May
I set up a self operated vending machine before Shabbos
knowing that gentiles will probably use it on Shabbos?
The only problem that need be considered is
whether it is similar to asking a gentile to make a
purchase on Shabbos. We have already learnt
[1]
that one may hand money to a gentile before Shabbos and
request the purchase of a certain product, provided that
one does not request it be purchased on Shabbos and
there is an opportunity to buy it on a weekday, and that
the gentile is rewarded for the action.
A
vending machine can be compared to such a case, being
that one is not telling a gentile to purchase an item on
Shabbos.
[2]
What if the machine
only operates on Shabbos?
I still think that it would be permitted
because the product is being purchased by the gentile
solely for his own purpose, unlike the previous case
where the item is being purchased for the Jew’s sake.
Although the Jew will be making a profit on Shabbos,
that in itself is not a crime. Seeing that a transaction
is being made on Shabbos, i.e. the Jew is “collecting”
money on Shabbos and transferring ownership of the
bought item on Shabbos, Rav Yitzchak Weisz ztz”l
in the îðçú éöç÷ lays
down certain provisions and a rav must be asked.
Does that mean that
one may own a store and have gentiles operating the
store on Shabbos?
No, a store is far more complicated for
various reasons. To name a few: a Jew is paying gentiles
to work for him; a Jew is telling a gentile to do
melacha for him; besides that there is also an
element of chilul Hashem. There are many factors
involved with a Jewish-owned store or a Jewish-gentile
partnership and a competent rav must be asked whether it
is permitted to operate on Shabbos.
What if there is a
possibility that Jews will use the vending machine on
Shabbos?
If the machine is positioned in a solely
Jewish area or building it is far more complicated and
it might not be correct to permit the machine to operate
on Shabbos. However if the machine is used by Jews and
gentiles alike and there is ample time to use the
machine before or after Shabbos, there may be sufficient
leeway to rely one to permit the machine to operate on
Shabbos,
but again, a rav must be consulted.
What about leaving
a fax machine on or an answer phone to accept orders on
Shabbos?
We find a machlokes amongst the
poskim as to whether this is permitted. Some
poskim say that the machine is being operated for
the gentile’s own benefit and the Jew is not involved in
any way in the melachos. Other poskim say
that since melachos are being performed inside
the Jew’s house, and when that happens one must usually
prevent and protest against it, one cannot permit
setting up such a machine before Shabbos.
As usual in such a case a competent halachic authority
must be asked.
Nowadays, it is possible to perform
transactions online and buy and sell 24/7, which creates
concerns as to whether one may leave a site open and
permit these transactions to be done over Shabbos. They
might be compared to the vending machines mentioned
above but because of the complexity of the issue at
hand, here too a competent halachic authority must be
asked.
Is it permitted for
a Jew in Israel to phone a gentile in the USA when it is
no longer Shabbos in Israel but it is still Shabbos in
the USA?
The majority of the poskim permit it
as the Jew is not violating the Shabbos and as far as
the Jew is concerned the Shabbos is already out.
One could argue and say that since in the gentile’s
location it is still Shabbos and one is telling a
gentile to ‘desecrate’ the Shabbos – but this is not so
because the reasons prohibiting
àîéøä ìòëå"í do not
apply. For example: one reason is because if a Jew tells
a gentile to violate the Shabbos, the Jew may do the
same. This does not apply in this case because it is not
Shabbos for the Jew and the Jew’s Shabbos will not be
violated at any point.
Another is because ‘telling’ him is a violation of
Shabbos speech. This does not apply either because it is
not Shabbos for the Jew.
Under what
circumstances may I ask a gentile to perform a melacha
for an ill person?
The gemora Shabbos 129a states that
one may ask a gentile to fulfill the needs of an ill
person on Shabbos. The ill person in the gemora
is defined as a çåìä ùàéï áå
ñëðä which is a person who is either bedridden,
or has pain that causes one’s entire body to ache
such as a migraine. In either case one may ask a gentile
to violate issurei d’oraisso
for the sake of the ill person.
The
Rambam (2:10) adds that one may instruct a
gentile to cook and bake for an ill person. In other
words, the gentile may do anything necessary for the
recuperation of the ill person.
This
does not mean that a gentile may perform any task for an
ill person. The Mishna Berura writes
that the gentile may only violate the Shabbos to bring
relief during Shabbos and not after Shabbos. Rav Shlomo
Zalman Auerbach ztz”l
however adds that if by violating the Shabbos, the
recuperation will be faster, even though the ill person
will only benefit from the Shabbos violation
after Shabbos, one may ask the gentile to violate
the Shabbos.
-
For example, a gentile may drive to the pharmacy in
order to purchase medication and carry it through a
reshus harabim and bring it to the ill
person. If the medication is only required after
Shabbos and it will not make a difference if the
medication is purchased on Shabbos or after Shabbos,
the gentile may only purchase it after Shabbos. If
however, the pharmacy is say six hours away and it
is important that the ill person be administered the
medication earlier, the gentile may violate the
Shabbos even though the ill person will only benefit
from the medication after Shabbos.