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The Jewish Law Corner

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We'll look at a few Jewish laws regarding muktzeh on Shabbat.

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Many people ask whether they can touch a hammer or money on Shabbat.

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They say, "I'm not buying anything. I just want to move my wallet from one place to another."

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And in general there is confusion surrounding what we're allowed to touch on Shabbat

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and what we're not allowed to touch on Shabbat (muktzeh).

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So we need to clarify the issue. First of all, we're allowed to touch anything on Shabbat.

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As long as we don't move it, there's no problem. You can touch a car, money, with your finger,

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as long as you don't move the coin--just touching muktzeh is not prohibited.

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The Shabbat prohibition only concerns moving something from one place to another.

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There are several different categories of laws regarding muktzeh--several categories of objects.

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Each category has its own laws. We must preface this by explaining that there are Shabbat prohibitions

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that are from the Torah (d'Oraita), such as the prohibition of igniting a flame or plucking a leaf

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or writing or drawing or sewing something, tearing something. All of these are Torah prohibitions.

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A person who turns the key of his car ignition on Shabbat, he is igniting a flame.

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Or turning on lights, or lighting a cigarette--all of these are equally severe:

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They are Torah prohibitions.

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Other prohibitions were added by our Sages, as part of the authority the Torah grants them.

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"You shall safeguard My charge" [Lev.18:30]. Our Sages were given guidelines on how to

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decree certain restrictions, as the Mishna says, "make a fence for the Torah" [Avot 1:1].

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They must make a fence, a protective border. But they can't just decree whatever they want.

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There are rules in the Torah about what they're allowed to decree, what they must not decree,

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and we, the nation of Israel, are commanded:

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"you shall not deviate from the word that they will tell you, right or left" [Deut.17:11].

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Meaning, once our Sages--not from this generation, but in those generations,

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once the Talmud was completed, and a spiritual decline was apparent, our Sages saw

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that they no longer had the knowledge of how spiritual worlds are structured

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in order to make rulings according to the necessary guidelines.

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So they took upon themselves to refrain from making further rulings. But until the Talmud was completed,

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they had the authority to make rulings, such as lighting Chanuka candles--which our Sages ruled--

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but we make the blessing of:

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"Who has sanctified us with His commandments, and has commanded us to kindle the Chanuka light"

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Our Sages ask in the Talmud, "where is this commandment?"

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After all, this is a ruling of our Sages. And the response is: we were commanded by

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"you shall not deviate"--the Torah says:

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"you shall not deviate from the word that they will tell you, right or left"--

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so once we are so commanded not do deviate, it's as if a king commands me, "follow this man,

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he'll show you what to do". It's an order from on high--whatever he says, you must do.

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If he tells you to build a house, you're building it on my tab, I'll give you what's needed for it

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according to the guidelines and instructions. So of course if a king commands this of you,

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we are commanded by the king to listen to this man. So our Sages have their guidelines,

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about how to make protective fences, and we are commanded not to deviate from their rulings.

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And we're talking about our Sages from those generations.

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One of their rulings was this concept of muktzeh--objects we are prohibited from moving on Shabbat.

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This means that even though you're not igniting a flame, you're not tearing anything,

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you haven't created anything, and all you did was move something from one place to another

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not everything can be moved on Shabbat. Our Sages made this ruling for several reasons:

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Someone fiddling with a hammer might happen to, meaning, if he were allowed to move a hammer

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on Shabbat, could by-the-by happen to fix something with it, which means he'd transgress

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a Torah prohibition.

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Another reason for this ruling: the special Shabbat atmosphere.

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Part of the special feeling of Shabbat comes when a person enters a spiritual atmosphere,

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But if he's handling money, walking around with a wallet in his pocket,

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moves all kinds of things around, he doesn't sufficiently enter the spiritual realm

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of Shabbat. He's got 24 hours to disconnect himself from the radio, phone, TV, flame,

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and he also doesn't handle money, tools, sewing implements, etc.

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he is on a different spiritual plane, his whole Shabbat has a different feel to it,

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he is elevated. Maimonides (Rambam) lists other reasons as well.

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When we look at all the objects we own, they can be divided into several categories:

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Our Sages determined rules for each category, for what is allowed & what is prohibited.

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One category is called Utensils Whose Purpose is Permitted (kli shemelachto leheter).

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With a Utensil Whose Purpose is Permitted, you can move it for any reason you want.

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What are some examples of a Utensil Whose Purpose is Permitted? Silverware, for example.

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Or furniture, or clothes. These are items meant for permitted use--to wear them,

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to eat with them. Moving them on Shabbat is permitted, for any purpose.

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The next category, in terms of severity, is

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Utensils Whose Purpose is Prohibited (kli shemelachto leissur).

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Utensils Whose Purpose is Prohibited, meaning any object that is a utensil,

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meaning it's not just some stone in the street--stones are not a utensil--

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branches, dirt, animals are not called utensils. But something that is a utensil,

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meaning it has a specified purpose, such as sewing implements, writing utensils, tools--

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these are utensils, but their use is prohibited. Unlike silverware, or plates and so on, whose use is allowed.

