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Question
How is it a Torah prohibition to ride in a car on Shabbat if a Non-Jew is driving if cars were not invented at the time of the giving of the Torah. Is this actually a rabbinic prohibition instead? Are the rabbinic halachot less important than the Torah or biblical halachot?
Answer
Lets rephrase the question and give an answer: Is it prohibited under Torah law to plant an apple tree on Shabbat when these seeds did not exist when the Torah was given? Obviously it is prohibited. The Torah teaches principles and instructed those heavily involved in Torah learning, including the greatest sages of each generation, to analyze and understand those principles and then apply them to other situations, including new cases and new inventions. In point of fact, riding in a car driven by a gentile violates a rabbinic injunction, not a Torah one. Is this actually a rabbinic prohibition instead? Are the rabbinic halachot less important than the Torah or biblical halachot? This question is also mis-phrased. Indeed it is less of a violation for someone to violate a rabbinic injunction then a Torah law, but I would not say that that makes it into something “less important.” All aspects of Torah are important. The key difference is that the Rabbis, when creating rabbinic injunctions, also allowed for relaxing those injunctions under extenuating circumstances, such as major financial loss, or illness. But this is not an absolute rule, and one needs to pose a question from a competent authority. Which probably means that you had a follow-up question. Please ask it.

1 Repliesin 1 Discussions

  • S Sharon |10 Kislev 5783

    Riding in a car on shabbat

    I requested a ride from a friend before she bought began because I didn't want my daughter to have to walk over 3 miles to get home on a Friday night. I thought it was a bit excessive. I made every effort to get into the car before the 18 minutes were up but this did not happen and 2 minutes into Chabot I got in period I even thought about getting out at her house but it would not have been possible since she had to park in a garage and close the door et cetera so I got out at my house

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