[Avodah] LED "tealights" for Shabbos candles

[Zev Sero]

It seems clear to me that you can make a bracha, since the purpose of
neir shabbos is the light, not the flame.  The mitzvah is that in every
room one will use on Friday night there should be enough light not to
bump into or trip over anything; a LED provides that just as well as
candles.  And in fact nowadays we all do fulfil most of the mitzvah
with electric lights; I've never heard of anyone nowadays who lights
actual candles in every room, including the bathroom, and yet that is
what the mitzvah requires.  Obviously we all agree that electric lights
fulfil the mitzvah, so why not LEDs?  Lighting actual candles for the
bracha is a hiddur mitzvah, but only that.

On 12/07/2012 10:28 AM, Micha Berger wrote:
> In a fluorescent lamp,[...] I would find that harder to say "me'orei
> ha'eish" over, but still, at least the question of aish comes up.

> An LED [...]  Nothing remotely similar
> to the concept of aish as per havarah, mechabeh or bishul. I have even
> a harder time picturing the appropriateness of "me'orei ha'eish" on them.

But we're not discussing "borei me'orei ha'esh"; we're discussing
"lehadlik ner shel shabbos kodesh" or "shel yom tov", etc.  And there
the mitzvah is the provision of practical light by which one may walk
around without hurting oneself, and see what one is eating.  A LED
provides this just as well as a candle.

-- 
Zev Sero
zev at sero.name