Q. Dear Rov Shlit’a. On this year (2024) when Purim is on Sunday, is it not better at the end of Shabbos, to stay eating shaleshudes, saying Divrei Torah and prolonging Shabbos and then bench just before Maariv about a half an hour later, to permit the women to drive and come to shul?

A. In principle you may be right, that the best option would be to spend the most time possible as being still in Shabbos and also used for hearing words of Torah or singing the zemiros of shaleshudes.

However, in practice the men attending shaleshudes, will likely want to go home and help their wifes and the children come, so they would like to daven Maariv on time and end Shabbos.

One may dedicate the time after maariv to an interesting Torah shiur that will have all the remaining and waiting join, until the megila reading begins.

Rabbi A. Bartfeld as revised by Horav Dovid Pam, Horav Aharon Miller, Horav Chanoch Ehrentreu Shlit’a and Horav Kalman Ochs Shlit’a.