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Rabbi Wallen enjoyed discussing speculative halacha as much as the next nerd. And it was hardly the first time he’d found himself presented with queries about some highly specific hypothetical fantastical scenario.
(He’d been asked all the classic questions: What should a Jewish vampire do? Can a sentient AI convert? Are mermaids kosher?)
So when, at kiddush, Avigayil Greenblum started asking questions about Judaism, outer space, and time travel, the rabbi was not particularly fazed.
Which direction do you face when davening somewhere other than Earth?
If you’re the only Jew on the planet and you don’t have a kitchen, are there kashrut leniencies you can rely on?
And of course, the big challenge: how do you calculate zmanim in space? If you travel through time, leaving on Tuesday but landing on Shabbat, what should you do? If the sun never sets, from what time does one recite the evening Shema?
They were fun, fascinating questions. After a few minutes of discussion and speculation, the rabbi made his usual joke: “Now of course, if you were asking me for psak, I’d need to do some more research first.”
There was a beat of silence.
Avigayil did not humor him with a laugh.
Then she said, “What kind of research?”
He blinked. “Well… look at some more of the sources. Talk to some of my rebbeim. And I suppose it would probably help to understand more about how this time-and-space machine works in general. It’s always good to consult with the experts on a subject.”
Avigayil thought about this for a moment. Then, she nodded. “That makes sense. I’ll see if I can convince the Doctor to come meet with you.”
Rabbi Wallen stared at her — beginning to wonder if this could somehow be more than a hypothetical scenario, after all.