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Their purpose is a prohibited act. A needle's purpose is sewing. A hammer, and so on--

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Utensils Whose Purpose is Prohibited--must not be moved on Shabbat for a purpose other than

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for Shabbat. If it's for Shabbat, for example, he has a coconut, and he wants to use a hammer

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in order to crack it open. That is permitted on Shabbat. One is allowed to use a hammer

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to crack open a coconut or any other nut. He doesn't have a nutcracker, and he wants to use a hammer.

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It's permitted. But this is a Utensil Whose Purpose is Prohibited.

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True, but even a Utensil Whose Purpose is Prohibited can be moved in order to use it

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for an act permissible on Shabbat--such as using a hammer to crack open nuts.

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Or it can be moved because one needs the place where the object lies. You want to sit on a chair,

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and you see there is a saw on the seat. You need the seat. Or you sit by the table and you see

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sewing implements on the table. One is allowed to pick them up by hand and put them in place.

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You don't have to just toss them. Once you've lifted it for a permitted reason, because you need its place,

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you can take it to wherever it belongs and put it in place.

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This is called a Utensil Whose Purpose is Prohibited--it can be moved in order to use it

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for a purpose permitted on Shabbat, or for the place upon which it lay.

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But if it is not for a purpose permitted on Shabbat or for the place upon which it lay,

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but just to move it out of the sun--he's worried the sun will ruin it--

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and it's a Utensil Whose Purpose is Prohibited--he's concerned that, if it stays out in the yard,

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rather than bringing it in to the house, it will get lost. Moving a Utensil Whose Purpose is Prohibited

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on Shabbat is not permitted, unless it's to use it for Shabbat, or you need the place where it lay.

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A Utensil Whose Purpose is Prohibited cannot be moved out of the sun. What he can do, for example,

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if there's a hammer in the yard and he's afraid it will get stolen--and one is not allowed

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to move the utensil to avoid theft, but he's worried someone will come into the yard

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and steal his hammer. So he can, even though he didn't intend to eat nuts, he can decide to eat nuts.

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He takes the nuts and then takes the hammer in order to crack them open. After using it

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in the permissible way, he can put the hammer in place. And this is not considered

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Prohibited Slyness (Ha'arama Asura). There are schemes that are prohibited, where we say,

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"who are you trying to fool? What are you trying to pull?" But there are schemes that are

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within permitted limits. It's not called slyness. So he decided now to eat nuts. He'll enjoy these nuts.

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But in order to crack them open, he'll need the hammer. In this manner, it's permitted.

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The next category up in terms of severity, is called in Jewish Law, Items That Have No Specific Purpose

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(muktzeh mechamat gufo). As we said, the first category is Utensils Whose Purpose is Permitted--

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anything intended for a permitted use on Shabbat--can be moved for any reason,

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even if it's out in the yard. There's silverware out in the yard, and you're afraid it will get stolen.

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You're allowed to bring them inside. A leather couch that the sun is beating down on--

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you're worried the sun will ruin it--you're allowed to bring it in to the house, because it's a

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Utensil Whose Purpose is Permitted. We saw that the category of Utensil Whose Purpose is Prohibited

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is more severe. You can move it to use it for a permitted purpose or for its place

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to use the place where it lay, but not to take it out of the sun. The next level in terms of severity

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is called Items With No Specific Purpose. This kind of item is not considered a utensil.

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It's not even a utensil. For example, stones, dirt, branches, animals--you have no use for an animal

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on Shabbat. Someone raising different animals in his home--beavers, rabbits, chickens and chicks

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and so on--all animals are considered Items With No Specific Purpose. You're allowed to pet it.

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You're allowed to pet an animal, but you're not allowed to pick it up. Just like you're not allowed

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to pick up stones on Shabbat. And someone who picks up stones on Shabbat is desecrating Shabbat.

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Meaning, those who throw stones on cars driving past on Shabbat in the course of protests for Shabbat,

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stones should be thrown on them, since THEY are actually desecrating Shabbat!

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The stone itself is muktzeh--you're not allowed to move a stone on Shabbat.

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Here we should note that, the truth is, that those who throw stones on Shabbat are people who don't have

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even an ounce of Fear of Heaven. Anyone familiar with this issue knows that most great rabbis

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oppose these protests. There are a few who support protesting in the streets where people

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are desecrating Shabbat, others say that "his gain is offset by his loss" [Avos 5:14]--

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nothing is gained from these protests. But even those who do call for protests always emphasize

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in their announcements that violence must be avoided. And really, most of the protest,

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as those present can attest, involves people standing around singing Shabbat songs,

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walking around among their group. A cheeky young guy might show up and throw a stone

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because he wants to see some commotion, and then policemen might ride up on horses,

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and of course the nightly news won't show the three hours of peaceful protest,

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but rather the few minutes of commotion. And then Israelis get the impression that,

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what do haredi people do all day? They've got nothing better to do than throw stones.

