Why didn't the forum close for Shavuot?

[JTFenthusiast2]

I dont think so.  Ive read that they must profit from the funds garnered from that days' work.  There were several ways of resolving this, of which I unfortunately do not remember

[Joe Gutfeld]

It didn't bother me if the site was shut down or not, becuase sometimes on the Sabbath, I wanted to post something here and the site was closed.  I'm glad that the site is open all the time.  Except maybe on the holidays when they come up.

[Binyamin Yisrael]

It didn't bother me if the site was shut down or not, becuase sometimes on the Sabbath, I wanted to post something here and the site was closed.  I'm glad that the site is open all the time.  Except maybe on the holidays when they come up.

Posting on Shabbat is more serious than posting on holidays. It reminds me of how the local JCC (Jewish Community Center) is open on Shabbat and not on holidays (except for the Chabad minyan that uses the space on Shabbat and Yom Tov.). When I go to synagogue there, I see people come to the use the fitness center on Shabbat. It's like it's thought that "Yom Kippur is the holiest day of the year." which is not true. Shabbat is the holiest day of the year. Only when Yom Kippur falls on Shabbat is it the holiest day of the year.

Breaking Yom Tov is not a capital offense in Judaism. Breaking Shabbat is. Also the type of death penalty for breaking Shabbat is more severe than the one for breaking Yom Kippur.

[Joe Gutfeld]

I have no choice in breaking the fast on Yom Kippur because of health reasons.

[Binyamin Yisrael]

I have no choice in breaking the fast on Yom Kippur because of health reasons.

I'm talking about not doing melacha on Yom Kippur. If you have to eat for health reasons, that doesn't give your permission to cook the food or turn on the lights.

[eb22]

A related thought comes to mind when reading this thread.

Back when I joined the JTF Forum in early 2008,    I wasn't even aware of which Jewish Holidays had the type of Commandments associated with them that would prevent someone from posting on an Internet message board or being on a computer altogether.     It was from listening to many ' Ask JTF' programs,  reading some threads on the Forum,   and then reading more about the laws of Shabbot and the Holidays that I have a much better idea of what's allowed and what isn't.      Even to this day,    there's plenty I'm still learning about on this.     Let alone being able to follow the laws in the ideal manner.       It's an ongoing struggle with the laws that I didn't grow up with.         

JTF gets new members and people exposed to the organization for the first time,   regularly.     It should be assumed that many of these people don't know the various Commandments regarding Shabbat and the Holidays,     as well as which Holidays they apply too.      Then of course there are some long holidays that on some days these Commandments apply and on some days they don't apply.       
 
A new sticky thread that lists the Holidays that the Forum would be closed, if the technology would make it feasible,  is something I recommend.       Then the people who have extensive knowledge on Shabbat and the various Holidays can add information that can help encourage people to try to become more observant.     

[Kahane-Was-Right BT]

It didn't bother me if the site was shut down or not, becuase sometimes on the Sabbath, I wanted to post something here and the site was closed.  I'm glad that the site is open all the time.  Except maybe on the holidays when they come up.

It's forbidden for Jews to post here on Shabbat.  You should really try to avoid it.  And see if you can join some friends or new friends for a shabbat meal instead.  It is really a special experience.

[Joe Gutfeld]

I always wondered why that is.  I mean 5,000 years ago, there were no computers, websites, tv's or movies or even a radio.  So, I don't see why we can't post something here on the sabbath.  40 years ago on Yom Kippur when the Iseralis were attacked, my father went to services carring a newspaper with news of the story on the front page.  A fellow worshipper yelled at my father for bringing in the paper.  My father said, "do you know that Israel is being attacked?"  If the guy read the newspaper, he would know about Israel instead of being so extreme with the rules.  Other worshipers asked my father about the story and my dad told them.  Fellowed by the Rabbi who asked my dad about the story and went into the office and turned on the radio and made an announcement about the attack.  What if Iran attacks Israel on the sabbath or on a holiday, would you want the fourms shut down to honor the sabbath or you would want the news about it?

[Sveta]

I think Hashem was well aware when He gave Israel the Torah, that thousands of years later- His children would have the internet and tv etc..
The punishment for desecrating Shabbat is severe but there are times when Shabbat can be broken in life or death situations. If there is a war (Heaven forbid) where Israel is under siege, I am sure people would be well aware of it, as sirens would be going off and government announcements. Otherwise, how do we think the people of Mea Shearim have been able to survive all this time in Israel without television and being shomer Shabbat.

As for the forum, I completely accept what Chaim said on the matter. It's just not possible for technical reasons and that makes sense. In a perfect world, the forum would go off for Shabbat in every time zone but if it's just not possible then that's understandable. 

[Joe Gutfeld]

I also understand Chaim's reason on why he stopped shutting down the site on the sabbath.  We all should understand his reason.

