Ribbis: Matters of Interest

GIVING THE LENDER AN ALIYAH

1. Dovid, the
   gabbai in Shul in charge of giving out the aliyos, happens to owe money to
   Zelig, another member of the shul. May he offer Zelig an aliyah? May he offer
   him shlishi or maftir?

• If an
  acquaintance of the gabbai, to whom he owes money for a loan, happens to be
  davening in the shul one day, may the gabbai show gratitude by offering him an
  aliyah?

1. Dovid may only offer an aliyah to Zelig if done as part of the
   regular aliyah cycle. However he is
   prohibited to offer Zelig any unique aliyah (if not part of the normal cycle).
   1. Even where the lender and borrower are friends and the
      borrower would have done so anyway, it is nonetheless prohibited since it is
      being done publicly.
   1. If they are close friends, some poskim permit the borrower to offer the
      lender a public favor provided he had already done so previously.
   1. In case #2, if he is doing it out of gratitude for the
      loan, it definitely would pose a problem. Even if the gabbai is sure he is not doing it out of gratitude,
      nevertheless there would be a problem offering him any aliyah, as this would be considered
      offering a public favor. Hence, this would be prohibited unless he usually does
      this very favor for the lender, and everyone is aware of that. (In a small-knit
      community, this might very well be the case and is therefore permitted.)
   1. Obviously, this whole discussion only applies where the
      gabbai has the discretion as to who
      receives an aliyah, but if the gabbai is only following the instructions
      of the rav, there would be no issue at
      all.