ARCHIVES: Erev Pesach on Shabbat

The vagaries of the lunar calendar are such that erev Pesach coincides with Shabbat infrequently but with a peculiar pattern. There are intervals of as long as twenty years during which erev Pesach does not occur on a Shabbat which are followed by the occurrence of erev Pesach on Shabbat two or, more usually, three times within a relatively short span of time followed by a rather long interval in which erev Pesach fails to coincide with Shabbat. When this occurred in 1974 – as it will this year – it was the first time in 20 years that Jews worldwide confronted this phenomenon which presents a slew of halakhic challenges. Rabbi J. David Bleich was at the ready with a column in TRADITION’s  “Survey of Recent Halakhic Literature” enabling our readers to review and prepare. We excerpt it here from our archives for your convenience…

R. David Bleich, “Survey of Recent Halakhic Periodical Literature: Erev Pesach Which Occurs on Shabbat,” TRADITION 14:2 (Fall 1973)