By Rav Doniel Nuustadt shlita Rav Pine River Village Lakewood
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Question: Are we required to eat a k’zayis of bread in the succah when it is raining?
Discussion: There are several disputes among the poskim concerning the obligation to eat in the succah on the first night of Succos if it is raining. The following points are debated:
If rain is falling, is one obligated to eat in the succah or not?
If it is raining, is one obligated to wait and see if the rain will stop so that he can eat in a dry succah?
If one does eat in the succah while it is raining, can a blessing be recited?
If a person ate in the succah while it was raining and then the rain stopped, is he required to eat in the succah again?
If a person ate in the succah while it was raining and then went to sleep, is he obligated to get out of bed to eat again once the rain has stopped?
Since there are various opinions on all of these issues, the following is a summary of the majority view[30] and the accepted practice:
If it is raining steadily and there is a reliable weather forecast for rain all night, one should make Kiddush [with shehecheyanu] and eat a k’zayis [or slightly more than a k’beitzah] in the succah. No blessing over the succah is recited. The rest of the meal is eaten in the house.[32]
If (as is often the case) there is no reliable weather forecast and there is a possibility that the rain will stop, e.g., it is drizzling or it is raining off and on, it is proper to wait an hour or two for the rain to subside.[33] The poskim agree, however, that if the delay will disturb the dignity and pleasure of the Yom Tov, or if the family is hungry and/or tired, there is no obligation to wait.
If the rain stops while the meal is being eaten in the house or even after the meal is finished, one is obligated to go to the succah, recite leishev basuccah, and eat at least slightly more than a beitzah[34] of bread. Even if the rain stops after midnight, that amount of bread must be eaten in the succah. If one has already gone to bed and then the rain stops, there is no obligation to get out of bed in order to eat in the succah.[35]
[30] Based on rulings of Mateh Efrayim and Mishnah Berurah.
[31] Mateh Efrayim 625:51, 62 and Elef Lemateh 84. See, however, Ketzei Hamateh, who maintains that in this case a k’zayis is sufficient according to all of the views quoted earlier.
[32] When reciting hamotzi, one should have in mind that he will recite Birkas hamazon in the house.
[33] Some poskim are more stringent and recommend waiting until midnight.
[34] In this case, because of the blessing which is to be recited, a k’zayis is not enough.
[35] A minority opinion (Moadim U’zemanim 1:86, based on his understanding of the Gaon of Vilna; Rav M. Soloveitchik, quoted in Reshimos Shiurim, Succah, pg. 92, and in Mesorah, vol. 14, pg. 57) maintains that even after going to sleep, one is obligated to wake up and get out of bed in order to eat in the succah
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