The 39 melachot ("work" forbidden on Sabbath)
We met an old buddy (formerly a member of our synagogue) at a mutual friend’s Rosh HaShanah dinner, and had quite an interesting conversation. Since she’s currently preparing for her upcoming marriage to an Orthodox man, she’s been studying [clarification--in a class taught by a rabbi] the 39 melachot, actions that the rabbis ruled are forbidden on Shabbat (Sabbath) because they are/were used in farming, in building the Ohel Moed (Tent of Meeting/Tabernacle in the Wilderness), and in basic work activities. As luck would have it, either she misunderstood some of the rules or she’s studying with someone more machmir (strict) than the rabbis of the Orthodox Union—I thought that some of what she told us was incorrect, and, when I checked the OU website’s 39 melachot page after Shabbat, I found that I was right. Here’s some of what I learned:
20. Selecting (Note 37)
This includes separating unwanted portions of food by hand.
Thus, for example, if one is eating berries, he may not pick out the bad ones before eating the good ones.
One may, however, eat the good ones and leave the bad. It is likewise permitted to peel fruits and vegetables for immediate consumption.
[Our friend had told us that one is not permitted to peel fruits. I didn’t think that was true, and it’s not. ]
This category also forbids one to pick the bones out of fish. This is one reason for the custom of eating Gefilte Fish on Shabbos, since its bones are already removed.
If one must remove something inedible, a small amount of food should be removed along with it.
[Our friend had also said that one is not permitted to eat any fruit that has a part that isn’t edible, such as a pit. I remember that my brother, when he was Orthodox, served us watermelon on Shabbat with instructions not to pick out the seeds before eating it, but to pick them out while eating, and had deduced from his instructions that I could pull the stem from a cherry only after putting the cherry into my mouth. So I didn’t think that this was true, either.]
The spirit of this category also forbids all sorts of sorting and filing activities.
[You have to choose your clothing before Shabbat, as choosing it on Shabbat is a form of selecting or sorting.]
21. Sifting (Note 38)
This includes separating the unwanted portions from food by means of a sieve.
It includes the sifting of flour and the straining of liquids.
[Does this mean that we’d have to stock up on bottled water for Shabbat, in case we ran out of water in our water-filtering pitcher? It appears that one is not allowed to filter anything that wasn’t already filtered before Shabbat.]
22. Grinding (Note 39)
This includes all grinding and milling operations. The prime example is milling grain.
Grinding coffee or pepper, filing metals, and crushing substances in a mortar, all fall under this heading.
Its spirit also forbids the grating of cheeses and vegetables and the grinding of fish and meat, as well as herbs used for medicine.
An initial exception, however, was made in cases of acute pain and actual illness, where necessary medical treatments may be used.
Where life is actually in danger, the Sabbath may be violated in any necessary manner. Our sages teach us that it is better to violate one Sabbath in order that another may live to keep many.
34. Shearing (Note 52)
This includes removing hair, wool or feathers from any living creature.
Also included are such things as haircutting, shaving and cutting one's fingernails. Eyebrow plucking is also forbidden.
The spirit of the law also forbids the combing of hair on the Sabbath, since this normally also pulls out hairs. Using a soft brush, however, is permitted.
[Ah, here’s where the prohibition against combing hair appears.]
[ ¶ ]
I’d like to learn more about the 39 melachot, but I’m not interested in being any more machmir (strict) than the rabbis of the OU, or in following any chumrot (extra stringencies beyond what’s required)—I just want to learn the basic prohibitions. Can anyone recommend a book or online source that presents a moderate approach?
posted by Shira Salamone at 5:35 PM
19 Comments:
Right, combing is prohibited, but really, the self-grooming as work is pretty weak, hence lenient toward brushing.
"Its spirit also forbids the grating of cheeses and vegetables"
Pretty sure that we are lenient on this for immediate consumption. IIRC, for the second seder, you grate your horse raddish with your off hand.
"[Does this mean that we’d have to stock up on bottled water for Shabbat, in case we ran out of water in our water-filtering pitcher? It appears that one is not allowed to filter anything that wasn’t already filtered before Shabbat.]"
Definitely a bottled water fettish in the Orthodox world, but filtering water is harmless. It has to be things you can observe with the naked eye, NOT a filter in the water line.
"[You have to choose your clothing before Shabbat, as choosing it on Shabbat is a form of selecting or sorting.]"
I think that's a frummy Shabbosdik thing, not real. Normally the issue of sorting is taking a group and removing the bad. Choosing the good you want isn't a problem.
