Eating Before the Shabbos Meal:  The 5 Connections

By Rabbi Yair Hoffman for 5tjt.com

The men and Yeshiva boys come home from shul.  They make kiddush and eat right before the meal.  Are they permitted to do so?  When finished, do they make a bracha acharona – an after bracha?  Or is the food covered by the bentching that will be made after the meal?

MISNOMER ABOUT HAMOTZI

It is a fallacy that is somewhat prevalent in our community that the HaMotzi covers everything that will be eaten during the meal.  Foods that are generally not eaten as part oof the meal require their own bracha – even after a HaMotzi was made.  For example, if someone decides to sneak a chocolate bar during the meal – a shehakol would be recited.

THE FIVE CONNECTIONS

Let’s get back to our original question as to whether a bracha acharona is recited on pre-meal food items.  When there is a valid halachic connection between the foods eaten before the meal and the foods eaten during the meal then a bracha achronah on the pre-meal food would not be recited.   There are a total of five possible connections that are mentioned in the Poskim:

1. THE COVERED BY THE BRACHA CONNECTION – If the person wants to eat that food in the meal and it would have not been covered by the HaMotzi of the meal. An example would be chocolates.  What he should do is have in mind that his pre-bracha of shehakol should cover the chocolates that he will have during the meal itself.  In such a case, the pre-meal food is connected to the meal food and he would not recite a bracha acharona.  If he does not wish to continue eating chocolates in the middle of the meal – then he does recite a bracha acharona – the borei nefashos on the chocolate.
2. THE APPETITE-WHETTING CONNECTION – If the food is being eaten in order to whet the appetite for the meal, then an after-bracha is not recited (see MB 176:2,3). Nutrition experts explain that certain foods, such as cakes and heavily sugared items, not only do not fill us up but actually whet our appetites even further. The reason is that the nutritional value in these products has been depleted during processing. They actually make our feelings of hunger worse, even if we have eaten a few minutes earlier. However, it is only true if one eats it for the purposes of whetting the appetite.
3. THE ONE DRINK CONNECTION – An after-bracha is not recited when one wishes to continue drinking during the meal (Mogain Avrohom 174:14 cited in Biur Halacha “V’afilu). The issue is not simple, however, and many Poskim advise people not to drink a safaik amount.
4. THE CAKE CONNECTION – Most cakes are baked and fall into the category of Pas HaBa B’kisnin and are considered safaik bread – possible bread and are thus covered by HaMotzi (ideally, one should have in mind that it will be covered by the HaMotzi, however). Cooked mezonos such as luxen kugel are NOT covered by HaMotzi and are not considered safaik bread.  ‘
5. THE WINE CONNECTION – The Shulchan Aruch rules (OC 174:6) that wine is an appetite-wetter, and thus, a bracha acharona would not be recited either. Regarding grape juice, it is more complex.

[For more information on these five connections, see v’zos habracha chapter 9]

THE UNDERLYING ISSUE

The Gemorah in Yuma 70b asks why is it that on Yom Kippur – the Kohain Gadol when he reads the Torah, recites part of that reading by heart? [The Torah portion beginning with the verse: “And on the tenth,” from the book of Numbers (29:7), he reads by heart.]   Raish Lakish provides an answer:  A second scroll should not be brought due to the fact that doing do will cause an unnecessary blessing to be recited; before reading from a new scroll the High Priest would have to repeat the blessings required upon reading from the Torah. Therefore, it is preferable that he read it by heart.  The Mogain Avrohom (OC 215:6) cites Raish Lakish’s view conclusively as the halacha as does the Ramah in Siman 291.

The underlying issue behind the matter of eating before the meal is the concept called bracha sh’aina tzricha.  In other places when the Gemorah [and many of the Poskim] discuss Bracha sh’aina tzricha it generally refers to something that we now exclusively call a bracha levatalah. A bracha levatalah is a bracha that is COMPLETELY in vain. In other words, it should not be said at all. Indeed, the Gemorah tells us that whomsoever recites it, it is as if he has violated taking the Name of Hashem in vain.

But there is now another, somewhat more prevalent. meaning for this term borne out by the Gemorah in Yuma and the Mogain Avrohom. What we now  call a Bracha Sh’aina Tzricha refers to having caused an unnecessary bracha. There are a few examples of this:

• If someone has fruits in front of him, all of the same blessing, and the person specifically excludes some of the fruits and recites another blessing on those that he excluded.
• Reciting a bracha achrona, terminating the eating session, and thus having to recite another blessing again.
• Changing one’s place in a manner that another blessing must be recited.
• Eating foods of the meal before one has washed under certain circumstances.

These halachos are for Ashkenazim, sefardic Jews should consult with their own Rabbanim to determine their halachos.

The author can be reached at [email protected]