Mere Anarchy

[Man of Steel]

And with books, you never have to worry about the battery dying out in middle.

 

[Thrawn]

And with books, you never have to worry about the battery dying out in middle.

At least with a Kindle (or, probably, any of the other e-ink readers), you don't really have to worry about that either; the battery life is absurd. It only uses power to change from one page to another, drawing no power at all while simply displaying a page.

 

[Man of Steel]

Actually for me being an observant Jew, I prefer the books because then I could read them on Saturdays and holidays w/o a problem.

 

[Therin of Andor]

Actually for me being an observant Jew, I prefer the books because then I could read them on Saturdays and holidays w/o a problem.

You mean electronic devices on the Sabbath? Gosh, what did they sacrifice in the olden days? No candles and lamps?

What happens if your mobile phone rings on a Saturday? You can talk but not text? I'm puzzled.

 

[Christopher]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Activities_prohibited_on_Shabbat

Igniting a fire

Hebrew: מבעיר

This includes making, transferring or adding fuel to a fire. (Note, however, that transferring fire is permitted on Jewish holidays. It is one of the exceptions to the rule that activities prohibited on Shabbat are likewise prohibited on Yom Tov.) This is one of the few Shabbat prohibitions mentioned explicitly in the Torah Exodus 35:3. Many poskim ground their prohibition of operating electrical appliances in this melakha.

Note that Judaism requires that at least one light (ordinarily candle or oil) be lit in honor of Shabbat immediately before its start.

This prohibition also was (and in many circles, still is) commonly understood to disallow operating electrical switches. When actuating electromechanical switches that carry a live current, there is always the possibility that a small electric spark will be generated. This spark is classified as a kind of fire. However, as science became more advanced, and the properties of fire and electricity became better understood, this reasoning broke down: fire is a chemical reaction involving the release of energy; the flow of an electric current is a physical reaction. Therefore, some hold that the proper reason it is forbidden to complete electric circuits is because it involves construction or building (i.e., the building and completion of an electric circuit—see above). Some Conservative authorities, on the other hand, reject these arguments and permit the use of electricity.

Ironically, this prohibited act is also known as "kindling."

Writing or erasing two or more letters is also forbidden, and I assume that means letters of the alphabet rather than missives. So I guess you could read a single page on a Kindle during Shabbat, as long as you didn't turn the page, because that wouldn't erase or write any letters or expend any power.

 

[William Leisner]

I'm so glad I'm a heathen...

 

[JWolf]

Actually for me being an observant Jew, I prefer the books because then I could read them on Saturdays and holidays w/o a problem.

I'm Jewish and I find a lot of the "laws" of Judaism to be outdated and obsolete. These "laws" were put n place given the time they were created and there were reasons for them. Now, a lot of "laws" are outdated and do not mean much in the grand scheme of things. Take not eating pork. Back then, it was for hygienic reasons. Today there is no need for that to be. Not to operate an electrical device because completing a circuit that allows electricity to flow is not work at all. Does this mean you don't eat on Saturday because cooking or just getting food is work? You can take all kinds of religious "laws" and twist them around to fit all kinds of things. It's just silly (IMHO).

 

[JWolf]

And with books, you never have to worry about the battery dying out in middle.

And you don't have to worry about carrying around heavy books and finding yourself finished with what you do have with nothing else to read until you get home.

 

[Christopher]

Not to operate an electrical device because completing a circuit that allows electricity to flow is not work at all. Does this mean you don't eat on Saturday because cooking or just getting food is work?

Well, melakha doesn't literally translate as "work" -- it applies more specifically to types of work that create or transform things. Wikipedia says that the 39 prohibited activities fall into four categories:

The first 11 categories are activities required to bake bread (סידורא דפת).
The next 13 categories are activities required to make a garment (סידורא דבגד).
The next nine categories are activities required to make leather.
The final six categories are activities required to build a house.

So perhaps the prohibitions were originally meant to be directed at those four things specifically, not necessarily each individual component thereof.

Anyway, I'd assume that on Shabbat you could eat things that had been prepared ahead of time, such as bread, or things like fruit that don't need to be cooked.


However, I think that extending a ban on kindling flames to extend to activities that might create electrical sparks is unenforceably strict. After all, if the air is dry, you can create sparks just by walking across a rug and touching a doorknob, or by combing your hair. And as Wikipedia says, some Conservative Jewish authorities reject the identification of sparks with flame (since they are two different physical phenomena) and say that electricity can be used on Shabbat.

 

[Man of Steel]

Not to operate an electrical device because completing a circuit that allows electricity to flow is not work at all. Does this mean you don't eat on Saturday because cooking or just getting food is work?

Well, melakha doesn't literally translate as "work" -- it applies more specifically to types of work that create or transform things. Wikipedia says that the 39 prohibited activities fall into four categories:

The first 11 categories are activities required to bake bread (סידורא דפת).
The next 13 categories are activities required to make a garment (סידורא דבגד).
The next nine categories are activities required to make leather.
The final six categories are activities required to build a house.

So perhaps the prohibitions were originally meant to be directed at those four things specifically, not necessarily each individual component thereof.

Anyway, I'd assume that on Shabbat you could eat things that had been prepared ahead of time, such as bread, or things like fruit that don't need to be cooked.


However, I think that extending a ban on kindling flames to extend to activities that might create electrical sparks is unenforceably strict. After all, if the air is dry, you can create sparks just by walking across a rug and touching a doorknob, or by combing your hair. And as Wikipedia says, some Conservative Jewish authorities reject the identification of sparks with flame (since they are two different physical phenomena) and say that electricity can be used on Shabbat.

Wow. I didn't mean to start a debate on this. But all food (chicken, fish, beef, whatever is cooked Fri during the day b4 sundown). And there are are different types of Judiasim and I assure I'm not Conservative or Reform. Having said that, there are Orthdox jews, Ultra Orthdox and Ultra- Ultra (the crazy ones. I fall under the first.

As for phones Ian, usually I turn mine off and let the calls go to my VM. And as for books, there are some yes that say you can't read a book that has the library stamp on top cause it's "ripping" but I don't agree with that either just like I don't agree with not allowed to read english books either.

And whoever said they find the laws outdated, why and which?