Event during the Counting of the Omer and the Nine Days in the Synagogue Hall to Prevent Other Transgressions

Greetings, I am the treasurer of a synagogue, and we have a hall for events where we strictly adhere to the Jewish Law, although the public is not necessarily religious. Until now, it has been our practice not to hold events in the hall on days when it is forbidden according to the Halachah. However, if there is a lenient approach that allows to hold an event on that day, we allow the hall to be rented for that purpose. For example, during the Counting of the Omer and the Three Weeks, the hall is only closed on dates when it is universally prohibited to hold events. This is because if the worshippers do not hold the event in the hall, they will have a celebration that is mixed and without kashruth supervision. Only due to the respectful and close-knit atmosphere of the synagogue do they agree to hold their events with the community, and they are even willing have separation between men and women. Recently, there has been a demand to open the hall even during the Nine Days, claiming that the prohibition on holding events on these days is less severe than the prohibition on holding mixed and non-kosher events. The question is, who is correct?

It is not permissible to hold these events publicly, especially not in the synagogue, and we cannot take responsibility if these people will do things that are forbidden. On the contrary, the fact that they know that the synagogue adheres to Jewish law and they are connected to the synagogue will ultimately lead them to connect more to Judaism and be more meticulous about observing it.

Maharsham (Orchot Chaim, Ch. 551, subsection 30)