| If a hammer is getting
wet in the rain, may one bring it inside? We
learned that one is permitted to handle a k’li she’mlachto l’issur
(an item usually used for something that involves an issur) l’tsorech gufo
um’komo i.e. if one needs the actual k’li or the space it is
occupying.
However, one is not permitted 1 to handle or
move a k’li she’mlachto l’issur when the intention is to prevent it
from damage or from getting stolen.
If, however the k’li will be needed later on
Shabbos, one may bring it inside even though at present he is doing so to protect the k’li.2
One is permitted to “find” something to do with
the k’li, even though his primary intention is to protect the k’li.3
This is based on a Yerushalmi that brings a case where hunting nets were getting
ruined lying in the sun. The owners asked the Rav what could be done to salvage them, and
he told them to use them as pillows. We learn from this that one may “invent”
– when a loss is involved,4 a use for a k’li she’mlachto
l’issur even though the primary intention is to salvage the k’li.
May one bring an expensive camera in
from the porch?
Assuming that the expensive camera is muktze machmas
chisaron kis, it may not be moved or handled even when a loss is involved. In
this case it will not help to “invent” a need for the k’li, because
a k’li that is muktze machmas chisaron kis is
forbidden to handle under all circumstances.5
However, one is permitted to cover the camera with a
plastic sheet, box etc to prevent it from getting wet, as the halacha is that one
may move or carry an item for the sake of a muktze. 6
A mezuza fell out of its case,
may it be picked up? Put back into the case?
A gett (divorce certificate) may be handled on
Shabbos, because one can learn from it the halachos of a gett.7
We can learn from this that a mezuzah lying in one’s drawer may be handled as
well, because one can learn from it or read the Sh’ma. However, if one was
particular not to handle it, it would be muktze. 8
As for a mezuzah on one’s doorpost: Some
authorities pointed out that it is muktze similar to a door that came off its
hinges. Others argue saying that a door is part of the house and as such it is not an
article that may be moved around, unlike a mezuzah, which is not part of the house.
Whatever the case, one may pick it up off the floor to prevent its dishonor, but should
avoid fixing it to the doorpost on Shabbos.9
Am I permitted to lean onto something muktze?
Touch it?
The Rama tells us that muktze may be touched
but not moved. This, however seems to contradict another halacha 10
which says that one may cover a muktze as long as one does not touch it while doing
so. The Mishna Berura 11 reconciles the two by saying that the latter halacha
is referring to the covering of an egg laid on Shabbos. Since an egg is oval in shape,
touching it will definitely move it, and therefore it may not be touched. Other muktze
items that will not move when touched may be touched.
As for leaning on muktze: we find in the Mishna
Berura 12 that one may sit on something muktze, and leaning, of
course, would be the same. However, using muktze (even without handling it with
one’s hand) is forbidden, see the Sh’miras Shabbos Ke’hilchasa. 13
[1] Simon 308:3
[2] T’hila L’dovid simon 308:5.
[3] M”B simon 308:16. Oruch haShulchan 308:14.
[4] Oruch haShulchan ibid.
[5] Simon 308:1.
[6] Simon 310:6.
[7] Rama Even Ha’ezer simon 136. M”B simon 307:63.
[8] Sha’ar Ha’tsiun 307:70.
[9] See the Sh’miras Shabbos Kehilchasa 20 footnote 33
[10] Simon 310:6.
[11] Simon 310:22.
[12] See M”B simon 308:82 & 88.
[13] Chapter 20 footnote 6&7.
Food For Thought
May a broken k’li be
handled/moved?
May one move shards that present a
potential hazard?
Does a broken k’li
discarded before Shabbos become muktze, even when it is suitable for various uses?
What if discarded on Shabbos?
If a pair of decent shoes was discarded
before Shabbos, do they become muktze?
Answers coming next week.
Vort on the Parsha
The possuk says (21:5-6) “the Kohanim
are not to shave their heads or scratch their flesh”. The Maharil Diskin Ztz”l
explains that the gentile priests drastically change their outwards appearance because
their internal self does not differ from other people’s, whereas the kohanim were
commanded to be holy – an inner trait, which negates the need for drastic, outer
transformations.
The tzadikkim were always distinguished by their pure,
unselfish deeds, manner of speech and true benevolence unto others. |
