Gateway to Shemittah [Hardcover]

Extensively Revised and Updated for Shemittah 5775

The Shemittah year is fast approaching and with it come many questions:

• What is a prozbul and how will it help me collect my loans?
• I live in New York; my son says that I have to send my esrog back to Israel because of biur. What’s going on?
• I have a bottle of wine that says Otzar Beis Din on it. Can I use it for havdalah?
• How do I take care of my pomegranate tree or my indoor potted plant?
• Do flowers need to be kosher?

Shemittah is not just for farmers and it’s not only for those living in Eretz Yisrael. We all need to know its laws. These intricate halachos are as relevant today as they were in former times.

This work represents the first practical and comprehensive guide to the laws of Shemittah for the English-speaking public. In a clear, smooth, and flowing style, Rabbi Dovid Marchant explains the laws related to the pre-Shemittah, Shemittah and post-Shemittah years in a way that will appeal to everyone — homemaker and kollelman alike.

Gateways to Shemittah also contains halachic decisions rendered by contemporary Gedolim, a section on the reasons behind the halachos, extensive source references, chapters that explore the history and concept of Shemittah and why it still applies today, and a complete glossary and index.

This updated edition features:

• Detailed information on how to buy fruits and vegetables during Shemittah
• Delineation of the boundaries of Eretz Yisrael concerning Shemittah laws, including a map
• Many more practical halachos, with new user-friendly footnotes

Enthusiastically recommended by leading Torah authorities, Gateway to Shemittah clarifies an important area of halacha that is unfamiliar to many, and brings meaning and enrichment to its observance.