Why It Is OK To Go To A Ballgame On Shabbes If You Bring Nosherei
Title
Why It Is OK To Go To A Ballgame On Shabbes If You Bring Nosherei
Creator
Jacob Schlitt
Description
"As far as I know, and I don’t know much about halachah, the real problem about violating shabbes is about riding and handling money."
Date
2014-08-02
Format
application/pdf
Type
text
Language
en
Identifier
Why_It_Is_OK_To_Go_To_A_Ballgame_On_Shabbes_If_You_Bring_Nosherei
Text
Why It Is OK To Go To A Ballgame On Shabbes If You Bring Nosherei
As far as I know, and I don’t know much about halachah, the real problem about violating shabbes is about riding and handling money. We are commanded to remember the Sabbath to keep it holy, and do all our work in six days. Thanks to unions and labor legislation, most of us do all our work in five days. Those of us who “remember the Sabbath” don’t do things like writing, answering the phone, driving, watching TV, lighting fires, tearing paper, manual labor or buying or selling.
When we were in Israel, we stayed at a hotel which had a shabbes elevator. But as far as I am concerned, if you can ride an elevator on shabbes, as long as you are not activating it by pushing a button, then you can take the T to a ballgame.
As far as handling money goes, if you bought the tickets beforehand, you are good to go. If you plan to buy your tickets at the ballpark on shabbes, that is definitely a no-no.
And to get to the ballpark, presuming you do not live within walking distance, you will ride the T and have a Charlie pass, which you bought beforehand. No handling money.
So, now you have gotten from your home to Fenway, and gotten into Fenway with your tickets that you bought beforehand. At no time has money changed hands.
And since it is almost impossible to sit through nine innings of a Red Sox game and not want to eat or drink something, and since it is also a violation of shabbes to carry anything, you will have to wear something with pockets in which can be placed, a plastic bottle of water and whatever it is you might want to munch on—peanuts, popcorn, crackerjacks, potato chips, cookies, maybe even a piece fruit.
And since it is shabbes and you no doubt went to shul, you will have to rush home after kiddush, have something more to eat, and change into appropriate Red Sox paraphernalia.
You may have thought you have had your share of standing up and sitting down in shul, but be prepared for more standing up and sitting down, especially toward the later innings when the Red Sox are threatening, and David Ortiz is at bat. Very likely, you will spend the entire second half of the ninth inning on your feet, praying.
8-2-14
As far as I know, and I don’t know much about halachah, the real problem about violating shabbes is about riding and handling money. We are commanded to remember the Sabbath to keep it holy, and do all our work in six days. Thanks to unions and labor legislation, most of us do all our work in five days. Those of us who “remember the Sabbath” don’t do things like writing, answering the phone, driving, watching TV, lighting fires, tearing paper, manual labor or buying or selling.
When we were in Israel, we stayed at a hotel which had a shabbes elevator. But as far as I am concerned, if you can ride an elevator on shabbes, as long as you are not activating it by pushing a button, then you can take the T to a ballgame.
As far as handling money goes, if you bought the tickets beforehand, you are good to go. If you plan to buy your tickets at the ballpark on shabbes, that is definitely a no-no.
And to get to the ballpark, presuming you do not live within walking distance, you will ride the T and have a Charlie pass, which you bought beforehand. No handling money.
So, now you have gotten from your home to Fenway, and gotten into Fenway with your tickets that you bought beforehand. At no time has money changed hands.
And since it is almost impossible to sit through nine innings of a Red Sox game and not want to eat or drink something, and since it is also a violation of shabbes to carry anything, you will have to wear something with pockets in which can be placed, a plastic bottle of water and whatever it is you might want to munch on—peanuts, popcorn, crackerjacks, potato chips, cookies, maybe even a piece fruit.
And since it is shabbes and you no doubt went to shul, you will have to rush home after kiddush, have something more to eat, and change into appropriate Red Sox paraphernalia.
You may have thought you have had your share of standing up and sitting down in shul, but be prepared for more standing up and sitting down, especially toward the later innings when the Red Sox are threatening, and David Ortiz is at bat. Very likely, you will spend the entire second half of the ninth inning on your feet, praying.
8-2-14
Original Format
application/msword
Collection
Citation
Jacob Schlitt, “Why It Is OK To Go To A Ballgame On Shabbes If You Bring Nosherei,” Autobiographical stories & other writing by Jacob Schlitt, accessed April 25, 2024, https://tsirlson.omeka.net/items/show/242.