Rav Elyashiv Shlita and many other Poskim: No crocs on Yom Kippur

Posted on September 27th, 2009 by JewishByte

On Tisha B’Av it is assur to wear leather shoes. Crocs are synthetic and do not contain any leather. However there is a Machlokes between Rashi and the Rambam if wooden shoes that are not wrapped in leather, are assur on Yom Kippur because since you cannot feel the ground they are like shoes even though they don’t have leather. The Shulchan Aruch (614:2) paskens like the Rambam who says that it is permissible while the Mishna Brura (5) says we should be Machmir like Rashi.

On one hand, Tisha B’Av is not as stringent as Yom Kippur, which is Min HaTorah, so maybe we need not be machmir. On the other hand, Crocs are worn by millions of people as shoes every day of the year. The Gilyon Halacha U’Maaseh asked the leading poskim their opinion.

Rav Elyashiv said that since Crocs are worn all year round you are not permitted to wear them on Tisha B’Av. Rav Moshe Shternbuch said that while technically you may wear them, on Tisha B’Av it is better not to. Similarly Rav Nissim Karelitz and Rav Meir Brandsdorfer held that it is not assur but Yirei Shamayim should not wear them. – Revach.net

Ari Galahar of Ynet News Reports - Rabbi Elyashiv of the Lithuanian stream of ultra-Orthodoxy has ruled that it is best not to wear Crocs shoes on Yom Kippur even though they are not made out of leather and, therefore, would seemingly be permissible for the holiday. His reasoning behind the ruling is that they are too comfortable, and thus don’t provide the level of suffering one should feel on the holiday.

Leather is traditionally not worn on Yom Kippur as a symbol of humility and increased humanity on the atonement holiday.

The halachic ruling came in response to a question posed to the rabbi by a young yeshiva student asking whether it is permissible to wear on Yom Kippur shoes one would normally wear throughout the year. In response, the rabbi ruled it is best to avoid wearing Crocs on the holiday. “It is permissible legalistically, but it is inadvisable,” said Rabbi Elyashiv.

The rabbi further explained his ruling saying that he ruled according to the halachic authorities who believe that the prohibition against “wearing sandals” refers to not wearing leather shoes.

Despite this, the rabbi added, he took into consideration the interpretation of halachic rulers who see the prohibition against “wearing sandals” as referring to creating a level of discomfort. As such, any shoe that is not from leather but is comfortable to wear is forbidden on Yom Kippur.

Rabbi Elyashiv’s ruling will create a challenge this year for his students, many of whom have chosen in recent years to wear Crocs on Yom Kippur. Because worshippers spend most of Yom Kippur at synagogue for prayer services that include long periods of standing, Crocs have been a favored choice among synagogue-goers on the holiday and have gained popularity in the haredi sector because of the difficulty posed by standing through all the prayers.