Infants on Shabbat

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Illness

  1. If a child needs a vaporizer to alleviate discomfort (from bronchitis etc.), one may ask a non-Jew to plug it in on Shabbos to ease his pain. While some prohibit adding cold water to a cold water vaporizer,[1] others are lenient if you pour it through the spout.[2] If it is a hot water vaporizer, one may take previously boiled water from an urn and refill it.[3]
  2. Healthy infants and babies until the age of three (and according to some poskim even older children till the age of six or nine) are halachically classified as “patients not dangerously ill.”[4] (In the final analysis, it all depends on the strength and maturity of the child.) [5] Therefore, they are permitted to take all forms of medicine, provided, of course, that no Biblical prohibitions are transgressed. [6]
  3. In a case where the child is under three months and appears to be ill, if his temperature is not that high, but merely a notch over 100 degrees, one can still desecrate the Shabbos (call a doctor, drive if a non-Jew cannot be found etc.), as temperature for a newborn can be indicative of something more serious.[7] If time is not of the essence, one should initially look to engage a non-Jew in any prohibited activity. [8]

Diapering

Velcro Diapers

  1. It is completely permitted to use Velcro diapers on Shabbat.[9] The discussion of the poskim in the past about opening and closing diapers was all about diapers with sticky tabs and was a major dispute and not simple. However, today's diapers are generally all made with Velcro, loops and hooks, and aren't any question.

Sticky Tab Diapers

  1. Most authorities permit putting on a diaper on Shabbat by sticking the tabs of the diaper to the diaper.[10] (Also see Tofer).
  2. Nonetheless, one should be careful and open the diaper slowly so that one doesn’t rip it and leave the tabs attached permanently.[11]
  3. There are those who prohibit the use of the flaps to close the diaper when disposing of it, as that will result in a permanent connection.[12] However, there are those who disagree and permit it.[13]
  4. Diapers which have an adhesive that needs to be unfastened and then taped onto the diaper. While it is praiseworthy to be stringent and unfasten them and then refasten them again before Shabbos,[14] one can be lenient if he failed to do so.[15]

Tearing to Separate Flaps

  1. It is permitted to open a diaper on Shabbat even if the flaps are stuck to the back of the diaper and they need to be torn on the perforations to be opened.[16]

Wetness Indicator

  1. One may use a diaper which has a wetness indicator on Shabbat.[17]


Diaper Rashes

  1. In the event that the child requires cream for a diaper rash (i.e. Desitin, Balmax etc.), one may squeeze it out onto the affected area and allow the child to smear it on himself via his movement.[18]

Feeding a Baby

  1. It is only permissible to nurse on Shabbat if the infant feeds directly from the mother. A nursing mother who is experiencing pain may express excess milk if it goes directly to waste and is not collected in a cup or container.[19]
  2. With regard to preparing food for a child one should be careful to avoid any shailos of bishul (cooking). Therefore when preparing a bottle of (powdered or liquid) formula one should first pour in the hot water and then put in the formula.[20] This is assuming that the formula has been previously cooked to a temperature of 110 degrees Fahrenheit.
  3. One is allowed to place a cold bottle of milk inside a cup of boiling hot water, however one should try to make sure that the entire bottle does not go under the water in order to avoid hatmana (insulating) according to all Poskim.[21]
  4. One may mash a banana or other soft vegetables for a child to eat on Shabbat.[22] See Dosh for more details.

Pumping

  1. While it is permitted to nurse a child on Shabbos a woman may not pump extra milk to have for a later time as she would be transgressing the melacha of mefarek (extracting)[23]. However in the event that the woman is in pain she may express her milk directly into a sink[24]. In the event that this is not practical, the Poskim permit one to use a pump providing that there is soap or vinegar in the bottle that would immediately render the milk useless[25]. She should then pour the milk directly into the sink when she is done. If she does not have a manual pump and is in significant pain she may even ask a non-Jew to turn on an electric pump for her[26]. If she knows prior to Shabbos that she will need to express milk due to pain and she does not have a manual pump, she would be permitted, on Friday, to set her pump to turn on with a Shabbos clock.[27]

Baby Bottles

  1. One may clean a bottle with a bottle brush providing that the bristles are spread apart[28] and, l'chatchila, the brush should be designated just for Shabbos use.[29]. One is reminded to only use cold water from the sink to avoid Bishul.[30]

Cribs & Strollers

  1. While R' Moshe Feinstein ZT"L[31] held that the hood needs to be opened one Tefach (approx. 3.75 inches) prior to Shabbos, many other Poskim[32] permitted it no matter what, claiming that there is no issue of Assiyas Ohel (making a covering). Spreading over a mosquito net is different, and would be prohibited according to all Poskim unless it was spread out a the required 3.75 inches prior to Shabbos[33].

