Q&A: Can One Blow the Shofar over Zoom…
Originally published:
This is an English translation (via GPT-5.4). Read the original Hebrew version.
Can One Blow the Shofar over Zoom…
Question
Does one fulfill the obligation of hearing the shofar [on Rosh Hashanah] over Zoom?
Answer
Simply put, no. I have written here more than once that in my opinion a prayer quorum can function over Zoom, because all the participants are in the same “site,” and for our purposes the virtual space is the relevant space. But the sound of the shofar has to be the sound of the shofar itself (one who blows into a pit or cistern does not fulfill the obligation). In this respect, shofar is different from hearing the Megillah over Zoom and the like, where there certainly are grounds to permit it.