As is customary with the complex and unexpected shailos that frequently reach the desk of HaGaon Rav Yitzchok Zilberstein, the rov of Ramat Elchonon and posek known for addressing the most intricate and unconventional cases, another question has surfaced, challenging both his halachic acumen and the very nature of modern-day tzedakah.
This particular shailah arrived recently from the heads of one of the country’s major tzedakah funds following a large fundraising campaign for a family devastated by the passing of a mother after prolonged suffering. The family, left with many orphaned children, was in dire need of support. During the campaign, something unexpected occurred. Late on a Motzoei Shabbos, the tzedakah administrators discovered that a large sum of tens of thousands of shekels had been donated through their online platform. To their shock, it turned out that several individuals, who were not observing Shabbos properly, had come across reports about the family’s situation on the internet, and their Jewish sense of compassion led them to donate large sums—despite doing so in violation of Shabbos.
The tzedakah administrators brought this question to Rav Zilberstein: Should they use the money that had been donated during Shabbos, or should they attempt to identify the donors and return the funds, explaining that the donations were made through chillul Shabbos? Or perhaps, since the funds had already been given and the tzedakah had received the money, and given that these individuals were likely unaware of the severity of their actions, there was no need to return the funds, and in fact, their donations may even provide atonement for their inadvertent aveirah.
In his detailed response, Rav Zilberstein referenced a similar halachic ruling by his father-in-law, Rav Yosef Shalom Elyashiv. The case involved an individual who had gone up to the Torah for an aliyah on Shabbos, and when the gabbai of the shul asked for a donation, the man took out money from his pocket. Despite objections regarding the desecration of Shabbos, the man claimed he was visiting and didn’t have another way to pay. The gabbai, unsure how to proceed, was concerned that returning the money after Shabbos would offend the visitor, potentially causing him to refrain from coming to the shul again.
Rav Elyashiv ruled that the money should be returned after Shabbos, even at the risk of offending the visitor, as the desecration of Shabbos in public is a severe chillul Hashem.
Rav Zilberstein, however, clarified that in the case of the tzedakah donations, the situation differs. There is no halachic prohibition on using money donated on Shabbos because, according to halacha, while one who performs work on Shabbos intentionally is prohibited from benefiting from it forever, others may use it after Shabbos without restriction. This is true even if the money was donated in violation of Shabbos, as the donors merely instructed a bank to transfer funds and did not immediately transfer the money on Shabbos itself.
Furthermore, Rav Zilberstein explained that although Rav Elyashiv had emphasized the importance of returning money given in public on Shabbos to avoid a chillul Hashem, this does not apply here because the donors did not openly give the money in public. No one was able to see the transaction on Shabbos and there is no chillul Hashem in this context.
In his conclusion, Rav Zilberstein suggested that, in order to prevent such situations in the future, tzedakah organizations should restrict donations during Shabbos through technological means. With current technology, websites can detect the donor’s location and block donations from countries where it is Shabbos. A clear notice could be displayed to inform potential donors that donations are not accepted during Shabbos.
The rov also addressed the issue of websites selling products, questioning whether it is permissible to keep such websites open on Shabbos for customers in time zones where it is not yet Shabbos. Rav Zilberstein ruled that these websites should be closed on Shabbos, as keeping them open could resemble running a store on Shabbos, which raises concerns of maris ayin (the appearance of wrongdoing).
Rav Zilberstein concluded with a personal story of a businessman who ran an online store selling electrical appliances. The businessman had asked whether he could keep his site open during Shabbos for potential customers. Rav Zilberstein advised him to close the site during Shabbos, using the technology available. The businessman followed this advice, and as a result, his sales during the week increased significantly. Eventually, he even closed his physical store and now relies solely on his website, which provides him with a respectable livelihood while allowing him ample time for Torah study.
{Matzav.com Israel}