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Fruits harvested from a field on the kibbutz during this time of year

שו”תCategory: HalachaFruits harvested from a field on the kibbutz during this time of year
asked 3 years ago

Hello Rabbi,
Secular relatives brought me fruits that were picked with permission from a kibbutz field during this time of year. From what I know, fruits picked during this time belong to the Shmita year and are therefore exempt from donations and tithes. Additionally, even if the Shmita year was not observed in the kibbutz field, I am not aware that the fruits are prohibited. Is it permissible to eat these fruits? Do I need to tithe them?
Best regards,


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0 Answers
מיכי Staff answered 3 years ago
Seventh-day fruits are exempt from tithe. The world practices that there is no prohibition of “working” such fruits, so there is room for leniency.

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יהודה replied 3 years ago

As far as I know, whether the person in question is exempt from tithing or not depends on the Mishnah and the Mishnah, whether the seventh is a demalka. And according to the Mishnah, which is not a demalka, but rather one must give up, if not one must give up, one must give up tithing.

מיכי Staff replied 3 years ago

As far as I remember, the dispute between the B”Y and the Watcher is about whether a Gentile has property to expropriate and not about whether it should be abandoned. That is what the fear is. Therefore, in the case of fruits owned by a Gentile, the obligation to tithe is indeed apparently dependent on this dispute, but there it must be discussed that the obligation to tithe does not exist in the fruits of a Gentile either. Only if it was from the land of Israel.
Question: They really disagreed on this too: https://bhl.org.il/%D7%AA%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%9E%D7%95%D7%AA-%D7%95%D7%9E%D7%A2%D7%A9%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%AA-%D7%91%D7%A4%D7%99%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%AA-%D7%A9%D7%91%D7%99%D7%A2%D7%99%D7%AA/
And the prophet decided to exempt from tithing.
Apparently, the question of tithing in the case under discussion depends on the question of whether the exemption from tithing is because of the sanctity of the seventh or because of the neglect of the fruits.

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