[Avodah] Mitzvot That A Non-Jew Cannot Do

[T613K at aol.com]

From: "Michael Makovi" _mikewinddale at gmail.com_ 
(mailto:mikewinddale at gmail.com) 

>>Hashem  blessed the Shabbat and declared it holy, long before Am
Yisrael existed.  Furthermore, Shabbat testifies to the creation of the
world - should not  gentiles acknowledge this too?

There is no problem understanding our  obligation to keep Shabbat and
the gentiles' (hypothetical) exemption. What I  cannot understand is
their (in reality) prohibition.

It is thus all  the more surprising when Rav Hirsch (somewhere around
the end of chapter one  of Bereshit or the beginning of two) and Rav J.
H. Hertz (in his essay at the  end of Sefer Bereshit) both say that
Shabbat applies to all of humanity. This  fits very well with logic
that Shabbat's testifying to God's creation applies  to all of
humanity, but it doesn't fit well with the  Gemara.<<

Mikha'el Makovi

>>>>>
I think the generally accepted psak is that goyim /can/ keep Shabbos if  they 
want to, or at any rate can keep Saturday as a day of rest, but they cannot  
keep it exactly the same way that Jews do, because the laws of Shabbos as 
given  to Jews are between Him and us.  Thus they have to do IIRC one melacha  
de'oraisa on Shabbos (pull out two hairs).  

 


As for believing in Hashem, that is one of the Sheva mitzvos bnai  Noach, but 
there is no specific observance that goyim are enjoined to do in  order to 
demonstrate that belief.  (The belief that He created the world  and the 
corollary, that He rested on the seventh day, is part of believing in  Hashem.)  
Technically I think their mitzva to believe in Hashem is couched  as a lo sa'aseh 
-- they are forbidden to worship other gods.
 
Parenthetically I always thank my non-Jewish cleaning lady and always tell  
my kids that the cleaning lady has a zechus working for Jews, because she helps 
 us make Shabbos.





--Toby  Katz
=============



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