If One Feels Uncomfortable Wearing a Kippa

Rav Moshe Feinstein (1895-1986) addressed the situation of a man who scheduled a job interview and felt that he stood a better chance of receiving the job if he showed up without a Kippa. Is it permissible for a person to remove his Kippa for the interview in this case if there was a reasonable concern of possibly forfeiting a job opportunity? Rav Moshe noted the Halacha that sets limits on how much a person is required to spend for the sake of fulfilling Misvot. When it comes to avoiding the transgression of a Misvat Lo Ta'aseh (Biblical prohibition), there is no such limit; a person must be prepared to lose all his money to avoid violating a prohibition. However, when it comes to a Misvat Aseh (affirmative command), one is not required to incur a significant financial loss for the sake of fulfilling the command. Therefore, even if we assume that wearing a Kippa has now been accepted as an obligatory practice, and is no longer observed merely as a Midat Hassidut (measure of piety), it certainly does not carry more weight than a Biblical command, and so one may remove a Kippa to avoid a substantial financial loss. Clearly, missing a job opportunity is a very substantial financial loss, and so the fellow in this situation would certainly be permitted to remove his Kippa before the interview. The Yalkut Yosef similarly ruled that it is permissible to go bareheaded at work if one fears losing his job if he keeps his Kippa on. The Shebut Yaakob (Rav Yaakov Reischer, 1661-1733) was asked about a case where a high-ranking government official was visiting a synagogue, and the local protocol required everyone to remove their head-coverings as a display of honor. Given the necessity of showing respect to the official, the Shebut Yaakob permitted the people to remove their Kippot, even in the synagogue. Nevertheless, the Hida (Rav Haim Yosef David Azulai, 1724-1806) writes that it would be preferable for the community leaders to speak to the official's handlers ahead of time to explain that Jewish custom requires wearing a head-covering, so the people would not need to remove their Kippot. A more unusual question that once came to Rav Moshe Feinstein involved an otherwise observant fellow who decided to succumb to his urge to go see a movie in a theater. He posed the question of whether he can remove his Kippa in order to avoid creating a Hilul Hashem (defamation of G-d's Name) by people seeing Torah Jew in the movie theater. Rav Moshe strictly forbade removing one's Kippa in such a case, asserting that this would be adding a second sin on top of the sin of going somewhere inappropriate. Although the questioner claimed that he wished to remove his Kippa "Le'Shem Shamayim" – for G-d, so-to-speak, in the interest of protecting His honor, Rav Moshe said that this claim cannot be taken be seriously, and it is implausible that he wishes to remove his Kippa for altruistic motives. Therefore, there was no justification for removing the Kippa.