Brown RISD Hillel

shabbat and kashrut information

For those of us who did not grow up in traditionally religious families, many forms of Jewish observance can seem complex and mystifying. When leading a program, it may be hard to take all the nuances and intricacies of Jewish observance into account: what will people do on Shabbat? What will they eat? When will they be at services on holidays? Accordingly, this document is a "cheat sheet" guide to two of the issues that come up most frequently in Hillel programming: kashrut (dietary laws), and Shabbat and holiday observance. The information presented here should help you make informed decisions as a Hillel leader about how you will respect Jewish observance.

Nothing in this document is Hillel policy. All of the information below is just that: information. How you decide to run your program is up to you, and this document should not make you feel that anything you were or are planning to do as a Hillel leader is "not allowed". Please do note, however, that Hillel does have a number of policies regarding observance inside the Hillel building and at Hillel programs that are open to the community at large.



Kashrut

Kinds of Kosher Food

Because of laws against mixing meat and dairy (see below), Kosher food can be divided into three types: meat, dairy, and "parve" (neutral). Parve foods include all grains, fruits and vegetables, eggs, kosher fish (that is, fish that have fins and scales). Most produce is automatically kosher: grape products, however, must be produced in a special way. Additionally, certain produce requires kosher certification. Eggs are kosher unless they have blood spots in them: thus, after breaking an egg but before using it, it is generally put into a clear glass bowl or cup and examined. If blood is seen, the egg is thrown away.

Pure dairy products from kosher animals (such as cows, sheep and goats) are kosher, but some hard cheeses are produced with rennet, an animal product. Thus, cheese produced with rennet is not considered kosher by some. For meat to be kosher, a number of restrictions must be met: these are addressed below.

What Meat is Kosher?

Mammals are kosher if they chew their cud and have split hooves: thus, cows, sheep and goats are all kosher. All birds are kosher except for those that eat carrion (like vultures and birds of prey): thus, chicken, turkey, and most other birds you're likely to see on supermarket shelves are kosher. But in order to be kosher, meat must be slaughtered in a certain fashion by a kosher butcher. Thus, most meat you will find is not likely to be kosher. Kosher meat will by identified by a "hechsher", or kosher certification, discussed below. In order to be kosher, meat must also be prepared in a way the eliminates all traces of blood before being consumed. For information about obtaining kosher meat in the Providence area, talk to a Hillel staff member.

Kosher Certification

Some products bear a label that certify them as being produced in a kosher way under Rabbinical supervision. These labels can certify goods as being parve, meat, or dairy, and can also signify that products are Kosher for Passover. Not all "hechshers", or certification markings, are accepted by everyone: these are the ones accepted by Hillel. Not all products need kosher certification: unprocessed fruits, vegetables and grains, raw unprocessed eggs, fresh and frozen fish, and unmixed spices do not require hechshers. Meat, wine, dairy, flour, and processed foods (such as bread, canned foods, frozen foods, baked goods, dried fruit, soda, and snack foods) do. When in doubt, look for a product with a hechsher: some products that may not technically need a hechsher are certified anyway. Providence's grocery stores, especially Eastside Marketplace and Stop and Shop, carry a wide variety of kosher certified foods.

Kosher certified products can become non-kosher if they are contaminated by non-kosher food or food of unknown kashrut status. Thus, products opened and used in non-kosher kitchens may be of doubtful kashrut.

Meat and Dairy

Jewish law prohibits the mixing of meat and dairy products. In addition to not eating the two within the same meal, people tend to wait a period of time between consuming one and consuming the other: the period varies between one and six hours when making the change from meat to dairy, but can be shorter when making the change from dairy to meat. Moreover, there is a series of laws to prevent accidental contamination. For instance, meat and dairy products cannot be served or prepared with the same dishes and utensils. More on laws of kashrut relating to dishes and utensils follows.

Kosher Dishes and Utensils

Dishes, utensils, and even appliances that have been used for non-kosher food or food of unknown kosher status cannot be used for kosher food. Additionally, utensils and appliances that have been used for both milk and meat are non-kosher. Some utensils (but not all) can be "kashered" (made kosher) after being non-kosher. In general, kosher kitchens have two entirely different work areas, sets of utensils, and sets of appliances for milk and for meat. Coverings such as tablecloths, paper or aluminium foil can be used to prepare or serve dairy on a meat surface, or vice-versa. Authorities differ on exactly what it is necessary to do in order to keep milk and meat separate enough. Finally, utensils made out of certain materials must be immersed in a ritual bath (mikveh) before being considered kosher: however, this is not required for most disposable dishes and cutlery. Due to these restrictions, food not prepared in a kosher kitchen is not considered kosher.

Hillel maintains a kosher kitchen. In order for it to stay kosher, certain policies must be kept in place: for more information about using the kitchen, talk to Hillel staff or student leaders.



Shabbat and Holidays

Start and End of Shabbat

Shabbat starts whenever candles are lit; candles must be lit before sunset (generally they are lit 18 minutes early). Shabbat ends when three stars are (or would be) visible in the night sky, about 40 minutes after sunset the next day.

Holidays Where "Work" is Prohibited

On certain holidays (often referred to in Hebrew as "yom tov" or "chag"), Jewish law teaches us to abstain from work. These are:

These holidays, too, all start at sunset and end when three stars can be seen.

Prohibited Actions on Shabbat

There are thirty-nine different kinds of work ("melachot") that are prohibited on Shabbat; a list follows. If you do plan on running a program on Shabbat or a holiday, please consult with the staff for more detailed information about what is prohibited and what is permissible.

It is also prohibited to move an item that is used only for actions that violate Shabbat.

That Seems Like a Lot. What's the Rationale?

The logic behind these restrictions is that, much as God ceased the work of creation and rested on the seventh day, we are likewise prohibited from performing activity that is creative in nature.

More specifically, these are all activities required to make bread, make cloth, make leather, or build a house. These activities were all required in order to build and use the tabernacle; since Rabbinic law states that the construction of the tabernacle was prohibited on Shabbat, these activities should be similarly prohibited for less holy work.

Differences between Shabbat and Yom Tov

All of the actions prohibited on Shabbat are prohibited on Yom Tov, with two exceptions. The first is cooking: we are allowed to transfer fire (but not light fire anew, or extinguish it) and prepare food for Yom Tov, as long as we intend to use the food on that same day. The second is carrying: we are allowed to transfer between domains any objects that we intend to use during the holiday.

Saving a Life

It is always permitted to violate Shabbat and holiday prohibitions freely in order to save a life. However, injury and property damage don't count.

Shabbat, Holidays and Non-Jews

Non-Jews are, of course, not prohibited from anything on any of these days. But there are restrictions in place that limit our ability to circumvent the laws by employing non-Jews. We are only allowed to derive benefit from an action done on Shabbat by a non-Jew that would have been prohibited for us if it was not done for a Jew. If a prohibited act was done such that the primary beneficiary was Jewish, deriving benefit from that act is prohibited until after Shabbat is over, and enough time has passed such that the act could have been done entirely after Shabbat.

It is also prohibited to ask a non-Jew to perform a prohibited action on Shabbat.

What This Means for Programming

In general, if you're planning a program of general interest with no particular ritual connection, you should probably consider a day that is not Shabbat or a holiday. On the other hand, it's always great to have a program enrich Hillel holiday or Shabbat celebration, so if your program would not require anyone to violate their observance of Shabbat or holidays to attend, talk to Hillel staff or student leaders about holding it during one of these times.

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