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It's a fact--we saw it on TV. Because that's their exposure to haredim.

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Whereas, the truth is, the stone itself is muktzeh on Shabbat,

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and someone who throws stones on Shabbat is himself desecrating Shabbat.

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It's completely prohibited to move a stone on Shabbat. So stones, animals, branches, dirt--

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as well as coins, bills--are not utensils, are not like tools, sewing implements.

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They are classified as Items With No Specific Purpose.

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Items With No Specific Purpose cannot be moved on Shabbat,

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even for a use permitted on Shabbat, or for the place upon which they lie.

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It's more severe than a Utensil Whose Purpose is Prohibited. Meaning, someone who wants

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to crack open nuts on Shabbat is not allowed to take a stone and use it to crack open nuts.

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A hammer can be used, because it is a utensil. But a stone--no. Unless, he took a rock

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and made it into a utensil. How does he do this? Even if he changed nothing about the rock.

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If he designates it for regular use--he found some rock he really likes--

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and he wants to use it regularly as a nutcracker. Or, he took a rock and set it permanently by the door

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in order to keep it open. There's a special item that does that. But he wants to save money,

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so he didn't buy that item. He took a rock from the street, but it's permanently placed there,

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to prevent the door from closing. So this rock itself has become a utensil. Once it has been thus defined,

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because it is used regularly, the rock itself has become a utensil that is permitted on Shabbat.

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Such a rock can be used as a nutcracker, etc. It's rare that a person uses a rock on a regular basis,

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thereby turning it into a utensil. But, if he did so, it is now defined as a utensil.

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There are of course many more details to these laws, and it's important to learn them.

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In our Shabbat Laws cassette tape series, we went into greater detail about all these laws:

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If it must be designated for eternity, or if it can be designated for a period of time,

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but those are details and right now we're just going through the basic rules.

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There is one more category of muktzeh, known as

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Expensive Objects Used Only for a Specific Purpose (muktzeh mechamat chesron kis).

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Meaning, a Utensil Whose Purpose is Prohibited on Shabbat, such as we discussed earlier

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with the hammer, saw, etc.--these are Utensils Whose Purpose is Prohibited--

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can be moved for a permitted use or for their place, but cannot be brought into the shade.

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But, if the Utensil Whose Purpose is Prohibited is an item with which we take great care,

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not to use it for anything other than its specific purpose, such as a mohel's knife--

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used for brit milah. The mohel is very careful with this knife, and would never use it for anything else.

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If he should ever want to cut paper, for example, he wouldn't use the brit milah knife.

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It's an expensive knife. If, on Shabbat, he realizes he has nothing else, and

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he wants to use the brit milah knife in order to cut something permitted,

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he would not be allowed to use the brit milah knife. But why? We saw earlier

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that a Utensil Whose Purpose is Prohibited can be moved in order to use it for a permitted purpose,

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or for its place? The answer is, something you are careful not to use for anything other

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than its intended purpose because of its great value, is defined as

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an Expensive Object Used Only for a Specific Purpose. It rises to the next level of severity.

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This is known as an Expensive Object Used Only for a Specific Purpose--

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something we are careful not to use for anything other than its intended use.

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An Expensive Object Used Only for a Specific Purpose cannot be used even

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for a purpose permitted on Shabbat, and cannot be moved even if we need the place where it lies.

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In summary, today we reviewed the four categories of muktzeh--objects that cannot be moved on Shabbat:

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a Utensil Whose Purpose is Permitted, which can be moved on Shabbat for any reason,

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including to bring it in to the shade, a Utensil Whose Purpose is Prohibited,

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which is defined as a utensil, but whose intended purpose involves a Shabbat prohibition,

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such as tools, sewing implements, etc.--can be moved in order to use it for a purpose permitted on Shabbat,

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such as cracking nuts open, but cannot be brought into the shade. We also saw that

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we can move it if we need its spot. The next level up was Items With No Specific Purpose--

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which are not even defined as utensils--such as stones, animals, and so on.

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Of course, the chicken on my plate can be moved, because it's food. But a live chicken

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wandering around my yard--animals are defined as muktzeh, so I am allowed to pet them,

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but I can't pick him up and move him. At home, too, I can't move him. The fourth category:

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Expensive Objects Used Only for a Specific Purpose--an object that is intended for a prohibited use,

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so it seems we could have moved it for a permitted use or for its spot, but since we are careful

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not to use it for any other purpose, it is defined as something we are prohibited from moving altogether.

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The word "muktzeh" comes from the root meaning "to designate".

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Meaning, a person designates it out of his mind, takes his mind off it,

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because he knows this is an object he will not be using on Shabbat.

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We started this lecture by listing a few reasons for prohibiting the movement

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of certain objects on Shabbat, and the manner in which it is prohibited. There are other reasons, too,

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as listed by the Rambam (Maimonides) in his section on the Laws of Muktzeh.

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