Playpens

  1. As long as there are no screws, bolts (etc.) one may set up and dismantle a playpen, pac-n-play or carriage[34]. For carriages that come with a separate bassinet (i.e. BabyJogger, Bugaboo, Rock Star etc.), one may switch them back and forth without any Halachic concerns as long as no screws are being used. One would also be allowed to add another seat to a carriage (i.e. Phil & Ted), providing that this is done on an "everyday basis", as it would then be considered the "usual mode of use"[35].

Baby Monitors

  1. Some permit using a baby monitor on Shabbat even if the baby's voice and sometimes the parent's voice when in the baby's room is transmitted to another device for the parents to hear.[36]

Baby Swing

  1. There is a dispute amongst the Poskim whether or not one may wind up a baby swing on Shabbos. While R' Moshe Feinstein ZT"L[37] prohibits it on the account that it is similar to winding a watch that has stopped (which is prohibited), there are many others who are lenient, as unlike a watch, when a swing is not in motion it is not considered "broken", so winding it up is not considered "fixing" it.[38] See Makeh Bpatish for more details.

Credits

Special thanks to Rabbi Heshy Kahn for his contribution to this article.

Sources

  1. ↑ Minchas Yitzchok 7:28, Be'er Moshe 6:51
  2. ↑ Sefer Hilchos Shabbos 8: footnote 64, B'shem R' Moshe Feinstien ZT”L
  3. ↑ Shalmai Yehudah pg. 44
  4. ↑ Chazon Ish, O.C. 59:3, Rav S.Z. Auerbach in Nishmas Avraham 328:54, and Rav Y.S. Elyashiv in Eis Laledes, pg. 57, quote the age of 2-3. Tzitz Eliezer 8:15-12 quotes ages of 6. Minchas Yitzchak 1:78 quotes age of 9.
  5. ↑ The Weekly Halachah Discussion (Rabbi Doniel Neustadt)
  6. ↑ Rama, O.C. 328:17. Note, however, that not all of a baby’s needs are exempt from the prohibition against medication; see, for instance, Mishna Brurah 328:131. See Tehillah l’David 328:24 and Minchas Yitzchak 4:124 who deal with this difficulty
  7. ↑ Igros Moshe O.C. 1:129
  8. ↑ Rabbi Heshy Kahn (What's Doing, Greater Connecticut, 3/3/11)
  9. ↑ Shemirat Shabbat KeHilchato 15:79, Ish Matzliach OC 340:14
  10. ↑ Minchat Yitzchak 5:39 (Dayan Weiss) is strict on diapers. Sh”t Bear Moshe 6:14 is lenient about using pampers on Shabbat since it’s only a temporary connection. Sh”t Tzitz Eliezer 16:6 is lenient because it isn’t not even considered temporary. 39 Melachos (Rabbi Ribiat; pg 813) permits since the tabs are made to be used that way. Children in Halacha (Rabbi Simcha Bunim Cohen; pg 212-3) and Chazon Ovadia v. 5 p. 85 are lenient. See http://www.dailyhalacha.com/Display.asp?ClipDate=7/25/2005.
  11. ↑ Sh”t Yacheve Daat 6:23
  12. ↑ Rabbi Belsky as quoted in Halachically Speaking 3:14 https://www.thehalacha.com/wp-content/uploads/Vol3Issue14.pdf 39 Melachos (Rav Ribiat; pg 814), Menuchat Ahava 2:15:11, and Rabbi Mansour (http://www.dailyhalacha.com/Display.asp?ClipDate=7/25/2005) hold that it is forbidden to wrap up the diaper after it is used since the connection will remain permanent.
  13. ↑ Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach quoted in Shemirat Shabbat Kehilchata ch. 35 fnt. 67 and ch. 15 fnt. 233 explained that leaving something connected until it is destroyed if one doesn't actually care about it staying connected isn't considered as though one connected it permanently. Therefore, it is permitted to wrap up the diaper before throwing it out so that it doesn't open up and become a mess.