Regarding fish bones: eating fish bones is a threat to life. You don't have to eat them. However, you should debone the fish before Yom Tov (if cooking on Yom Tov), but you shouldn't be sorting the fish to remove the bones ahead of time.
You can mash an avacado with a shinui (with the handle of a spoon). I don't think tuna is an issue, because it's probably already in pieces, but I'm not sure about the egg (for immediate consumption would probably be fine).
According to my understanding, if you would normally never drink water without filtering it (for example, if you were out camping and there were invisible bugs you were worried about), you should not filter on shabbat but before. If you would drink the water unfiltered, passing water through a filter would not be "borer".
I don't think you are allowed to grate anything on shabbat.
Don't have a book to recommend unfortunately...I usually ask the nearest LOR :)
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My response to the first two comments vanished into the ether, along with the comment explaining why:
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I'm going to start composing in Word, again. Give me a minute to reconstruct the comment that got "eaten."
[Here's a reconstruction, from my so-called memory, of my vanished comment.]
Translations for my readers:
“shinui” = a change or variation in the way that one usually does something. For example, our former rabbi told us that, in the absence of torn toilet paper or tissues to use on Shabbat (when tearing is forbidden), one is permitted to tear and use regular toilet paper for the sake of “dignity,” as he put it, but one must tear with a “shinui,” such as using one’s elbow to poke a hole in the paper and cause it to tear.
LOR = local Orthodox rabbi
Miami Al, the filtered-water issue is a result of a ruling by the, er, LORs that NYC tap water is treif (non-kosher) due to the presence therein of copepods (tiny shellfish). We’ll need to use bottle water for a Shabbat that follows a two-day Yom Tov, as we will certainly run out of the pre-filtered water in our water-filtering bottle after two days.
"[You have to choose your clothing before Shabbat, as choosing it on Shabbat is a form of selecting or sorting.]"
I think that's a frummy Shabbosdik thing, not real. Normally the issue of sorting is taking a group and removing the bad. Choosing the good you want isn't a problem.”
For real? Our former rabbi taught us that one. It’s hard to tell whether he was being machmir (strict in interpreting halachah/Jewish religious law), given his inconsistent observance—this is the same guy who was meikil (lenient in interpreting halachah/Jewish religious law) enough to eat the dairy cakes that our shul now buys from a bakery without rabbinical supervision.
RivkaYael said, “I don't think you are allowed to grate anything on shabbat.” Miami Al, this is just a guess—perhaps the rule might be more lenient for Yom Tov (a major holiday), especially for Pesach, since grating the horse-radish for maror (bitter herb) two days before the second Seder is not a great option. You know what comes next: If you're seeking a reliable interpretation of halachah, consult your LOR.
Nu, doesn’t *anyone* know of a good book or Internet source explaining the details of the 39 melachot?
If you can find an English translation of the Orach Chayyim, that would be good (I am not aware of one, but I'm sure it exists).
Wow, much too long a post for just one comment, but limited time. Some stream of consciousness thoughts:
1) I adore Rabbi Ribiat's 4 volume 39 Melochos of Shabbat - it is a rare month indeed when I don't pull down some volume or other to check out the details of a question. It is expensive - I bought mine at the YU seforim sale at a substantial discount.
2) Your friend needs someone other than her future husband to teach her halacha.
3) As a general rule, if you will drink the water unfiltered, you may filter it.
4) I think using specialty grinding instruments such as a cheese grater is forbidden on Shabbat, but I'd have to check. Bli neder I will send you in email an essay (by the far right wing yated) on the details of preparing egg and onion salad on Shabbat itself.
5) If you can listen to audio shiurim I can recommend some about the halachot of Shabbat.
Larry, if I want that book, I'll have to check out the YU seforim sale, too--$118.50 is not exactly spare change.
My friend is not studying with her future husband--she's in a class given by a rabbi. Not sure it's helping much. :(
We haven't been drinking the water unfiltered since we saw how much junk the little filters that we put into the faucets accumulated, so we're out of luck.
I'd certainly appreciate information on making egg salad in a permissible manner on Shabbat. Thanks!
I'd have to listen to audio shiurim at home or cut CDs for my player--I'm still stuck in the 20th century, not having advanced to an MP3 (MP4?) player yet.
Sorry I wasn't too clear--I'd be happy to get some audio links. I probably need practice burning CDs anyway. :) If my skills are really fried, I'll just listen at home, instead of on the subway.
