Laundry on Rosh Chodesh

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Forum -> Yom Tov / Holidays -> Shabbos, Rosh Chodesh, Fast Days, and other Days of Note

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Do you wash laundry on rosh chodesh?

Yes- never heard of this halacha

32%

[ 33 ]

22%

[ 23 ]

Yes- I've heard of it, but my family doesn't keep it.

42%

[ 43 ]

Other- please explain

[ 2 ]

Total Votes : 101

amother

Fri, Apr 29 2022, 11:31 am

Do you wash laundry on rosh chodesh? Is there an inyan not to wash laundry? My mother washes, but when I got married, I learned that mil is makpid not to wash (although if necessary, she'd ask one of her menfolk to wash). Is it halacha, or is it minhag? Is it something that I should be makpid about? I guess I can ask a rav but wanted to hear what most people do. Rosh chodesh is Sunday and Monday this week. Not doing laundry for three full days is quite difficult!

mamaleh

Fri, Apr 29 2022, 11:52 am

I voted that I do laundry (am familiar with this inyan), but I don’t iron. My dh (and his rav) hold that these days that is the issue. But, I do know families/communities where the women don’t ‘do laundry’ on RC. They sort, load, etc. and just have DH or DS turn on the machine. I (personally) don’t get how that’s better- the idea is that it’s a yom Tov for women, not doing laundry is supposed to make it easier- but, I heard it directly from their rav and that’s what he said.

amother

Teal

Fri, Apr 29 2022, 11:54 am

My minhag is to have a cleaning lady do the laundry. That’s what I told my husband.

/kidding

gande

Fri, Apr 29 2022, 11:56 am

If we still have things to wear I don’t wash/fold. It’s in the spirit of the day

BrisketBoss

Fri, Apr 29 2022, 11:57 am

I have this minhag but I almost always forget about it.

Also, my understanding is that since it's about the washing, you can have your husband push the button for you and otherwise do all of the work same as always. So it seems a bit silly in this day and age unless you have items you are handwashing.

amother

Darkblue

Fri, Apr 29 2022, 11:57 am

It's a minhag. I do laundry since not doing laundry saddens my heart instead of gladdening it. Not that I enjoy it so much, but having it pile up is very stressful for me.

Blessing1

Fri, Apr 29 2022, 12:38 pm

I wash/dry laundry, but we don't iron or do mending.

BetsyTacy

Fri, Apr 29 2022, 4:47 pm

Ah! laundry.
Don't do it on chol hamoed--you want to have been prepared for the chag before the chag. And to celebrate during the chag! (How is nervously counting if everyone still has clean underwear joyous? How is looking at piles of dirty laundry joyous?)

Don't do it on rosh chodesh! It's a chag. Honestly I don't keep this one as it's not like I'm boiling up a vat of water or bringing it down to the creek with a scrub board.

Don't do it during the nine days! This one I actually get. It is mournful to look at piles of stinky laundry.

DustyDiamonds

Fri, Apr 29 2022, 5:00 pm

My mother and MIL don’t do laundry on R”C, but I do.

Never asked a rabbi, so this is just my personal opinion.

It’s definitely not a Halachah or strong Minhag. And God wants us to have a good relationship with Him, not resent His laws, and this is one I used to resent a lot… so I dropped it. I don’t feel that I have the option of dropping Halalachos that I resent. But dropping an “inyan” kinda thing, I talk to God about it and feel okay with it at this stage in my life.

And obviously, when this began, laundry was far more complex a chore than it is today. I imagine that women viewed it the way I view scrubbing toilets - smelly and difficult and unpleasant. I can understand a difficult chore being banned due to a holiday. Yet when it’s far more difficult, IMHO, to have the hampers growing than to throw clothing into the washer/dryer press START on my machine….

tweety1

Fri, Apr 29 2022, 5:22 pm

amother [ Darkblue ] wrote:

It's a minhag. I do laundry since not doing laundry saddens my heart instead of gladdening it. Not that I enjoy it so much, but having it pile up is very stressful for me.

Likewise! Especially when it's 2 days.

amother

Sunflower

Fri, Apr 29 2022, 5:32 pm

In my house, the joke is that I'm so frum, for me EVERY day is Rosh Chodesh! And I'm so frum that not only do I not do laundry on Rosh Chodesh, I also don't do dishes or mop floors! (Obviously that is a joke with an element of truth to it.)

Since I'm not very good about doing laundry on a regular basis anyhow, I don't plan to do it on Rosh Chodesh. If I need a load done I'll ask DH. If he's not available, though, I will do it myself. (I'll do a limited load on Chol Hamoed and the Nine Days too if necessary, so I'm equal opportunity lenient.)

amother

Ivory

Fri, Apr 29 2022, 5:52 pm

BetsyTacy wrote:

TBH, I don't get it either. We have plenty of YT with restrictions in place, adding 20 more days to the year with them is not a form of a celebration. If Rosh Chodesh is a YT for the women, then let's find meaningful reasons how to celebrate, and not just throw another restriction at it. (And a restriction that is mostly meaningless in our times, no less.) No one looks at not washing laundry as a celebration in our times. Hashem has blessed us with machines that do the work for us, and we are very thankful for that.

How about specifying what should be done, instead of what should not be done? I've got a great suggestion. RC is to be a day where men take over running the house, and the women get the day off. Just picture it - DH starts his day with an early minyan and then rushes home to do breakfast and get the kids to school, while you sleep in. You wake up to a quiet house, and enjoy breakfast in leisure, and get to spend the day in any way you like. You then return to the household to enjoy dinner that DH arranged, and relax on the couch while DH does the homework and bedtime routine. Once it's all done, you get to spend some quality time with DH.

Now that is a way to celebrate an important day!

amother

Tan

Sun, Oct 15 2023, 1:30 am

I'm ffb and learning new things every day

amother

Tulip

Sun, Oct 15 2023, 1:32 am

My husband does the family’s laundry on the reg.

amother

Lime

Sun, Oct 15 2023, 1:34 am

It's a minhag. Not halacha.

amother

Brickred

Sun, Oct 15 2023, 5:55 am

amother Ivory wrote:

I’ve actually heard that since Rosh Chodesh is a Yom Tov for women, we should each decide how to celebrate according to our preferences. I forgot where I heard this idea though, does this sound familiar to anyone?

hodeez

Sun, Oct 15 2023, 6:32 am

I keep it but often forget

amother

Amaryllis

Sun, Oct 15 2023, 7:23 am

"My husband does this, my husband does that." And if you don't have a husband? I do laundry on Roch Chodesh if I need to. Otherwise I don't.

teachkids

Sun, Oct 15 2023, 7:29 am

I didn't do laundry on RC until I had kids. Then I just couldn't give up the day or two.
I still don't sew RC though

amother

Phlox

Sun, Oct 15 2023, 7:48 am

One day I hope to be in a place where my household is managed and I'm aware of the calendar enough to not do laundry on RC. This month isn't that month.

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