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From: arig@cvl.UUCP (Ari Gross)
Newsgroups: net.religion.jewish
Subject: Re: Re: Hilchot Shabat
Message-ID: <22@cvl.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 3-Feb-85 22:58:28 EST
Article-I.D.: cvl.22
Posted: Sun Feb  3 22:58:28 1985
Date-Received: Fri, 8-Feb-85 03:47:40 EST
References: <605@spuxll.UUCP>, <44500007@uiucdcs.UUCP> <359@utcs.UUCP>
Organization: Computer Vision Lab, U. of Maryland, College Park
Lines: 55

> >According to the book "Shmirat Shabat K'hilchata" (first edition, 12:16)
> >"in case of need" it is permissible to turn the switch on (and certainly off)
> >while the timer is off; to avoid "muktzeh" one should switch it unnaturally.
> >[This book is highly regarded, but, of course, there are some who disagree.]
> 
> 
>     That sounds like a big chiddush to me.  Keep in mind that the first edition
> did not receive Rav Moshe Feinstein's haskamah because it contained kulahs that
> he did not agree with.  Also, when used in hilchot shabbat, the term "in case of
> need" usually refers to a very important need, and the consequent kulah should
> almost certainly be relied upon only in exceptional circumstances.
> 
>     To me it would seem that turning the light switch on with the timer off
> would probably be considered an indirect act, or an act performed in an unusual
> way, and thus would be prohibited rabbinically.
> 
>     All of the above is my own opinion and thus should not be relied upon.
> -- 
> ----
> University of Toronto Computing Services	       David Schwartz
> {cbosgd,decvax,harpo,ihnp4,utcsrgv,{allegra,linus}!utzoo}!utcs!davids

      
    
         The book "SHMIRAT SHABAT K'HILCHATA" by Rabbi Neubort is considered
a fairly reliable source for what is considered a melacha on Shabbat.
He says with respect to a timer the following:

         If a timer is set to a certain time , say 8 o'clock, one could
change the timer setting before 8 o'clock (before it has gone off) and
make the timer go off at a later time, but NOT set the timer to go off
at an earlier time then it had previously been set to. In our example,
if it was set to go off at 8 PM one could come at 7 PM and set the timer
to go off at 9 PM , but not to go off at 7:30 PM. The rationale, I think,
is that prolonging the time a melacha takes place at is ok while hastening
it is prohibited. Extrapolating from that halacha, it would seem that you
could not turn on the switch to the appliance before the timer is set to
go off since this will only hasten the occurrence of the melacha, which,
if left alone, would never take place since the appliance was initially
turned off and would have remained so.The footnote there says that "in case 
of need",if someone is sick and needs the light , then the timer can be 
set back, but it should be done in an unnatural way . The same stipulation
would probably apply in the case that Meyer cited.


         It could be that there are other opinions on this matter ,but since 
Rabbi Neubort tends to be 'maikel' rather than 'machmir'  it seems unlikely
that others would allow turning on the appliance, unless, of course, it was
a case where a sick person needed it turned on, as we mentioned.

                                             -- Ari Gross
                                                Computer Vision Lab 
                                                University of MD.
                                                arig@cvl.arpa