What is the purpose of an eruv?
An eruv is an area within which observant Jews can carry or push objects on the Sabbath, (which lasts from sunset on Friday to sunset on Saturday), without violating a Jewish law that prohibits carrying anything except within the home.
What does it mean when the eruv is broken?
The boundaries of an eruv must be checked regularly. If the boundary is not complete and contiguous in every element (i.e., one of the elements of the boundary is missing or broken), no valid eruv can exist that Shabbat, and carrying remains prohibited.
How do you carry without eruv?
You may use a cane, crutches, or a wheelchair if any of these are needed on Shabbat, even without an eruv. If an eruv includes your house and a sports field, you may carry your ticket to a sporting event on Shabbat, but it is best if you leave the ticket at the entrance with a ticket-taker before Shabbat starts.
Can you carry tallit on Shabbat?
While the tallit is worn daily, tefillin are not worn on Shabbat and holidays. On the fast day of Tisha B’Av, different customs prevail.
What does it mean to cut off Payot?
Payot are worn by some men and boys in the Orthodox Jewish community based on an interpretation of the Tenach injunction against shaving the “sides” of one’s head. Literally, pe’ah means “corner, side, edge”. There are different styles of payot among Haredi or Hasidic, Yemenite, and Chardal Jews.
What is an eruv and why does it matter?
Actually, an eruv, in modern terminology, is a technical boundary that allows Jews to carry in public areas on Shabbat. It is one of those traditions which has blossomed from a basic Torah principle into a highly complicated legal matter.
What is not allowed in an eruv?
An eruv does not give one a license to carry everything. It does not allow the carrying of objects whose use is forbidden on Shabbat (See The Shabbat Laws for more on this topic).
Does the eruv threaten the Jewish legal system?
To them, the eruv risks making the entire Jewish legal process seem absurd to non-Jews and non-observant Jews. The talmudic Rabbis, however, were concerned with maintaining the integrity of the halakhic (Jewish legal) system while ensuring that the law is livable.
What is eruv hazerot?
The term eruv refers to the act of mixing or combining, and is shorthand for eruv hazerot — the mixing of domains, in this case, the private (rashut hayahid) and the public (rashut harabim).