cat

So an observant Jew is not to use electricity on shabbat, this is because of the prohibition against completing something (in this case a circuit) which is violated by flicking a switch or pressing a button or turning on a screen ect

My synagogue does have an elevator though, and it is not a shabbos elevator (some hospitals will have elevators that on every Saturday stop at every floor without being called, which wouldn't be practical in this circumstance). I was curious how it can be used on shabbat and turns out my rabbi's husband is an electrical engineer who as a pet project built the elevator lol

The way it works is that ones button press provides an opportunity by which the circuit could be completed, with some randomness and some delay. Because of this the circuit completes after the button is pressed but not because the button is pressed, so the person pressing the button has not violated any prohibition

Working out roundabout loopholes to make the space more accessible is just delightful and I'm so glad I asked how it works

#jewhost #halakha #halakhah

@catball shared with:

#rebug

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in reply to @numberonebug's post:

[deleted]6/3/2024, 9:13 PM

onebug @numberonebug6/3/2024, 9:18 PM

That's not how things work in Judaism, we aren't worried about being smited down. We Jews are just obligated to take this kind of thing seriously so we do :)

@Ongion6/3/2024, 9:46 PM

Oh, man, you should look up what an "eruv" is then. :host-evil: Judaism is all about hacking away at technicalities and loopholes.

... That's probably why "Jewish Lawyer" is a stereotype, come to think of it.

@quyksilver6/4/2024, 12:27 PM

Because G-d's law is perfect, there therefore are no oversights. Any loopholes we find were intended to be there

NeckSpike @neckspike6/3/2024, 9:13 PM

that is just DELIGHTFUL

onebug @numberonebug6/3/2024, 9:18 PM

yeah my wife and I were hand flapping as heck as she explained how it worked lol

Caro @caro6/3/2024, 10:41 PM

love that

fredy @cosmoline6/4/2024, 6:59 AM

i started wondering the other day if there was such a thing as a shabbat mode bus, with the operator pulling over and opening the doors at every stop so no one would have to press the stop request button. but then i realized you can just ask the driver and, like the elevator randomness button, that's a much simpler and more elegant way to do it

onebug @numberonebug6/4/2024, 1:01 PM

oh that's delightful to think about lol, your first impulse is right because asking someone to do something for you is seen as doing it yourself so asking a bus driver would be better than pulling the cord but still an issue

there was a stretch of time where I had to use public transit to get to shul and I did elect to use a train instead of a bus or trolley despite it being out of the way because well it's not stopping for me, it's just stopping where it stops and im wondering on and off of it lol

of course there are other issues that arise. one can't exchange money, or carry anything from the private domain to the public domain, nor can one travel outside of ones city, so even then it's not perfect. but, if im gonna fail a test I might as well aim for a 50% instead of a 0% ya know it's something

fredy @cosmoline6/4/2024, 3:21 PM

oooo interesting!

@quyksilver6/4/2024, 12:30 PM

Isn't this the same mechanism as the kosher switch, which is prohibited by many Orthodox rabbis

onebug @numberonebug6/4/2024, 12:55 PM

mhm! I'd wager a guess that if he'd suggested setting up the same mechanism for the light switches she would have said no lol. my understanding is that the kosher switch is only prohibited because it's against the spirit of shabbos more or less