Disposing of Books

Dear Rabbi, I hope this email finds you well. I am from China. This summer, I left xristianity. I currently have some bilingual Chinese-English xristian books. The text in these books may only be in English and Chinese. I considered simply discarding them, but I worry whether this would be sinful: as you know, much of their content originates from the Hebrew Bible (though some of these passages contain mistranslations). Therefore, I dare not dispose of them carelessly for now. I purchased ceramic jars with lid and placed the books inside. Is this approach appropriate? Additionally, regarding electronic books and electronic files containing sacred texts written in Hebrew—can these electronic files be deleted? Are electronic files not “permanent”? Thank you for considering my question. I would be truly grateful for any insight you might have when you have the opportunity. Respectfully, Richard WANG

Shalom!

Thank you for your question.

I understand that you are not Jewish, so the law is as follows

1. You may discard the books as you wish.

2. You may delete the files.

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