עברית
Halachot and Customs
The Custom of Dutch Jews Regarding Waiting Between Meat and Dairy
Question
Hello, why did Dutch Jews maintain the practice of waiting two hours after eating meat before consuming dairy, which is accepted, while all the rabbis say one should wait six hours? What is the difference between Holland and elsewhere? Thank you in advance.
Answer
Greetings,
There is an opinion in halacha that it is sufficient to wait one hour between meat and dairy (see Rema Yoreh De'ah 89:1), and according to this opinion, Dutch Jews have practiced this. As testified by Rabbi Rafael Eipers shlit"a (rabbi of the Jewish communities in Holland) in his responsa, Shevet MiYehuda, Part 3 (section 121), it is indeed the case that in the families of the rabbis in the Netherlands, they generally waited six hours between meat and dairy, but for the rest of the community, it was accepted to wait only one hour. See there for further discussion on this topic.
Best regards,
Hillel Meirs
