Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Temporary Hiatus

Hello,

Unfortunately, I need to take a hiatus from the Daily Torah Thought for a week or so, due to obligations elsewhere. I hope to return some time next week.

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Monday, February 9, 2015

Threading a shoelace

Hi,

One may not thread a shoelace into a shoe on Shabbat, unless the lace was already in use for that shoe. The reason is that designating the lace to remain in this shoe is an act of rendering the shoe functional.

Based on this logic, it would appear that one could insert a temporary lace, where it was clear that the lace would not remain there - such as where the colour was wrong for the shoe, or where the lace was borrowed from someone else. However, Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach ruled not to distinguish among cases in this matter.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:243)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Sunday, February 8, 2015

Extra buttons and other attachments

Hi,

There is halachic debate regarding whether one may travel outside an eruv on Shabbos wearing a shirt that has extra buttons attached to it. Those who permit it contend that the buttons are considered nullified to the shirt, and many people are lenient along these lines.

A similar approach permits travelling outside an eruv with clothing that has a laundry tag or a shaatnez-certification tag stapled to it.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:242)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Thursday, February 5, 2015

Fallen Buttons on Shabbos

Hi,

If a button falls from my shirt on Shabbos, is the button muktzeh?

Items that perform a function when Shabbos starts, like a button that is attached to a shirt, are not muktzeh. Even should they cease to perform that function during Shabbos, they would not become muktzeh so long as they were intact. Therefore, a fallen button is not muktzeh. However, it may not be re-attached until after Shabbos.

Note:
  • Some rule that a button loses its status if it is not functional right now. It would be good to satisfy that opinion, where possible, and treat a fallen button as muktzeh.
  • If one were to decide not to re-attach the button to the original garment, then the button would lose its status as a functional implement, and it would be muktzeh.
  • A button that has never been attached to a garment is muktzeh.


(Shabbos 122b, 124b; Mishneh Berurah 308:35; Az Nidbiru 7:46; Shemirat Shabbat k'Hilchatah 15:72, 15:(222); Rivivos Ephraim 1:223:7; Yalkut Yosef Orach Chaim 308:87)

Have a  great day,
Mordechai

Wednesday, February 4, 2015

My hat fell off!

Hi,

One whose hat falls off in an area outside and eruv on Shabbat may pick it up and put it on. One is not transporting it for the prohibited lateral distance of four amot (about seven feet), and one is not transporting it between public and private areas.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:241)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Tuesday, February 3, 2015

Taking a dead fish out of a fish tank

Hi,

One may remove a dead fish from a tank, where its presence harms the other fish. However, one may not filter the fish from the rest of the contents, so one must take out water with it.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:239)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Monday, February 2, 2015

Moving a fish bowl on Shabbat

Hi,

Fish, like members of the animal kingdom in general, are muktzeh on Shabbat. [There is discussion regarding creatures that have particular roles to play, like service animals, but that is beyond the scope of this post.] Therefore, a fish bowl containing fish may not be moved on Shabbat; the bowl is a base for the muktzeh items.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:239)

[Note: Other authorities disagree, and particularly where the place where the bowl is currently located is endangering the fish. You might wish to see Yabia Omer 5: Orach Chaim 26; Ketzot haShulchan 121 footnotee 4; Shemirat Shabbat k'Hilchatah 18:footnote 62 and 27:footnote 96; Az Nidbiru 8:37:2.]

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Sunday, February 1, 2015

Medical ID bracelet on Shabbos

Hi,

[Please see the disclaimer atop this blog - like all of the "daily halachah" listings, this represents the views brought in the cited responsum below, and it is not necessarily a universally accepted ruling.]

There are conflicting opinions regarding wearing a medical bracelet outside an eruv on Shabbat. Some contend that there is no halachic concern at all, since this is a garment. Others argue that it is only permitted because of medical need, and if so one should opt to stay indoors where that is reasonably possible.

Therefore, it would be best to find some other way to note one's medical information. Where that is not possible, one could satisfy all of the views by attaching the bracelet to one's sleeve. And where that is not possible, one may rely on the views that see the bracelet as a garment.

(Rivivot Ephraim 1:237)

Have a great day,
Mordechai