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Setting Time Switch for Oven on Shabbos

Is someone allowed to put food in an oven erev Shabbos not cooked with a timer in order that it should turn on at the end of Shabbos and be ready to eat only on motzei Shabbos (not on Shabbos itself.)

Answer:

This interesting theoretical question depends on the sugya of using a reichayim from before Shabbos and allowing it to continue into Shabbos, which is a problem of hashma’as kol (the Shulchan Aruch 252:5 is lenient, and the Rema is stringent).

Rav Moshe (Orach Chaim 3:55) writes that this dispute applies only to a melachah that begins before Shabbos, and not to a melachah that begins on Shabbos itself, where the Shulchan Aruch will agree that one must be stringent — though others dispute this ruling.

In any event, the potential prohibition applies to hashma’as kol, which raises a problem of suspicion: Those hearing the noise will think that a prohibited melachah was performed on Shabbos. Where there is no kol, and the matter of the melachah is not public, there is no prohibition.

Therefore, if the oven works quietly, and there is no light (according to Rav Moshe, the problem only arises if the “noise” can be heard from outside the room, so that even if there is a light, there wouldn’t be a problem), it would be permitted.

Another issue is raised by the ruling of the Aruch Ha-Shluchan (338:5), who writes that one may not set a musical instrument to play automatically on Shabbos, for fear of fixing it on Shabbos.

Although this applies specifically to musical instruments, for which there is a concrete gezeirah of fixing, the same logic can be applied to cooking, for which there is also a concrete gezeirah of shehiyah, whereby there is concern that the fire for an uncooked food will be raised.

Although others dispute the ruling of the Aruch Ha-Shulchan (see kuntress of Rav Shlomo Zalman on electricity, p. 45), the reason for this is that we cannot make new gezeiros (and the gezeirah of musical instruments refers to playing them), but in this case it is possible that the gezeirah of shehiyah will apply, because the cases are “identical” in the concern involved.

However, there remains room to argue that the decree of shehiyah was enacted for Friday night alone, because of the pressure of getting the meal ready (for lunch, where there’s plenty of time, the decree is not made), and if there’s plenty of time till motzaei shabbos, the same leniency will apply.

 

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1 Comment

  1. Thanks for the teshuva. In short then this seems to be muter. As there is no kol happening and perhaps no light either (let’s look at the shailo from the point of a platta turning on and not an oven.) Then seemingly it would for sure be muter. If the problem is of shehiyah then as pointed out there is no concern that one may “raise the fire” over here since l’maseh it’ll be ready until motzei shabbos when it would need to be eaten (col sh’cain if it’s a platta that may already be considered goref u’katum.) A possibility also then there is a problem of mechzei c’m’vashel (as is the issur for shehiyah chadasha on Shabbos according to R”T in Sefer HaYosher — which seemingly would for sure be the tam when we are dealing with something that is goref u’katum.) Therefore in a case when the food is already sitting on the heat source and it turns on by itself then seemingly wouldn’t be a problem.

    Any additional insights would of course be appreciated.

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