עברית
Prayer and Blessings
I Forgot to Light Shabbat Candles, What Should I Do?
Question
Good week and a good sealing for the year,
On the eve of Shabbat and Yom Kippur yesterday...due to the stress of preparing the meal and little details related to the children...half an hour after the fast began, I realized that I had not lit the Shabbat and Yom Kippur candles that I had prepared in advance...and I was really startled...Should I do something afterward or has that passed, unfortunately...?
Answer
Greetings and blessings,
This is what is written in Yalkut Yosef:
If a woman forgot to light Shabbat candles, and her husband did not light either, some say that henceforth she should add an additional candle each Shabbat beyond what she was accustomed to lighting until now. There are those who are lenient, at least in the case of a poor woman, who should add a little oil or take larger candles. Likewise, if a woman was accustomed to lighting two or seven candles and reduced by one candle, some say that she needs to light an additional candle from now on. In any case, in this time when the electric light is on in the house, one does not need to penalize for this; therefore, even if she forgot once and did not light candles at all, and the electric light was on, she should light next Shabbat according to the number of candles she was used to until now.Therefore, it is also appropriate to give to charity the amount of money that the Shabbat candles cost.
With blessings,
Benjamin Shmueli
