electricity

[cellio]

There are halachic issues with using electricity on Shabbat, but some Conservative authorities permit it. I have sometimes wondered about the reasoning to determine what is and is not permittted; is the Conservative rabbi who turns lights on and off on Shabbat acting within that halacha? Here's another small bit to add to the data pile.

From Rabbi Simcha Roth, Rabbincal Assembly in Israel (Masorti):

"... However, those Conservative authorities that permit the making and breaking of an electric circuit on Shabbat and YomTov did not and do not intend to permit the use of electricity for any purpose which is directly prohibited by Torah. Thus, accepting that halakhah follows Tanna Kamma, while they permit the making and breaking of a circuit they would not permit the electricity thus released from being used, say, to cook food on Shabbat."

(From RMSG April 22nd 2002 / Iyyar 10th 5762 [Pesachim 82])

I'll read the discussion of this mishna more thoroughly later; I was just skimming email and saw this go by. There doesn't seem to be more discussion of this particular point, but I could have missed it. (The mishna is nomially about how to cook the Pesach lamb, but as with all talmudic discussion, tangents abound.)

Comments

[figmo.livejournal.com]

I knew several Orthodox Jews who kept the bulb in the fridge unscrewed for that reason. They also had their lights and even the TV on timers. You can even go so far as to set up your TV to change channels for you using a VCR or a TiVo unit (the latter works best).

Of course, if you're Reform or most varieties of Conservative it's moot because you don't have to follow those rules.

[estherchaya.livejournal.com]

Well, if you're Conservative, you do have to follow those rules, though many (I hate to think, most?) don't. The rabbinical assembly's majority opinion is that electricity is verboten on Shabbat. Of course there's a minority opinion...but we won't go down that road.

And my understanding of Reform suggests that although observing those laws is not mandatory, study and understanding of the laws is mandatory. Whether or not you choose to follow the law after you've made an informed decision for yourself is an entirely different matter.

I would have serious issues putting my TV on a timer. I think it is in absolute opposition to ruach shabbat ("spirit of the sabbath").

A friend of mine had a grandfather (orthodox) who used to say "no, it's okay, I don't watch T.V., but I don't want to stop you boys from enjoying your Saturday morning cartoons. And if you happen to flip by the game, I won't complain...I don't want to ruin your fun." So he was essentially a Jewish Shabbos Goy for his "Orthodox" Grandfather.

[cellio]

I'm with Karen on the TV. Even with a mechanism that has no inherent problems, watching TV is inherently not Shabbosdik. I have been in situations where a TV is on and I've watched it, but I would not pre-meditate it.

The Conservative movement is halachic; they just interpret some halacha differently from the Orthodox (who sometimes interpret it differently from each other). Reform does not require observance of halacha but does require that you make informed choices. Sadly, most Reform and many Conservative Jews don't live up to the standards of their movements. (For all I know there's a sizable Orthodox contingent for which that's true, too -- I'm just not in a good position to observe them as much.)