Q & A
More About Shabbas
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Is one who is lactose intolerant permitted
to take a lactase pill on Shabbos?
- Shulchan Aruch (OC 328:1 & 17) writes that it is forbidden to take medicine on
Shabbos to alleviate a discomfort, unless he feels sick and functions with difficulty
(chalah kol gufo) or he must lie down (nofel limishkav). - Chazal enacted this prohibition because they were concerned a person who is ill might
grind ingredients to prepare medication on Shabbos. This would violate the Torah
prohibition of tochainof (grinding) on Shabbos. - However, Rav Belsky, zt”l (Shulchan HaLevi 10:2) ruled that lactase pills may be taken because they are not viewed as medicines.
- Chazal only forbade medicines because a person who is ill is physically distressed &
might impetuously grind the ingredients on Shabbos. - Lactase pills are not used to treat an illness.
- They simply provide the body with the missing enzymes that are necessary for the
digestion of the milk sugars.
Is one permitted to drink a protein or fiber shake on Shabbos to
strengthen one’s body? Are these treated as medicines?
- Based on the Gemara (Shabbos 109b) & Shulchan Aruch (OC 328:37),Rav Belsky, zt”l
(Shulchan HaLevi 10:3) delineated three categories of foods as relates to medicine on Shabbos: - Foods that are eaten both as medicine and for enjoyment. These foods may be eaten on Shabbos even if one’s intent is for their medicinal value.
- Foods that are designated as medicine but coincidentally provide enjoyment. These foods
may only be eaten on Shabbos if one’s intent is for enjoyment. - Foods that do not provide enjoyment and are only eaten for medicinal purposes. These
foods may not be eaten on Shabbos, except by one who is classified as a cholehWith
respect to protein or fiber shakes, they may be consumed on Shabbos if they meet the
criteria of category 1 or 2. An individuated evaluation for each brand is required.
When travelling to a hospital on Shabbos for a life threatening
pikuach nefesh situation, is it permissible
to engage a car service with a Jewish driver?
- Rav Belsky, zt”l (Shulchan HaLevi 10:4) said in the name of Rav Yaakov Kamenetsky
zt”l that it is preferable to do so. In this way, while the driver is transporting the patient
to the hospital for a pikuach nefesh need, he will not be driving regular passengers, which
would be a desecration of Shabbos. However, two considerations must be addressed: - The Jewish driver cannot be paid on Shabbos, even if the passenger only wishes to point
to where the money is located. When using a Jewish driver, payment must be arranged
before Shabbos. If the driver is not Jewish, money should be set aside in advance & the
driver should be told to retrieve the money himself. - If the driver is Jewish (in a place where there is no Eruv), one may only bring to the
hospital items that are necessities. If the driver is not Jewish, one may take along any
item that may be helpful, and the driver should be asked to carry the bags from the car
to the hospital.
May one wear open-heel slippers outside
(where there is no Eruv) on Shabbos?
- Rav Belsky, zt”l (Shulchan HaLevi 11:3:2) writes that one may not wear open-heel
slippers outside on Shabbos because they might slide off the foot & the person might
pick them up and carry them. However, if the slipper has a toe thong which the toes can
grasp, we are not concerned that the slipper will fall off & it is permissible to wear them. - Rav Belsky ruled (Shulchan HaLevi 11:3:1) similarly that one may wear an untied shoe outside (where there is no Eruv) so long as the shoe clings to the foot. However, if the
laces are so loose that the shoe can come right off of the foot, then it may not be worn
until one tightens the laces.
Some toilets have an optical sensor & flush automatically when
one walks away from the toilet.
What should a person do if they find themselves on
Shabbos in a place that only has automatic toilets?
- Rav Belsky, zt”l (Shulchan HaLevi 7:7) discusses this question & rules that if there is
no other option, it is permitted to use such a toilet. He explains that activating the toilet by movement of one’s body is referred to in halacha as kocho (literally, one’s power.) For
example, if one tears a cloth with their hands, that is a direct melacha, but if one shoots
an arrow through a cloth, that is kocho. - On a Torah level, one is liable in both cases, but regarding Rabbinic prohibitions there is
a difference. The Gemara (Shabbos 100b) permits pouring waste water onto the side of
a boat & letting it run off into the sea (kocho). - The Ritva (Shabbos 100b) explains that pouring waste water directly into the sea is a
rabbinic violation (carrying from a private domain to a karmalis). - Nonetheless, Chazal permitted this due to the consideration of Kavod habriyos (human
dignity), so long as it is done indirectly, by means of kocho. Similarly, in the case of one
who must use an automatic toilet, it is permitted because of Kavod habriyos since it is
activated indirectly by means of kocho. - One must be mindful that if lights turn on when one enters the bathroom, then it is
forbidden to do so. - One cannot violate a Torah prohibition even in a situation of kavod habriyos.
May one move an electric fan on Shabbos?
- Rav Belsky, zt”l (Shulchan HaLevi 7:6) writes that an electric fan is in the category of
kli she'melachto issur (a utensil that is used for melacha). This type of utensil may be
moved on Shabbos if one is in need of the object or the space that it occupies. For
example, if someone wishes to place a fan in the window so that it will blow in fresh air, or remove it from the window so that the window can be closed, it is permissible to move the
fan. - However, there is a concern that if one picks up the fan, one might adjust the setting.
Therefore, Rav Belsky ruled that a fan may be moved only if the knob is covered.
Although moving a fan from one place to another will cause the fan to use slightly more
or less electricity, this is not a concern. Even though Rav Belsky cautioned against
changing the oscillation setting of a fan,unless there is a strong need,because of the
perception that one is adjusting the flow of electricity in this case he held that this is not
an issue, since the individual is only moving the fan & not changing a setting.
Is there any concern that Styrofoam or plastic cups might be made
with non-kosher ingredients?
Is it preferable to refrain from using these cups with hot liquids?
- This is a valid question because Styrofoam cups are produced using lubricants which may
be derived from non-kosher sources. - However, Rav Belsky, zt”l (Shulchan HaLevi 20:14) writes that he investigated this
matter & found that there is no concern for two reasons: - 1. The lubricants are foul tasting & furthermore, even if the lubricant was initially edible,
the lubricants become non-edible once they are part of the Styrofoam cup. Non-edible
foods (nifsal mei achilas adam) lose their non-kosher status. - 2.The lubricants are not on the surface of the cup, but are part of the body of the
Styrofoam. Rav Belsky often shared that he heard from Rav Yaakov Kamenetsky,
zt”l that a non-kosher ingredient is batel birov (nullified in a majority) if it is mixed
into inedible ingredients such as Styrofoa).
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