Tefillin and mezuzos in this category are extremely common. It can be challenging to explain to people why tefillin and mezuzos that are not completely posel should nevertheless not be used. The first question that comes up is, “Well, if it’s kosher, it’s kosher, right?” The second question is “I got them from a Jewish book store, how could they not be kosher?” Sometimes they tell me that they must be kosher because they got them from Jerusalem, as if everything that happens in Jerusalem is according to halacha. Many people assume that long beards, long coats, and Yiddish, insure kosher tefillin and mezuzos.
