by Rabbi Yair Hoffman for the Five Towns Jewish Times

Yesterday, Yeshiva World News reported that Minister of Labor & Social Affairs Chaim Katz has given general approval for soccer matches to be held on Shabbos.  Katz is from the Likud party and is a member of the Israeli Football Association..

The permit will apply to all workers on the field, including professional soccer players, as well as employees who perform work that supports the proper management of soccer games and employees employed to transport workers to the field.

The draft of the permit was distributed to the public for 21 days to permit comment and objections. Minister Chaim Katz examined the public’s position and signed a general permit for the industry on Sunday morning, 9 Nissan, after being authorized by the Ministerial Committee on Shabbos. Application of the permit is conditional on the employer paying additional remuneration for work hours at weekly rest and also granting the employee an alternate day of rest in accordance with the hours of the Shabbos, as stipulated by law.

The permit is most disappointing.

What lies behind the prohibition of soccer games on Shabbos?

The Talmud Yerushalmi (Taanis 4:5) tells us of a great city named Tur Shimon with its very own Tomchei Shabbos that delivered 300 barrels of material to the poor each Friday.

The Talmud, however, goes on to explain that this city was ultimately destroyed.

Why was it destroyed? One opinion says that it was because of untoward activity. Another opinion says that it was on account of, yes, ball playing.

Ostensibly, it was ball playing on Shabbos as most of the commentators explain. Indeed, Rav Huna in Midrash Aicha Rabasi explicitly states that the ball playing was on Shabbos. This Yerushalmi is cited by the Bais Yoseph (OC 308). Finally, there is a third opinion (See Rokeach Hilchos Shabbos 55) that they played ball on Shabbos and did not learn Torah.

NUMEROUS POSSIBILITIES

What is remarkable is that nowhere in these sources (other than in the words of the Rokeach) is the exact problem with ball-playing on Shabbos fully or even partially explained. What was the exact violation? There is, of course, an entire litany of halachic possibilities as to the exact nature of the problem (which, as the reader may have surmised, will be explored), but perhaps the very silence of the sources is instructive in and of itself.

LOST OPPORTUNITY

Perhaps, the reason Tur Shimon was destroyed was that this remarkable town – with such remarkable chessed going on in its midst should have utilized the Shabbos as a means to further their Dveikus Bashem – their cleaving to Hashem. Excessive ball-playing, or any other mundane activity can sometimes be indicative of a lack of such a relationship with Hashem—and that lost opportunity may very well have been the reason for Hashem not having saved this town from destruction.

CARRYING

But let’s get to the possible halachic issues involved. One possibility is the prohibition of carrying (not the basketball violation – the Shabbos one). The Machzor Vitri (Hilchos Pesach #94) actually permits a type of ball-playing on Yom Tov on account of it being a form of Simchas Yom Tov! Indeed, the Responsa of Rashi (285:2) entertains a similar position. But even according to this more lenient view, the permission is limited to Yom Tov and not Shabbos. Indeed, Rav Avrohom Yitzchok Kook makes this point very clearly when he unabashedly castigated a Rabbi who thought to permit it.

MUKTZAH

There is a second possibility. The Shevilei haLeket (Shabbos 121) considers balls as items of no purposeful utility and deems them to be Muktzah. The Ramah (OC 518:1 and 308:45), however, rules that it is not considered Muktzah and that a ball would have utility. The Shulchan Aruch (OC 308:45) rules that it is forbidden to play ball on Shabbos and on Yom Tov. The Mishna Brurah explains that it is because he holds that the balls have no purposeful utility and are Muktzah.   The Aruch HaShulchan tends to be stringent, as well, in regard to ball playing on Shabbos

LEVELING THE GROUND

Another possible issue is the problem of leveling the ground. The ball may cause some ground leveling problems. It would seem, however, that the ground leveling problem is limited to games where the ball is to be rolled on the ground as the purpose and method of game-playing (Rabbeinu Chananel would disagree with this, but Halacha seems to follow other opinions). There thus might be a distinction between soccer and basketball, at least in regard to this particular concern. Some (e.g. the Shvilei HaLeket) are of the opinion that the Rabbis therefore prohibited ball-playing even in areas that are paved. There is also the possibility that the noises involved in ball playing may be halachically problematic too (ibid). However, the views of the Shvilei HaLeket have not been cited authoritatively by the Poskim.

THE GREAT DEBATE

On the stricter side, it is interesting to note that the Ramah’s own cousin, the Maharshal (Beitzah 1:34) questions the lenient position of his cousin and writes that if he had the ability he would forbid it entirely. The Maharshal is quoted by the TaZ (OC 518:2) and he labels it an “evil custom.”

CASE OF MAHARITATZ

Rabbi Yom Tov Ben Moshe Tzahalon (1559-1638), author of the Maharitatz in the new responsa (#202) discusses the question of a large city of Torah scholars that never had any ball playing and a group of gentiles came and began ball playing. Eventually a group of young men arose and began playing on the Shabbos with gambling and betting and eating without rinsing of the hands. Some wished to refrain from forbidding it on account of the position of the Ramah. The Maharitatz blasted those who refrained from forbidding it and that those who violated it should seek acts of contrition and Teshuvah.

CONCLUSIONS

In conclusion, Tur Shimon was a wealthy vibrant town filled with acts of charity and unprecedented Chessed. It fell, according to many authorities, on account of ball playing running out of control. Hundreds of years later, in the time of the Maharitatz, another great city also fell victim to Shabbos violation and other violations on account of the inroads made by this type of activity.

During the week before Pesach, the Rosh haShana of Emunah, such a tragic move is particularly poignant.

The author can be reached at [email protected]