Bal Teshaktzu - Davening

Q. Shulchan Aruch rules that one who needs to use the bathroom may not daven. What should a person do if he realizes that he needs the bathroom after he already began Shmoneh Esrei?

A. Shulchan Aruch (OC 92:2) writes that if one realized that he needs the bathroom after he already began Shmoneh Esrei, he may not interrupt his davening. The Rema partially disagrees. He writes that if one is at the point that he is violating bal teshaktzu (i.e., he has a strong urge to relieve himself), then one must stop davening and use the bathroom. Afterwards, one should continue from where they left off (provided that the break was not long enough to daven the entire Shmoneh Esrei, which would be a hefsek). The Magen Avrohom disagrees with the Rema. He writes that since Chazal forbade interrupting Shmoneh Esrei, one must continue davening even though he has reached the point of bal teshaktzu. He reasons as follows. Just as kavod ha’briyos (avoiding embarrassment and preserving human dignity) overrides the prohibition of bal teshaktzu, so too the prohibition to be mafsik (interrupt)in the middle of Shmoneh Esrei overrides baal teshaktzu. The Mishnah Berurah (92:11) accepts the ruling of Magen Avrohom but adds that if one cannot wait to use the bathroom until after Shmoneh Esrei, all agree that one must interrupt the davening and continue afterwards.

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The Gerald & Karin Feldhamer OU Kosher Halacha Yomis is dedicated to the memory of Rav Yisroel Belsky, zt"l, who served as halachic consultant for OU Kosher for more than 28 years; many of the responses in Halacha Yomis are based on the rulings of Rabbi Belsky. Subscribe to the Halacha Yomis daily email here.