a very plausible reason to classify it as generally "not recommended", though I can't be certain that this was the reasoning of the specific anonymous 'psak' your friends told you about.

     – Jay Sep 27 '16 at 13:31
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    Rabbi Aryeh Lebowitz gave a pretty good treatment of the topic recently. http://www.yutorah.org/lectures/lecture.cfm/869997/rabbi-aryeh-lebowitz/using-a-smartphone-in-shul/ – Shmuel Brown Jan 31 '17 at 18:36

1 Answers1

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Before discussing praying on a smart phone, there is the question of even having it enter the synagogue. Sephardi Chief Rabbi of Israel, R. Yitzhak Yosef (the son of R. Ovadia Yosef), considers some problems related to the subject in his Yalkut Yosef (O"H 151:29):

מי שיש לו מכשיר טלפון נייד [פלאפון] צריך לכבותו קודם שיכנס לבית הכנסת, כדי שלא יצלצל באמצע התפלה, ויגרום לביטול כוונת המתפללים. [וגם לא ישאירו במצב של רטיטה, כיון שהדבר יפריע לו עצמו לכוין בתפלה]. ומן הראוי שהגבאים שומרי משמרת הקודש יעירו לנכנסים לבית הכנסת עם פלאפון פתוח, שיכבוהו עם כניסתם לבית הכנסת. [כן הוא בספר משנת יוסף חלק ב' (סימן כז). ואם מותר להתפלל עם פלאפון החגור במתניו, יש שכתבו שהדבר תלוי אם המנהג כיום לפני הנשיאים [המלך] עם פלאפון חגור במתניו, שאם אין נוהגים לעמוד כך בפני הנשיאים, אז גם בתפלת שמונה עשרה אין להתפלל כך. ובפרט שבבתי התפילה של הגויים אין מרשים להכנס לשם עם פלאפון תלוי במתניו].

Anyone who has a mobile phone must turn it off before entering the synagogue, so that it does not ring in the middle of the prayer, which would cause the worshipers to void their intention. [And they will also not leave in a state of trembling, since the thing itself will interfere in directing one's prayer]. It is fitting that the gabbaim, who guard the sanctity of the synagogue, alert those who enter the synagogue with an open cell phone, and have them closed at the entrance of the synagogue. As brought down in the book Mishnat Yosef 2:27. Regarding whether one is permitted to pray with a cell phone tied to his waistcoat, some say that this depends on whether the custom of today comports with standing before the presidents [like that of a king] with a cell phone wearing his waistcoat. In other words, if it is not the custom to stand like this before presidents, then so too one should not pray the amidah in this way. Particularly, in the prayer houses of the gentiles, it is not permitted to enter there with a cell phone hanging on his waist.

According to R. Yosef, some of the issues with having a smart phone in a synagogue involve:

  1. Disturbing the prayers of others
  2. Impeding one's kavvanah during prayer
  3. Complying with the decorum of standing before a king

From the language of the halakha, however, it seems R. Yosef is only thinking about wearing a cell phone to the synagogue, not praying from it. Additionally, R. Yosef's ruling also came in the early era of cell phones, before their current ubiquity and multi-functionality.

Directly answering the question of praying from a smart phone, R. Hillel Meirs writes:

לכתחילה אין להתפלל או לברך ברכת המזון מתוך פלאפון היות ואת עלולה לקבל באותו זמן שיחה שתסיח את דעתך מהתפילה, וכן אנשים עלולים לחשוד שאת מתעסקת בפלאפון בזמן התפילה. ומכל מקום אם אין לך סידור, ואת לא יודעת בעל פה את נוסח התפילה או ברכת המזון, בודאי שאת יכולה להתפלל או לברך מתוך הפלאפון. ויש להכניס את הפלאפון למצב טיסה כדי למנוע הסחות דעת (וע"ע בשו"ת אשר חנן חלק ג' סימן ז).

One should not, from the outset, pray or recite Birkat Hamazon from a cell phone because you might get a call at the same time that distracts you from prayer. People might also suspect that you are doing other things on the cell phone while praying. But if you do not have a siddur, and you do not know by heart the wording of the prayer or Birkat Hamazon, surely you can pray or bless from the cell phone. In that case, the cell phone should be put into Airplane Mode to avoid distractions.

This answer, in my opinion, shows more familiarity with smart phones than the first ruling. Even if the phone is on silent, the notification of a caller would unnecessarily distract someone in the middle of their prayer - such as by leaving the text of the siddur and seeing the caller displayed. This is why the rabbi suggests putting your phone on airplane mode, which would disable the phone from calls, texts, and other potential distractions.

Additionally, the rabbi raises the potential marit ayin situation of praying with a smart phone. Unlike a printed siddur, you can turn to other apps and messages with your phone, a option the rabbi seems to think might leave a negative impression with other congregants.