Zeesh, these "Service Unavailable
Error 503" messages are a major annoyance--it's taken me from the time I posted my previous comment until now to be able to post this comment.
Larry, thanks for pointing out that I forgot to mention that my friend was studying the 39 melachot *in a class taught by a rabbi,* not with her fiance. I've updated the post to make that clear.
RivkaYael, would an Orach Chayyim be any more reasonably priced than the book that Larry recommended, or is Judaism just an expensive religion? (Sigh.)
Re: grinding
Cutting vegetables is grinding. It is permitted for immediate use. Sounds like this is one of the silly mukseh argument about the Kosher Lamp, where the action is permitted, yet the device is mukseh, and therefore you turn it unusually... this is of course silly, the object has a permitted purpose, but whatever.
I am aware of the NYC drinking water "scandal," I chose to provide it with the respect to which I believe that ruling is entitled.
Water cannot be Kosher OR treif, it's just water, and it's permitted. The suggesting the NYC's water is more "bug ridden" than the wells that predated indoor plumbing is, well, not my LOR.
If you want a basic understanding of one posek, Rambam's Hilchot Shabbat is available in English (at most $30). (but obviously, he did not live in an era with all our technological bells and whistles, so is thin on practical application) I bought an Orach Chaim with Mishneh Berurah at the sefarim sale last year for about $20 or less, but it's in Hebrew. I'll let you know if I find anything.
As for what is considered "muktze", you can designate things to be used on Shabbat and therefore not mutze. For example, a slotted spoon is a kli for borer, but you can designate it for serving pie (not borer, just serving) and hence it would be fine. Shabbos candles sold in Boro Park have a hashgacha and are made of 100% vegetable oil, and if you want to use them as a midnight snack, just designate them as food and eat them on Shabbos if you want (tongue firmly in cheek). You really need to ask your LOR or local maharat for details.
Miami Al: Filtering is a good idea if your plumbing is full of ick (and not only because of the bugs)...one of our taps periodically emits brown water.
Rabbi David Bendory is a Sephardic rabbi, but he includes references to the difference between Sephardic and Ashkenazic custom most of the time. Here is a link to his podcasts on Shabbat
What an interesting comment and post thread - thanks for throwing all that out there. I'm sure that this could be an entire course of study just by itself.
rivkayael,
"As for what is considered "muktze", you can designate things to be used on Shabbat and therefore not mutze"
Yup, want to tell me how you designate the "Kosher Lamp" that you only use on Shabbat and Yom Tov as "for Shabbat?" During the week we use "lights." Yes, ask your Rav for the process he recommends...
" Filtering is a good idea if your plumbing is full of ick (and not only because of the bugs)...one of our taps periodically emits brown water."
If your water is brown, complain to your water department. If your city can't provide drinkable water, move. Unless you are on a well system, there is no reason to NEED to filter locally (caveat, some of my drinking hookups have filters, removing some of the chemicals improves the taste slightly, but I switch between unfiltered and filtered, not a huse difference).
If one of your taps emits brown water, you have a rusty pipe or worse. Fix your plumbing problem, not stick a Brita on the end.
Have you ever read Isaac Klein's "A Guide to Jewish Religious Practice"?
It's a Conservative guide to just about everything practical. It's not super detailed, but I think it's a really neat book in any case.
I have more suggestions, but I have to run.
" The suggesting the NYC's water is more "bug ridden" than the wells that predated indoor plumbing is, well, not my LOR."
Probably true, Miami Al. But please, no more lectures about dirty tap water.
RivkaYael, have mercy on those of use who are not fluent in Hebrew. Let me try some more translations--please correct me if I'm wrong:
muktze = things that one is forbidden to use (or even to touch or move?) on Shabbat
kli = vessel, container, instrument (musical or otherwise), utensil
borer = sorting, selecting, choosing?
hashgacha = rabbinical supervision to ensure that something (usually a food item) is kosher
Larry, thanks for the link. I listened to the audio file that had instructions for making tuna and egg salad on Shabbat, then bailed out. (Studious, I'm not.) Apparently, you dump the mayo on top of the unmashed tuna or egg, then cut the tuna or egg into small pieces with two knives held at angles to one another. Presumably, this constitutes cutting rather than grinding. And the mayo gets mixed in as well as well as possible without actually being mixed. Thanks for the info!
Chava, I hadn't thought to try Klein's Guide. I'll have a look.
"I'm sure that this could be an entire course of study just by itself."
Techelet, an entire course of study is probably what I need. Not being the studious type, though, I'll probably end up just asking questions as they occur to me.
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