- Shabbat goy
A Shabbat goy, Shabbos goy or Shabbes goy (Yiddish: שבת גוי,
Modern Hebrew : גוי של שבת "goy shel shabat") is an individual who regularly assists aJewish individual or organization by performing certain acts for them on the Jewish Sabbath which are forbidden to Jews within Jewish law. The phrase is a combination of the word "Shabbos" (שבת), referring to the Jewish Sabbath, and "goy " (גוי), meaning "foreigner" or "non-Jew."Orthodox Judaism prohibits certain types of work on the Jewish Sabbath. Within certain guidelines (as dictated by theShulchan Aruch , the most authoritative Jewish code of law), anon-Jewish individual can perform certain acts which are beneficial for Jews but would be forbidden for them to perform. In certain households andsynagogues a particular non-Jewish person (invariably not a member of the home/synagogue) may be designated as the Shabbos goy for that place. This individual is usually one who would be present regardless of this role, such as a babysitter or a synagogue maintenance crew member, and is typically paid for the work. Before the 20th century Shabbos goys most commonly lit (or re-lit) stoves in Jewish homes in the winter. In the 20th centuryColin Powell andMario Cuomo both assisted their Jewish neighbors in this way. ["Former Secretary of State Gen. Colin Powell and Mario Cuomo, former governor of New York State, each a former Shabbos goy, both share fond recollections of their youth, when they were uniquely qualified to lend a Jewish neighbor a hand." Fertig, Avi. [http://www.jewishpress.com/print.do/26175/Glatt_Kosher_Adventure_To_The_Land_Down_Under.html "Glatt Kosher Adventure To The Land Down Under"] , "The Jewish Press ", November 21, 2007.] ["... [R] eaders follow General Powell all the way back from Gulf War strategist to South Bronx Shabbos goy, the lad who earned a quarter on Friday nights turning on and off the synagogue lights for Orthodox Jews." Clines, Francis X. [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9402E1DF1539F932A35753C1A963958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all "The Co-Author of Gen. Powell's Book Is Given a Part as the Story Goes On"] , "The New York Times ", October 1, 1995.] The artistsMartin Scorsese [Chan, Sewell, [http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/10/25/white-ethnic-politics-irish-and-italian-catholics-and-jews-oh-my/?scp=1-b&sq=White+Ethnic+Politics%3A+I+&st=nyt "White Ethnic Politics: Irish and Italian Catholics and Jews, Oh, My!"] , "The New York Times," October 25, 2007] and the adolescentElvis Presley [Sources give two different people for whom Elvis was a Shabbos goy. In [http://faculty.tamu-commerce.edu/droyal/Steve%20Stern%20Interview.pdf Tugging at Jewish Weeds: An Interview with Steve Stern] it was the Dubrovner family; to Alfred J. Kolatch, in his "Inside Judaism: The Concepts, Customs, and Celebrations of the Jewish People" (Pub. Jonathan David, 2006), p. 480, citing a secondary source, it is Rabbi Alfred Fruchter who is helped.] similarly helped neighbors.Notes
References
* Katz, Jacob (trans. Yoel Lerner). [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst;jsessionid=HwCSm1GrnyF1CDFJCYZJ3yZJJTb65GtLyS9kqGqJlyL1CmLyTFh5!867149249?a=o&d=1445473# The "Shabbes Goy": A Study in Halakhic Flexibility] ,
Jewish Publication Society , Philadelphia/Jerusalem, 1989.
* [http://www.aish.com/jewishissues/jewishsociety/The_Shabbos_Goy.asp Velarde, Joe. The Shabbos Goy - That Was Me]
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