Taking Them Home on Shabbos
30. Free. Pamphlets distributed in batei medrash may be taken home to read there or on behalf of a family member, as they are distributed without charge for the benefit of the public.
31. On Shabbos. However, one must remember on Shabbos not to go outside with pamphlets in his pocket in a place without an eiruv. Also, when one puts pamphlets in the pocket of a Shabbos garment, he must feel his pockets before going outside on Shabbos so that he does not violate the issur of carrying on Shabbos.
Publishing Costs
32. Taking a share of the expenses. The costs of printing and distributing papers are very high. They are usually covered through dedications by people who benefit the public. When one gains from a particular publication, it is proper to occasionally dedicate it and take a share of the expenses. One who does this shows gratitude and appreciation and enables the publishers to continue spreading Torah to the public.
33. A dedication in memory of someone or for a family simcha may be read on Shabbos without concerns of shtarei hedyotos.
34. Ads. Another way to cover printing costs is through ads. Some publications receive a lot of money to advertise many mundane things, as it is a successful way to push the ad content in front of the chareidi public and into the batei medrash. An ad with non-kodesh content may not be read on Shabbos; people must be careful about this. However, the entire pamphlet does not become muktzah, since the main content is divrei Torah.
35. Ads with mitzva content, e.g., ads for newly published sefarim, other mitzva items, or tzedaka purposes, may be read on Shabbos.
Concern for Borer
36. A stack of different pamphlets on a beis medrash table can easily lead to violation of the issur of borer. The issur of borer applies to a stack of sefarim (מ''ב סי' שי''ט סקט''ו ); when the pamphlets are all mixed together, it is certainly considered a “mixture” [תערובת].
37. Immediate use. Choosing a desired paper from the pile is called choosing the good from the bad [אוכל מפסולת ], which is mutar. However, another precondition to allow borer is that the item must be taken for an immediate use [לאלתר ], not for later. Thus, if one plans to read it right away, it is mutar.
38. Even if one takes a desired paper after Maariv on Shabbos night to bring it home and read it during the seuda, that is mutar, as it is considered לאלתר .
39. However, if one takes a desired paper not intending to use it soon, e.g., it is for the next day, that is a potential issur of borer, as that is not לאלתר . The solution is to read from the paper right after taking it so that it also provides benefit right away.
Tearing the Plastic
40. Sometime pamphlets come packaged in a sealed plastic wrapping. Also, some companies that print many pamphlets together in one booklet send out the booklet packaged in plastic, e.g., the Kol HaAlonim booklet. L’chatchila the plastic should be torn before Shabbos, but if it wasn’t opened before Shabbos, the plastic may be torn on Shabbos in such a way that the whole plastic is ruined (הגרשז''א, מו''ר בעל שבט הקהתי ).