  14. ↑ Shemirat Shabbat KeHilchata 16:81. Hence when putting on the diaper you would not be "ripping" something that was "sewn" for over twenty four hours.
  15. ↑ Sha'arim Metzuyanim L'Halacha 80:45
  16. ↑ 39 Melachot v. 3 p. 846 writes that the flaps are only connected to the back of the diaper in the cutting process and because of the friction they are connected. The same is true of the packaging process. Since they are only connected temporarily it isn't koreah to tear it apart (see Mishna Brurah 340:45 regarding pages stuck together). Similarly, it isn't makeh bpatish since it already resembled a diaper when it was cut even before it was completed. Therefore, tearing these flaps isn't creating a diaper. Dor Hamelaktim v. 6 p. 3773 quotes Shabbos Home (p. 95), Children in Halacha (p. 117), Nishmat Shabbat 340:194, Mechzeh Eliyahu (Piyha Patcha Bchachma 1:12:7:1), Orchot Shabbat ch. 11 fnt. 41, Shvut Yitzchak v. 13 p. 241, Torat Hamelachot 340:34 quoting Rav Karelitz as lenient. On the other hand, they quote Rav Yitzchak Berkowitz that it is makeh bpatish to separate the sides on Shabbat since in the factory the edges are connected before it is useable since it is only cut afterwards. They include a letter from Pampers that this indeed is how it is made in the factory.
  17. ↑ Shimirat Shabbat K'hilchata 15:88. The reason being that one does not care about the color, even though it is convenient since the main function of the diaper is for its intended purpose and not for design it would be a davar sh'eno mitkaven.
  18. ↑ Shemirat Shabbat KeHilchata 33:14, 39 Melachos (v. 3, p. 922)
  19. ↑ 39 Melachos (vol 2, pg 356)
  20. ↑ Shemirat Shabbat KeHilchata 1:49 footnote 138, Shaar Hatzion 318:96
  21. ↑ Taz 258:1, Mishna Brurah 258:2, Shaar Hatzion 258: 5
  22. ↑ Yechave Da'at 5:27
  23. ↑ Shulchan Aruch O.C. 328:34, Biur Halacha s.v. V’Tineck
  24. ↑ Shulchan Aruch O.C. 330:8
  25. ↑ Taz 320:12, Shemirat Shabbat KeHilchata 36:20 footnote 61
  26. ↑ S.A. 328:17
  27. ↑ Rabbi Heshy Kahn (What's Doing, Greater Connecticut, 3/3/11) quoting Rabbi Yitzchok Berkowitz, Shlita. Although if one can secure for themselves a manual pump that would be more Halachically preferable as Rav Yosef Shalom Elyashiv was under the impression that by using the electric pump you are causing the motor to work harder. Therefore even when one would rely on this heter one should secure the pump onto oneself prior to the time that the machine is set to go on
  28. ↑ Shemirat Shabbat KeHilchata 12:footnote 45
  29. ↑ Mishna Brurah 303:87, Igros Moshe O.C. 2:88
  30. ↑ Rabbi Heshy Kahn (What's Doing, Greater Connecticut, 3/3/11)
  31. ↑ Igros Moshe O.C. 4:105:3
  32. ↑ Chazon Ish O.C. 52:6, Be'er Moshe 6:87
  33. ↑ Shemirat Shabbat KeHilchata 24:9, Shevet Halevi 3:54
  34. ↑ Be'er Moshe 3:85
  35. ↑ Rabbi Heshy Kahn (What's Doing, Greater Connecticut, 3/3/11) heard from R' Plutchok Shlita
  36. ↑ Halichot Olam v, 4 p. 198 cited by Tiferet 328:64. This is elaborated and reiterated on halachayomit.co.il.
  37. ↑ Sefer Tiltulai Shabbos 1: footnote 36
  38. ↑ Shemirat Shabbat KeHilchata 17:39
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