[Avodah] CARRYING ON YOM TOV: IS IT ALWAYS PERMITTED?

[Akiva Miller via Avodah]

R' Zev Sero wrote:

> The only reason one is carrying the key is so that it won't be
> stolen; thus it has no use on yomtov, but the MB says that if
> carrying it gives one peace of mind then perhaps that itself is
> a yomtov use.

There are two different situations we must look at: (A) A person who lives
alone and the lock is his only protection against theft, and (B) One who
has other means of protecting his property. In the first case, there is a
machlokes whether he may carry his key, and RZS's use of the word "perhaps"
signals that he agrees that this is a machlokes.

But regarding the second case, I quoted the MB who wrote:

> (in the square brackets): "And especially in a situation where one
> can give the objects or the key to a trustworthy person who is at
> home, for then it is assur according to all opinions."

to which RZS responded:

> Again, this is a situation where it is guaranteed that there will
> never be a legitimate reason to use the key on yomtov.  There is
> nothing in the drawer that one might want on yomtov, nor is one
> going to put anything there on yomtov.  The only reason one is
> carrying the key is so that it won't be stolen; thus it has no use
> on yomtov, ...

I disagree. Everyone agrees that there's no distinction between "real"
ochel nefesh (like bringing food to one's friend) and other needs (like
bringing a lulav to shul). The only distinction is between those needs and
theft prevention. In other words, there's no distinction between preventing
the theft of my money that's in the locked drawer, and the theft of my food
that's in the locked house.

I don't want any of the things in my house to get stolen, and that's why I
lock the house when I go to shul. There is a machlokes on whether or not
this justifies carrying the key on Yom Tov, and the MB says that if I can
secure those things in some other way, then "all opinions" forbid me to
carry the key. And that's why I wrote that when I lived in an area without
an eruv, and people were home to let me in, I saw no heter to carry my key,
so I used my Shabbos key.

> Why don't you leave it at home, both on shabbos and yomtov, and let
> those people let you in?   Obviously you have a reason, and thus a
> use for the key.  Therefore there is not even a hava amina that you
> should not carry it on yomtov.

There might have been more reasons, but I can only think of two now: They
might not hear me knocking, and even if they do hear me knocking, I don't
want to trouble them to come unlock the door. If you think that's enough of
a tzorech then I won't argue, but I figure that since the only reason the
door is locked is for security anyway, I didn't think that justifies me to
put them to that trouble.


[Email #2]

>From R' Micha Berger:

> R/Prof YL quoted Rabbi Doniel Neustadt from torah.org
> <http://tinyurl.com/h7s3g2z>:
>: 1)-Carrying for a positive Yom Tov purpose - permitted
>: 2)-Carrying for no purpose - prohibited
>: 3)-Carrying for a "preventive" purpose - questionable

> Same question, chol hamo'ed? I assume preventative purpose would
> be okay, as would a positive ChM or YT purpose, including ChM
> trips and other entertainment as positive. But it struck me when
> reading this -- need I be careful about even carrying (a melakhah
> garua) on ChM?

In "Chol Hamoed" by Rabbi Dovid Zucker and Rabbi Moshe Francis, they write
on pages 8-9:

: There are some restrictions which are applicable on Shabbos and
: Yom Tov but not on Chol HaMoed. Specifically, the following
: prohibitions are not in effect on Chol HaMoed:

: a) Hotzaah - the prohibition of transferring an item from a
:    private to a public domain or vice versa; also Haavarah, carrying
:    an article four cubits within a public domain. (There is a
:    dissenting view that Hotzaah is prohibited on Chol HaMoed.)
: b) Techumin ...
: c) Muktzeh ...
: d) Mimtzo Cheftzcha V'daber Davar ...

The footnote on Hotzaah is quite lengthy, so if you want to see the
sources, please find the sefer, or I can send you a scan of the page. In
any event, he *does* explain this exemption as due to "melacha garua", and
also because even on Yom Tov itself we are so very lenient, and because
there is no tircha involved. In fact, he adds that for these very same
reasons, some poskim allow Hav'arah (lighting a fire, not to be confused
with the Haavarah mentioned above) on Chol HaMoed "afilu shelo l'tzorech".

Akiva Miller