Wednesday, December 21, 2005

Where to light Chanukkah candles?

If you live in an apartment building in Israel you have a big question as to where to light Channuka candles.

There are 4 options:
1. Outside the front door of the building
2. Outside your apartment door
3. In a window facing the street
4. On your table inside

I will now explain the pros and cons of each one.

1. Outside the front door of the building - The gemara in Shabbos states that the mitzva is to light right outside your door. However, if your door opens up to a חצר (courtyard) and not the street, we pasken that you should light outside the door of the courtyard which opens to the street (this is a machlokes Rashi and Tosafos). Based on the above, many poskim say that the hall and stairwell of an apartment building is considered to be a חצר and therefore you should light outside the front door of the building. However, the Chazon Ish disagress. The Chazon Ish claims for various reasons (not for now) that the hallway and stairwell of an apartment building are not considered to be a חצר and therefore you are not יוצא if you light in front of the building as it has no connection to you.
2. Outside your door - This is problematic because it doesn't face the street and no one can see it
3. In your window - this is good if you are on a low floor, however, if you are on a higher floor above 20 Amos (approxiamtely 30 feet) then it doesn't help to put it in your window. Some poskim claim that if there are other apartments at your height around (across the street) then since those people can see it at your level, that is called a window looking out to the Reshus Harabim
4. On your table - This is the default option if you have no other choice.

The bottom line is it is hard to know what to do. I know people who light 2 menoras. 1 outside the building door to be יוצא the opinion that the hall and stairwell is a חצר, however, to be יוצא the Chazon Ish as well they light in their window as well.

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