Havdalah When Tisha b'Av Begins Saturday Night

Q. This year (5781), Tisha B’Av will be on Sunday. When do I recite Havdalah?

A. Havdalah is recited in Shmoneh Esrei on Motzei Shabbos, as it is on every Motzei Shabbos, but we do not say Havdalah on a cup of wine until Sunday night, after the completion of the fast. Women who do not daven Maariv should make sure to recite “Baruch hamavdil bein Kodesh l’chol” before doing any melacha, since they will not hear Havdalah until Sunday evening. If one must eat on Tisha B’Av, if possible one should first make Havdalah, since one is not permitted to eat until one hears Havdalah. On Motzei Shabbos, one recites the blessing Borei M’orei Ha’aish upon a flame but one does not recite the blessing on the spices (Shulchan Aruch OC 556:1).

Although our practice is to recite Havdalah over a cup on Sunday evening (as per the ruling of the Baal Halachos Gedolos), this is actually a matter of dispute among Rishonim. The Ramban held that Havdalah over a cup should not be said at all in this case. Havdalah can only be said on Sunday evening as a make up (tashlumin) for one who forgot to say Havdalah on Motzei Shabbos. But in this case, the Ramban argues, since there was no mitzvah to say Havdalah on Motzei Shabbos, there is nothing to make up. Rav Soloveitchik, zt”l asked how the Ramban can argue that there is no mitzvah of Havdalah on Motzei Shabbos. Even on Tisha B’av there is a requirement of Havdalah, as is evident from the fact that we must recite Havdalah in Shmoneh Esrei. There is just a secondary issue that we cannot say Havdalah on wine since we are forbidden to drink on Tisha B’Av. Why does the Ramban view this as though there is no mitzvah of Havdalah?

Rav Soloveitchik, zt”l explained that the purpose of reciting Havdalah over a cup of wine is to show a separation between Shabbos and weekday meals. This is why even though one recited Havdalah in davening and is permitted to do melacha, they may not eat until they recite Havdalah again with a cup. Since Tisha B’Av is not a time when a person can eat, Havdalah at that time cannot serve as the marker of the beginning of the weekday meals. However, l’halacha we follow the opinion of the Baal Halachos Gedolos that we do recite Havdalah on Sunday evening. Rav Soloveitchik explained that the Baal Halachos Gedolos held that since the first opportunity of the week to eat will be on Sunday evening, the mitzvah is to recite Havdalah at that point. This is not a make up for the missed Havdalah, but rather the mitzvah is to recite Havdalah at the first opportunity before one can eat a weekday meal, and this is the first opportunity.

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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.