The Blessing On Bread

The sages ascribed great importance to bread because it sustains a person’s heart, as the verse says (Tehillim 104), “…and bread which sustains the heart of man.” Therefore they instituted a special blessing on bread, “hamotzei lechem min ho’oretz.” (Graz 167:1)

The Order of Breaking Bread and the Bracha

There is no minimal required amount of that obligates the blessing of hamotzei; even if one wants to eat only a crumb, one must make the bracha. (ibid 167:7)

This is not the case for the bracha “al n’tilas yodoyim.” Only if one wants to eat the quantity of a “beitzah” (this amount will be discussed fully later), 55 cc or 100cc, will one say that bracha. (S.O. 158:2) Many opinions hold that even just a “k’zayis,” 27cc or 33cc, is enough for the bracha al n'tilas yodoyim.

If one eats less that a k’zayis of bread one should wash without saying al n’tilas yodoyim. (M.B. 158:9)

The preferred manner is to say the bracha on a whole loaf or a large piece. Therefore, one should slice the bread only after making the bracha. At the same time we want to minimize the delay between the bracha and the actual eating, so one should make a small cut, say the bracha and then finish slicing the piece. (A small cut means that the loaf will remain in one piece even if the whole loaf is lifted by that smaller, sliced part.) (S.O. 167:1)

If one has a roll, there is no necessity to cut it first. Since it is small, the cutting is completely very quickly. (B.H. ibid.)

On Shabbos and Yom Tov we want the two loaves to remain whole, so do not cut them. There are some that have a custom to make a very small mark with the knife.

One should perform the cutting by cutting a little at the top and also at the bottom of the loaf. One should not cut a slice that is either too small or too large. (S.O. 167:1)
It is customary to hold the bread with all ten fingers and lift the loaf upwards when saying the name of G-d. (M.B.) The custom of the Sefardic Jews is to place two hands on the loaf and break the bread while saying the words “Melech haolam.” Then hold loaf with two hands, and lift it up while saying the word “hamotzei.”

The blessing should be said carefully and pause between the words “lechem” and “min” in order not to slur them together. (S.O. 172:2)

It is a mitzvah to place salt on the table before blessing on the bread. This completes the imagery that the table is like an altar and the food is a sacrifice. Some have the Kabbalistic custom to dip the bread in the salt three times. (M.B. 167:33)

It is preferable to eat one “kazayis” of bread immediately after the blessing.

After saying the bracha one should make no interruptions before swallowing some of the food. This includes talking (even saying “nu” or “shah” or saying “Amen” to someone else’s bracha) or walking to another place. (M.B. 167:35)

One should never throw bread. When passing it out to the people at the table, we do not hand bread directly to the hand of another, since this is the custom for mourners. (S.O. 167:18)

There are those authorities who say that one should leave to the end of the meal a piece of the loaf upon which the bracha was said (to leave a taste of the “hamotzei” in one’s mouth, M.B. 167:97) but others say that it is not necessary. (C.h.H. 167:137)

Whenever a person is “yotzei” his obligation to make a bracha by hearing someone else make that bracha, the listener should immediately say “amen” to the bracha, and wait for the host to eat first. If the listener should speak before he eats, this interruption will require a new bracha. (M.B. 167:42)

“Derech Eretz” (manners) requires that one should not hold a piece of bread larger than a “k’beitzah” and eat from it. (S.O. 160) Most modern authorities say that this does not apply to our sandwiches. Since eating a sandwich is socially acceptable there is no offense in doing so. (Ohr L’Tzion 46:7 and others)

One should be very careful to speak words of Torah at the table. It is a fine custom to say Psalm 23, as it is also a prayer for one’s livelihood. If there is absolutely no time, one may say the halacha ‘it is a mitzvah to wash mayim acharonim.’ (M.B. 166:3)

While food is in the mouth, one should not even speak words of Torah. (M.B. 160:1)

The Honor of Bread

Since bread is so important to the sustenance of man, one should not throw bread. As well, any piece as large as a “k’zayis” should not be thrown into the garbage, unless it has become moldy. Even bread crumbs should not be treated disgracefully; the Sages say that this leads to poverty. (S.O. 180:4) It is best to place unused bread into a bag and then throw it out. (Rav Y.Y. Fisher, Shlita) Sefardim should also first wrap the bread in paper. (Rav M. Eliyahu, Shlita)

The Gemara in Pesachim (111b) teaches that “hanging” one’s bread brings poverty. There are those who write that one should not hang a lunch bag up on a hook. (Ohr L’Tzion 12:18) Some permit this (M’ohr Shabbos Vol. 2, letter 30:4), and everyone agrees that someone who is not the owner of the bread, a child’s teacher, may hang up the other’s bread. It is permissible to hang the bread for the sake of some mitzvah, so one may hang up his chometz right before Pesach to insure that it will not be lost. (C.h.H. 434:13)

In our next installment we will begin to discuss the bracha "borei minei mezonos."