Shabbat elevator - wikipedia Shabbat elevator This article uncritically uses texts from within a religion or faith system without referring to secondary sources that critically analyze them. Please help improve this article by adding references to reliable secondary sources, with multiple points of view. ( December 2015 ) Shabbat elevators Shabbat elevator switches A Shabbat elevator is an elevator which works in a special mode, operating automatically, to satisfy the Jewish law requiring Jews to abstain from operating electrical switches on Shabbat ( the Sabbath ). Contents 1 Description and history 2 Criticism 2.1 Elevators may be prohibited anyway 2.2 Permitted but discouraged 2.3 Energy waste from continuous operation 3 See also 4 References 5 Bibliography Description and history Jewish law forbids those who observe it from undertaking various forms of `` work '' on the Sabbath, including that they may not create sparks or fires. In recent times, this has been extrapolated to also cover the operation of electrical equipment. An elevator may be marked with a sign noting that it is specially configured for Shabbat observance. There are several ways the elevator works ( going up and down ) ; stopping at every floor, stopping at alternate floors, or rising to the top floor and stopping while going down. Shabbat elevators can be found in areas of large Jewish population in Israel, the United States, Canada, Ukraine ( Dnipro ), Argentina and Brazil. They are typically found in big hotels, Israeli hospitals and other health institutions, apartment buildings, and in some synagogues. The Israeli Knesset passed a special Shabbat elevator law in 2001 ordering the planning and building of all residential buildings, and public buildings which have more than one elevator, to install a control mechanism for Shabbat ( Shabbat module ) in one of the elevators. In this mode, an elevator will stop automatically at every floor, allowing people to step in and out without having to press any buttons. Otherwise, Jewish law prohibits observers from using an elevator on Shabbat in the normal manner, because pressing the button to operate the elevator closes a circuit, which is one of the activities prohibited on Shabbat, and may also indirectly lead to `` writing '' of the new floor number in the display. In 2009, senior haredi rabbis, led by Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, published a religious injunction forbidding the use of Shabbat elevators. Some interpreters believe that a non-Jew known as a Shabbos goy may not be employed to press the buttons and hold the door for Jewish people, in buildings that do not have Shabbat elevators, unless the Jew has great difficulty using the stairs themselves. As discussed in that article, a non-Jew is not expected to keep the Sabbath like a Jew. Therefore, Jewish law holds that a Jew may benefit from work performed by a non-Jew only if the non-Jew performs this work for his own good and of his own free will. A borderline case is when a Jew hints to a non-Jew that he wants him to perform a certain service without explicitly asking him. These borderline cases are not considered legitimate by many orthodox rabbis. An alternative workaround is to request that a non-Jew bring an item ( like a hat ) up to the observant Jew 's floor, room or apartment. Since the non-Jew can take the stairs, when he chooses to use the elevator he is doing it primarily for himself, not the Jew. Another method is to ask the non-Jew to come to the Jew 's floor to have a drink or some food together or to give them some food or drink when they arrive. ( Monetary tipping on the Sabbath is also not allowed for Jews. ) Criticism This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( June 2012 ) There are three categories of criticism against using a Shabbat elevator : Elevators may be prohibited anyway Some halakhic authorities rule that this classic Shabbat elevator does not fully overcome the relevant halakhic issues. Among other things, a person 's weight on a downward - traveling elevator can be considered to partly cause the elevator 's descent, and therefore the activation of all electric circuits which come into play as a result of it. Thus, when a person ascends in an elevator, the motor that moves the counterweight down and the elevator car up is operating to counteract the rider 's weight, which is a hindrance to make operation of the elevator require more work - energy. However, when a person descends an elevator, the person 's weight helps move the elevator in the downward direction, so the person is considered physically to cause the elevator to move