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Week 39 - Tuesday - 22 August 2000

BETZAH: CHAPTER 4: MISHNAH 6

R. Eleazar says, A person may take a chip from what lies before him to clean his teeth with it, and he may gather from the courtyard and light, for everything which is in the courtyard is regarded as prepared. But the Sages say, He may gather that which is before him and light.

Kehati

R. Eleazar says, A person may take a chip from what lies before him in his home, to clean his teeth with it - to remove food remnants caught between his teeth, and he may gather from the courtyard - from the entire courtyard, and light the fire under his pot, for everything which is in the courtyard is regarded as prepared - According to one opinion one may take a splinter form the courtyard, and when R. Eleazar stated that a person takes a chip from what lies before him, is not to be taken literally, but only meant to underscore that the Sages forbid to take even a chip from what lies before him to clean his teeth.

But the Sages say, He may gather that which is before him and light - The Sages disagree with R. Eleazar on two points: A. that a person may not even take a chip which is before him to clean his teeth, for wood may only be used for burning and is muktzeh for any other use. B. Even for burning, one may only gather up chips lying before him in his home, but not those lying in his courtyard. As gathering up chips in one's courtyard requires great effort, the person had no mind to do so before the onset of Yom Tov, and the chips are therefore muktzeh.

BETZAH: CHAPTER 4: MISHNAH 7

One may not produce fire from wood, stones, earth or water; and one may not heat tiles to roast on them. Furthermore R. Eleazar said, A person may stand in a muktzeh before the Sabbath in the Seventh year, and say, From here I will eat tomorrow. But the Sages say, Only if he marks it and says, "From here to there."

Kehati

One may not produce fire - On Yom Tov, from wood - by rubbing two pieces of wood together stones - by striking two stones together earth - hard earth, which when digging in it, produces a spark, or water - by filling a glass container with water and placing it in the sun, and then placing tinder underneath the glass (see Rambam, Hil. Yom Tov 4:1); all of the above are fire-producing acts, and are therefore forbidden, for it is only permitted on Yom Tov to light a fire from one already burning.

And one may not heat up - in a fire, tiles to roast on them - the Gemara explains that this law refers to new roof tiles, and it is forbidden to heat them because it hardens them, thus improving their quality.

Furthermore R. Eleazar said - additionally to his lenient ruling in the previous mishnah, in regard to using a chip to clean one's teeth and to gather up chips on Yom Tov, here we have another lenient ruling: A person may stand in a muktzeh - a place where figs and grapes are laid out to dry, before the Sabbath in the Seventh year - in the Shemitah year, when the laws of ma'aser - tithing - do not apply, and say,

From here I will eat tomorrow - and that is considered to be sufficient preparation to permit him to eat the figs and grapes on the Sabbath. The same really applies to any other year, provided the person had separated the ma'aser before the Sabbath, but the mishnah specified "before the Sabbath in the Seventh year" because the work of fruit laid out to dry is as yet unfinished and usually not yet tithed. Thus, in other years, such a statement by the owner would be useless because food set aside for the Sabbath is liable to ma'aser, and may not be eaten untithed. In the Shemitah year, however, when produce is not liable to ma'aser, it may be eaten on the Sabbath if he prepared it before the Sabbath.

But the Sages say, only if he marks it and says "From here to there" - only then may one eat on the Sabbath fruit left out to dry. According to one opinion the principle underlying the dispute is bereirah, i.e., R. Eleazar holds that when a person takes the fruit on the Sabbath, it is retrospectively designated (mevarer) as the food which he prepared before the Sabbath. The Sages, however, do not accept the principle of bereirah," and one must therefore specify, saying before the Sabbath, "From here to there I shall eat tomorrow."

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