Halacha requires hearing the reading of Megillat Ester from a kosher Megilla, written on parchment, on the night of Purim and again on Purim day. Before the nighttime reading, the one reading recites three Berachot – "Al Mikra Megilla," "She’asa Nissim," and "She’hehiyanu." According to Sephardic custom, only the first two of these Berachot – "Al Mikra Megilla" and "She’asa Nissim" – are recited before the daytime reading. The congregation answers "Amen" to the Berachot, but do not respond "Baruch Hu U’baruch Shemo." The reader and the congregation must have in mind that the congregation fulfills its obligation by listening to the reading of the Megilla.
This year (5781/2021), during the coronavirus pandemic, many people are unable to attend the Megilla reading in the synagogue. Some people are quarantined because they’ve contracted the virus or were exposed to somebody who has contracted the virus. Others have medical conditions that put them at risk of death, Heaven forbid, if they contract the virus, and are therefore required to avoid crowds to protect themselves. It goes without saying that we are required to care for our physical health, and so all those advised by medical experts to remain at home and not come to the synagogue should heed this advice. The question arises as to whether those who must remain home have the option of fulfilling their obligation by listening to the Megilla reading through a live video feed, such as Zoom. If the reader arranges the Zoom on the Teba (table in the synagogue) so that people at home can see and hear his reading, do they thereby fulfill their obligation?
This question was addressed many decades ago, during the latter part of the 20th century, in regard to the telephone. Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach (Jerusalem, 1910-1995), in Minhat Shelomo (vol. 1, p. 64), advanced the view that one cannot fulfill an obligation to hear a recitation if he hears it via a telephone or microphone. When one speaks into such a device, Rav Shlomo Zalman writes, he causes the device to vibrate and produce a sound. Thus, the listener hears not the speaker’s voice, but rather a technologically-induced reproduction of the voice. As such, one cannot fulfill his obligation to hear the Megilla by hearing it via a telephone, since he is hearing an artificial reproduction of the reader’s voice, and not the voice itself. This was also the opinion of Hacham Bension Abba Shaul (Israel, 1924-1998), in Or Le’sion (vol. 4).
Others, however, disagreed. Rav Shlomo Zalman himself, in his responsum, cites the Hazon Ish (Rav Avraham Yeshaya Karelitz, 1878-1953) as ruling leniently in this regard, and maintaining that the sound heard through a telephone is regarded by Halacha as the person’s actual voice. Likewise, Rav Moshe Feinstein (Russia-New York, 1895-1986), in Iggerot Moshe (Orah Haim 2:108, 4:91) maintained that since the sound one hears has been produced by the speaker, this suffices to fulfill his obligation. Even though, technically, the listener hears a reproduction of the reader’s voice, nevertheless, for all intents and purposes, this sound was produced by the reader speaking into the device, and, quote obviously, the sound could not have happened on its own. Therefore, the listener fulfills his obligation. In fact, some have noted that all sounds which reach the eardrum are "reproduced," in that when a person speaks, the sounds waves reverberate and eventually reach the ear, and so there is no difference between hearing someone’s voice via telephone and hearing it directly. This lenient position was held also by Rav Tzvi Pesach Frank (Jerusalem, 1873-1960), in his Mikra’eh Kodesh – Purim (p. 95). He explains that even if the listener is hearing both the speaker’s actual voice and a mechanically produced sound, nevertheless, this suffices for the fulfillment of the Misva.
Hacham Ovadia Yosef, in several places (including Hazon Ovadia – Purim, p. 56; and Yehaveh Da’at 2:68), follows the stringent ruling of Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach, that one cannot fulfill his obligation by hearing a recitation via telephone. Interestingly, however, Hacham Ovadia also ruled that somebody who is deaf, and cannot hear without a hearing aid, may fulfill the Misva by listening to the reading via his hearing aid. As many have observed, these two rulings appear contradictory. After all, hearing via a hearing aid is no different than hearing via a telephone, as in both cases, one hears a reproduction of the original sound produced by the reader’s voice. One author suggested reconciling these rulings by distinguishing between somebody who cannot hear at all without a hearing aid, and somebody who can hear without the hearing aid but his hearing is impaired, and he needs the device to amplify the sound. It is only in the latter case, perhaps, that Hacham Ovadia allowed one to fulfill the Misva by listening to the Megilla reading with a hearing aid. However, Rav Yisrael Bitan (contemporary), in the English edition of Yalkut Yosef, argues that from Hacham Ovadia’s words it is clear that he permitted even those who cannot hear at all without a hearing aid to fulfill the Misva by wearing the device. Rav Bitan (Purim, p. 118) entertains the possibility that Hacham Ovadia retracted his stringent ruling and decided that one may, in fact, fulfill the Misva by hearing the reading over the telephone. Of course, it is difficult to rely on such a theory, as we normally assume that we must follow that which the Hacham wrote in his books.
Regardless, it would seem that in the case of somebody who is quarantined, or otherwise unable to come to the synagogue, and cannot have somebody come to his home to read the Megilla for him, we may certainly rely on the position of Rav Moshe Feinstein and the other aforementioned Poskim, and arrange for him to hear the Megilla via a live video feed. It should be noted that Rav Moshe applied this ruling to the case of a woman who was in the hospital on Shabbat, and had no possibility of reciting or hearing Habdala other than via telephone. Habdala, according to the Rambam (Rav Moshe Maimonides, Spain-Egypt, 1135-1204), constitutes a Torah obligation, and Rav Moshe nevertheless allowed the woman to fulfill this Misva via telephone when she had no other option. Certainly, then, we may apply this ruling to the Misva of Megilla reading, which, according to many, is a Rabbinic obligation. And although some consider this obligation a Misva Mi’dibreh Kabbala (requirement from the Prophets), nevertheless, it is certainly not a higher-level obligation than Habdala according to the Rambam. Indeed, Rabbi Bitan writes that somebody who is in the hospital on Purim and cannot have the Megilla read for him in person, should try to hear the Megilla via telephone. We might even speculate that Hacham Ovadia himself – who always endeavored to find grounds for leniency in situations of great need – would approve of hearing the Megilla via a live video feed under current circumstances, when there are many people who cannot attend the synagogue due to medical concerns.
In such a case, the one listening to the Megilla by phone or over Zoom should not answer "Amen" to the Berachot recited over the Megilla.
It goes without saying that we would not approve of fulfilling the obligation in this manner simply for convenience, when a person prefers to avoid having to leave home to hear the Megilla reading. This leniency should be relied upon only under extenuating circumstances, if one has no possibility of hearing the Megilla reading in person.
Summary: The Halachic authorities of the late 20th century debated the question of whether one fulfills the Misva of listening to the Megilla reading via telephone. Although we follow the stringent opinion, that one must listen to the reading in person, nevertheless, when this is not possible, and one’s only option is to hear the reading via telephone or a live video feed, such as Zoom, this is allowed. Therefore, synagogues with congregants who cannot come to the synagogue due to medical concerns, and cannot have somebody come to their home to read for them, should arrange for a live video feed so these members can hear the Megilla reading.
