Is it permissible to eat meat at a circumcision that is delayed during the Nine Days?
Question
A circumcision that was postponed due to jaundice in the infant falls during the week of Tisha B'Av. How should we conduct ourselves with regard to the meal and the guests? Should they act normally or only eat fish without meat? Thank you very much
Answer
Greetings,
At a circumcision that is not on time but takes place during the Nine Days, it is permissible to eat meat and drink wine. This allowance applies to all guests. However, this permission is contingent upon the circumcision being performed immediately on the same day that the infant recovered and it became possible to perform the circumcision. But if, after the infant has recovered, they intentionally postponed the circumcision until after Rosh Chodesh Av so that they could eat meat at the meal, there is no permission to eat meat.
Sources: See Sha'arei Teshuvah (Section 540, Note 33) which cites from the responsa of Or Na'alam (Section 9) that there is no allowance to eat meat and drink wine at a circumcision that is not on time during the Nine Days. However, Sha'arei Teshuvah wrote that the practice is not as he stated, but rather that they eat meat and drink wine at a circumcision that is not on time as they would if it were on time, even during the week that Tisha B'Av falls. This is also supported by the responsa Yabia Omer, Volume 1 (Orach Chaim, Section 27, Note 7). It is also mentioned in the book Chazon Ovadia on the Four Fast Days (page 187) in the name of Me'orei Or (Moed page 178, column 2). This contradicts what was written in the book Or LeTzion, Volume 3 (page 240, line 5) which states that at a circumcision that is delayed, it is advisable for attendees to refrain from eating meat, except for the members of the covenant and close relatives disqualified from testimony.
However, Sha'arei Teshuvah wrote there that if the circumcision was postponed due to the infant's weakness or similar reasons, and after he recovered they did not perform the circumcision immediately but postponed it intentionally during the Nine Days so that the attendees could eat meat and drink wine, there is absolutely no permission to eat meat or drink wine, even for those for whom the prohibition was not enacted. This is also agreed upon by the responsa Yabia Omer and Chazon Ovadiah there.
Best regards,
Hillel Meiris