down. Accordingly, some authorities permit ascending in an elevator but prohibit descending. The movement of an elevator may also indirectly cause other events to take place that are forbidden under Jewish law. For example, in many systems, one light turns off and another light turns on as the elevator passes from one floor to the next. Some commentators find that turning on incandescent floor lights violates a Biblical prohibition against kindling a fire on the Sabbath. The Zomet Institute and the Institute for Science and Halacha modify elevators to avoid these issues. Permitted but discouraged The use of an elevator in a Shabbat mode is an example of a legal workaround, where seemingly `` forbidden '' acts can be performed by modifying the relevant technology to such an extent that no law is actually violated. Usage of a Shabbat elevator by those who are otherwise capable is considered by some rabbinical authorities as a `` violation '' of Shabbat, therefore many Orthodox Jews might prefer to walk up or down the stairs instead of taking an elevator. Energy waste from continuous operation In comparison to a normal elevator which remains stationary until needed, Shabbat mode has the side effect of wasting considerable amounts of energy, needlessly running the elevator car sequentially up and down every floor of a building, repeatedly servicing floors where it is not needed. For a tall building with many floors, the car must move on a frequent enough basis so as to not cause undue delay for potential users who will not touch the controls as it opens the doors on every floor up the building. See also 39 categories of activity prohibited on Shabbat Electricity on Shabbat Driving on Shabbat References Jump up ^ Photo of an inscription outside a Sabbath elevator Jump up ^ Israeli Planning and Building Law - 1965 Archived 7 June 2009 at the Wayback Machine. Chapter 158A A1 ( in Hebrew ) Jump up ^ A new law : to establish Shabbat elevators in Story - Buildings Ynet, 25 July 2007 ( in Hebrew ) Jump up ^ Nahshoni, Kobi. Rabbi Elyashiv : Do n't use Shabbat elevators, Ynet, ( October 02, 2009 ) Jump up ^ Cohen, Rabbi Simcha Bunim ( `` The Santity of The Shabbos, '' Mesorah Publications, Copyright 1988 by Rabbi S.B. Cohen, Lakewood, NJ ), Jump up ^ Exodus 35 : 3. Torah Exodus 35 : 3 Bibliography Bannett, D.R. The Sabbath Elevator Question, Elevators and Shabbat, The Institute for Science and Halacha. Halperin, Rabbi L.Y. Shabbat and Electricity, The Institute for Science and Halacha. Dundes, Alan. Shabbat Elevator and Other Sabbath Subterfuges : An Unorthodox Essay on Circumventing Custom and Jewish Character, Rowman & Littlefield Pub Inc., February 2002. ISBN 0742516717 Shabbat ( שבת ) Prayers Rituals Jewish prayer Yedid Nefesh Lekhah Dodi Shalom Aleichem Kiddush Zemirot Baqashot Torah reading ( Weekly Torah portion Shnayim mikra ve - echad targum ) Maftir Haftarah Seudah Shlishit Triennial cycle Torah study Food Kosher wine Challah Chopped liver Gefilte fish Vorschmack Cholent Kugel Objects Crock pot Hot water urn Shabbat candles Blech Challah cover Kiddush cup Laws Biblical mile Biblical Sabbath Driving Electricity Eruv Eruv tavshilin Eruv techumin Food preparation Muktzeh Chai Nosei Et Atzmo Prohibited activities rabbinically prohibited Shabbos goy Shomer Shabbat Innovations KosherSwitch Zomet Institute Shabbat elevator Shabbat lamp Shabbat microphone Sabbath mode Shabbat pedestrian crossing Special Shabbat Shabbaton Eve of Passover on Shabbat Motza'ei Shabbat Kiddush levana Havdalah Melaveh Malkah List of Shabbat topics Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shabbat_elevator&oldid=828952186 '' Categories : Shabbat innovations Elevators Hidden categories : Webarchive template wayback links Articles with Hebrew - language external links Articles lacking reliable references from December 2015 All articles lacking sources Articles needing more viewpoints from December 2015 Articles needing additional references from June 2012 All articles needing additional references All articles with specifically marked weasel - worded phrases Articles with specifically marked weasel - worded phrases from December 2014 All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from March 2018 Use dmy dates from October 2010 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Ελληνικά Esperanto עברית Polski Edit links This page was last edited on 5 March 2018, at 19 : 28. 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Question: why do elevators stop on every floor on the sabbath
Answer: to satisfy the Jewish law requiring Jews to abstain from operating electrical switches on Shabbat (the Sabbath)