[JTFenthusiast2]

It's forbidden for Jews to post here on Shabbat.  You should really try to avoid it.  And see if you can join some friends or new friends for a shabbat meal instead.  It is really a special experience.

Very nicely put

[Binyamin Yisrael]

I always wondered why that is.  I mean 5,000 years ago, there were no computers, websites, tv's or movies or even a radio.  So, I don't see why we can't post something here on the sabbath.  40 years ago on Yom Kippur when the Iseralis were attacked, my father went to services carring a newspaper with news of the story on the front page.  A fellow worshipper yelled at my father for bringing in the paper.  My father said, "do you know that Israel is being attacked?"  If the guy read the newspaper, he would know about Israel instead of being so extreme with the rules.  Other worshipers asked my father about the story and my dad told them.  Fellowed by the Rabbi who asked my dad about the story and went into the office and turned on the radio and made an announcement about the attack.  What if Iran attacks Israel on the sabbath or on a holiday, would you want the fourms shut down to honor the sabbath or you would want the news about it?

The Israeli Army can break Shabbat for saving lives (Pikuach Nefesh). It's not really breaking Shabbat because saving lives comes first. Posting on a forum from the United States is not Pikuah Nefesh.

If your father got the newspaper delivered to the door, it wouldn't be an issue if he brought it to shul unless there was no Eruv in the area. I'm guessing there was no Eruv then. But buying is forbidden. If your rabbi turned on the radio, he must not be a real rabbi, but rather a Deform rabbi. On the otherhand, in an emergency you can have the radio on with no volume and turn the volume up if necessary as long as no light is activated. I don't know about newer radios. On old radios it's not a problem, at least not on a Biblical level, but perhaps a Rabbinic level.

[Binyamin Yisrael]

There are some websites which completely go off line on Shabbat. That would make the whole JTF.ORG offline, not the forum. So it could be blocked by timezone. If someone isn't blocked by timezone, I guess they could reach the forum. But I don't think there is a way just to block the forum itself by timezone.

There are programs that can be used to do this. Shlomo probably knows the names of them.

[Tag-MehirTzedek]

What if Iran attacks Israel on the sabbath or on a holiday, would you want the fourms shut down to honor the sabbath or you would want the news about it?

 And you getting the news would affect the outcome in what way? In Israel where this is a serious matter (for bomb shelters and other such matter) besides the public speakerphones (or whatever they are called) the Rabbis say (and this is done) to put on the radio on very little frequency, their is a special channel for it. When something happens the radio turns up to a higher volume and people get the news that they need for life and death emergency information. If not, the radio is on but is not noticeable nor is it a disturbance because it feels like it is completely off.
 Problem solved.
 

[Kahane-Was-Right BT]

I always wondered why that is.  I mean 5,000 years ago, there were no computers, websites, tv's or movies or even a radio. 

If they had existed then, the rabbis would have forbade use of them on Shabbat then.

Since they didn't yet exist, then only once they were invented could the rabbis determine whether or not they fall under the laws and categories of forbidden work which is not allowed on Shabbat and Yom Tov and were outlined for us already in Written and Oral Torah.  And since they do fall within these prohibited forms of work as set out by Torah, they are forbidden by Jewish law to use on the Shabbat or Yom Tov.  It's pretty straightforward.

Any new invention that comes out will be subject to the same question of whether or not the use of the invented item involves forbidden "creative work" (aka melacha) that is therefore forbidden on Shabbat.   When the invention can be used without doing such work, then it's not forbidden.   For one example, a "Shabbos lamp" if you've ever seen one of those, is not forbidden.  Because the light is put on before Shabbos, and then it stays on throughout the duration of shabbat.  You only turn the outer shell which then blocks the light physically in the inner chamber of the device, without opening the circuit as you would to shut off a light in a normal case.  So, such a thing can be used.  You just turn the outer shell to let the light into the room or block it out, all the while the light stays lit.   These are all based on the technical activities being employed to use the particular things, and are not simply the banning of things because they are new.  New is not wrong.   Creative work, as set out by the Torah, is forbidden on Shabbat.

On the example of the newspaper:  There's nothing wrong with reading a newspaper.  There may be some issue with bringing into the house a newspaper that was delivered on the Shabbat itself (or on Yom Tov) related to muktzeh ( a different prohibition).   But supposing the newspaper was from the previous day, I don't understand the urgency to read about something happening 100's of miles away.   If you have no ability to save lives involved from reading that story, then no one has to shoot themselves in the foot over the fact that they didn't read the story until after Shabbat (or in this case Yom Kippur) ended.   Certainly there is no permission to do melacha (forbidden work) in response to what is happening with let's say Iran and Israel, unless you can somehow do something that will save Jewish lives.   Announcing on a microphone doesn't save anything.  Was your father's rabbi a reform or conservative "rabbi" ?  They do not follow Jewish law.