chillul hashem when praying?

Home Forums Tefilla / Davening chillul hashem when praying?

Viewing 16 posts - 1 through 16 (of 16 total)
  • Author
    Posts
  • #1465606
    mik5
    Participant

    Today, I missed the Mincha minyan that is near my college, so I was davening Mincha in the stairwell in the college. I picked a stairwell that has relatively little traffic. But it happened that there was a security guard who saw me standing there facing the wall and he says to me, “Sir are you all right”? I nod politely. He says to me, “You cannot “hang out” in the stairwell like that.” So I show him the siddur that is in my hand. He says to me, “You can go to the lounge, but you cannot hang out here.” What should I do? (I don’t think he understood that I was praying; maybe he thought I was studying or something.)

    What ended up happening is that I continued to nod politely and he BH left me alone, which I quickly finished davening. What would you have done? Did I make a Chillul Hashem by acting in a strange way?

    #1465898
    icemelter
    Participant

    Why daven in a stairwell got to a room or something

    #1465940
    jakob
    Participant

    i would have-without disturbing my tefillah by talking to him-walked to a better location & continue davening thus not talking in between & still being one tefilla

    in the future in colleges its best to remain low profile & not attract any attention of judaism to yourself & C”V not cause any anti-semitism

    #1465941
    Joseph
    Participant

    You know the Halacha about the King who interrupts the Yid in middle of Shemona Esrei?

    #1466301
    mik5
    Participant

    As mentioned, the reason I chose the stairwell is because it is a relatively quiet place with relatively little traffic. If I go to a classroom, maybe a class will come or maybe the cleaning guy will need to clean there, whereas in a stairwell I am not bothering anyone and I can daven as long as I want. To walk in the middle of SE is not l’chatchila. If I would be a Muslim guy with a carpet, no one would have said a word to me. I thank Hashem that the situation did not escalate beyond what I described, and that BH I did not transgress the halacha of not talking or walking during SE. Rabbi Yitzchak Zilber, in anti-Semitic Soviet Russia, once pretended that he was having a heart attack and was unable to speak to avoid talking to someone during SE. L’havdil, Reb Sholom M. Rubashkin personally told me that he was moser nefesh, at great personal risk, not to talk in the middle of davening when in jail.

    in the future in colleges its best to remain low profile & not attract any attention of judaism to yourself & C”V not cause any anti-semitism

    What are the paramaters of keeping a low profile? Is it OK to wear a yarmulke and tzitzis out? Is it OK to daven there if there is no other place for me to daven? Have you ever put on tefillin on a plane? I put on tefillin while traveling to Spokane, Washington and no one said a word to me. Was I bothering anyone by standing in the corner and praying?

    #1467585
    keith
    Participant

    When I’m on a plane I go to the back and ask a flight attendant if I can take a few minutes to pray and please let me know if it’s a bad time I’ll do it elsewhere. They’ve always been very kind and eager to help. I believe you can daven Shemona Esrei seated if necessary. I had to look up if I could do it as a passenger in a car and found sources it is OK if necessary. I wear yarmulke and tzitzis out only on weekends, not for work. I go to the gun range, probably the only Jew there, always with yarmulke on and tzitzis out and everyone is very nice to me. I think most Americans are respectful toward people observing their religion, as long as we are not obnoxious about it.
    (I am BT and not well educated so take it with a grain of salt.)

    #1467898
    Avram in MD
    Participant

    mik5,

    When I daven mincha at my office, if possible, I will block out a 15 minute period on the calendar for a small and private meeting room. If I don’t have a reservation, I opt to daven in the break room rather than my cubicle, because people may stop by my cubicle with questions, raising the chance of interruption.

    In your case, the lounge might be the best bet, even though it’s probably not a quiet place. If the lounge does not work, I’d speak to a friendly faculty or staff member, or even a security guard. More often than not they are delighted to help, and their solution might be much better than a stairwell. At my first job location, my start time was too early to make shacharis with a minyan. I spoke to a colleague who managed the office IT equipment, and he pointed me to an IT storage room that almost nobody went into except for him. He jokingly called it “the synagogue” after that.

    #1468495
    zahavasdad
    Participant

    One can certainly make a Chilul Hashem when praying.

    A simple example is , during takeoff on a plane when the passengers are supposed to be sitting down buckled in, you get up and start davening (Praying in yout seat is permitted in this circumstance according to most opinions)

    Ive seen people on a plane pray in front of the bathroom and thereby blocking the bathroom for people to use

    #1468626
    HaLeiVi
    Participant

    From now on just carry with you a Muslim rug. Just put it down in the gutter and nobody will bother you.

    #1470283
    iacisrmma
    Participant

    Years ago phone booths were available.

    #1470343
    BaltimoreMaven
    Participant

    I was on a plane and a “minyan” of Yidden actually blocked people who were IN the bathrooms from leaving. Huge chillul Hashem. Oh – they were frum women in the bathroom!

    #1561402

    That’s not the intended use of a phone booth.

    #1561395
    jew boy2
    Participant

    The halacha is that if someone or something is disturbing you in middle of shmone esrei, you may walk away…

    #1561427
    cherrybim
    Participant

    One should always daven at his seat while on a plane.
    You can apply this rule to other situations as well.

    #1561615
    Joseph
    Participant

    cherrybim: As I’ve mentioned to you ten years ago, Rav Chaim Pinchus Scheinberg always davened with a minyan when flying on a plane.

    #1561654
    Talmidchochom
    Participant

    the most classic example? Coming to shul late. Plain and simple. If you had a business meeting you would not walk in 45 minute3s late. I see this disturbing behavior each and every Shabbos morning.

Viewing 16 posts - 1 through 16 (of 16 total)
  • You must be logged in to reply to this topic.