Finally, another contemporary authority, written by Dr. R. Avraham Lipshitz, goes over the halakhic sources that problematize praying with a smart phone. In addition to reasons already mentioned, he brings up the talmudic discussion of carrying important objects during prayer. This is another halakhic difference between a siddur and a smart phone, as he writes:

הגמרא אוסרת להחזיק ביד בעת התפילה חפצים שונים, שהחזקתם עלולה להטריד את דעת המתפלל בחששו לקדושתם של חפצים אלו או להפסד ממון אם חלילה יפלו. יש שאסרו בשל החשש להיסח הדעת אחיזתו של כל חפץ שהוא. בתנאים מסויימים ולשיטה מסויימת יחוייב המחזיק בחפצים כאלו לחזור ולהתפלל שוב. יוצא מכלל כל החפצים הוא הלולב, שאחיזתו הותרה בגמרא כיון שיש בכך מצוה. הוא הדין שמותר להחזיק סידור בזמן התפילה. הסידור האלקטרוני הוא חפץ יקר, שאם יפול ייגרם הפסד ממוני רב, ולכן חלוק הוא מהסדור הרגיל. ולכן אסור להתפלל מתוכו.

The Gemara forbids holding objects during prayer, which may be of concern to the person praying. The worshiper's concern about the sanctity of these objects or the loss of money if, heaven forbid, they fall. There are those who have forbidden, because of fear of distraction, holding any object. Under certain conditions and in a particular way, the holder of such objects will be required to return and pray again. An exception to these objects is the lulav, in which holding it was permitted in the Gemara because it is a mitzva. The same is true for holding a prayer book. The electronic siddur is in an expensive object, and if it falls there will be a great financial loss, and therefore there is a difference between holding a phone and a regular siddur. Therefore it is forbidden to pray from within a phone.

Aryeh
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    I'm curious how #1 is an issue when you can silence your phone. It's not a movie theater. Not sure how #2 is an issue, either - some people daven better off of smartphones rather than books. And I don't understand #3 - is it proper decorum to stare at a book before a king? – DonielF May 25 '17 at 11:38
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    This is an interesting answer. Although, @DonielF poses some interesting follow-up questions, that I can't outright ignore without digesting this a bit. I question the last sentence in the 1st citation, that Gentiles don't enter their prayer houses with cell phones hanging on their waists. Maybe in Israel, they are better "behaved" than in U.S.? With all respect to R. Yosef, how many churches has he entered during their prayer time to know this is true? – DanF May 25 '17 at 16:01
  • @DanF: I agree that that R. Yosef's ruling is less cogent, but I wanted to bring up his writing as he is a major posek. I've added more sources and explanations that I hope give more breadth to the subject. – Aryeh May 25 '17 at 18:38
  • Note the rules of how to look etc apply only during the Amida. For other parts that's not an issue – Double AA May 25 '17 at 18:42
  • Why should the Siddur's value be relevant? Is it similarly forbidden to pray out of a rare 12th century manuscript Siddur because it is valuable? – Double AA May 25 '17 at 19:09
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    @DoubleAA: Because, as Rashi comments on Shmuel 's ruling in Brakhot 23b, people who hold valuables like money or bowls will be distracted from their prayers. Do people value the condition of printed siddurim as they do their iphones? Btw, who's praying from a rare 12th century manuscript? That's neither a practical issue nor a very smart decision for the collector. But yes, I'd guess such a manuscript would similarly be forbidden as the (sensible) person should be concerned about damaging it. – Aryeh May 25 '17 at 19:26
  • How about a really expensive Lulav and Etrog? Does anyone say the Heter to hold your Etrog only applies if it's ugly? I'm just not buying that it's a problem if you're using it right. Rashi's examples are extra things, not things for prayers. – Double AA May 25 '17 at 19:27
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    @DoubleAA: That's exactly what Hazal ask in Sukkah 41b. They rule that unlike other valuables, holding the parts of the lulav fulfill a mitzvah, so a person is not likely to be distracted by them when praying. – Aryeh May 25 '17 at 19:33
  • I'm not following you. A siddur seems like it should be the same as a Lulav where price doesn't matter. Price is only a factor in holding random objects. – Double AA May 25 '17 at 19:34
  • Also, why is there Maaras Ayin? 1. You can see what he's doing 2. We don't make up modern Maaras Ayins. 3. Ein Ledavar Sof (You can't speek on the phone because it's Maaras Ayin - how does anyone know you're not listening to Kefira? Or even more so, Are you allowed to live alone with milk and meat in your kitchen? Do outsiders know that you're not mixing the two secretly?) – ertert3terte May 25 '17 at 20:15
  • @ShmuelBrin: The rabbi doesn't call it marit ayin; I did as a shorthand. It couldn't technically be m"a anyway since the rabbi doesn't consider the action prohibited to begin with. He's just concerned that it might look fishy, but that can be mitigated by using a printed siddur. As for the siddur=lulav debate, it sounds like R. Lipshitz claims that an elect. siddur is not just a siddur or like a lulav; it's a valuable object that you use for all sorts of things unrelated to prayer. Holding it is thus like holding an object you don't want damaged during prayer, with all the rules that apply. – Aryeh May 26 '17 at 01:12