Eruvs
Eruvs in Britain
Jeremy Kaye, an observant Jew, shows his daughter Eliana a post of the north-west London eruv ©
Britain's second eruv has been given the go-ahead for Edgware, London and it is hoped it will be ready by Pesach 2006.
For north west London's Orthodox Jewish Community, life is a lot simpler since the creation of Britain's biggest eruv in February 2003.
The eruv has a boundary 11 miles long and encloses an area of 6.5 square miles. It covers Hendon, Golders Green and Hampstead Garden Suburb, together with parts of Childs Hill, Cricklewood, East Finchley, Finchley and Mill Hill.
What is an Eruv?
An eruv is an area within which observant Jews can carry or push objects on the Sabbath, (which lasts from sunset on Friday to sunset on Saturday), without violating a Jewish law that prohibits carrying anything except within the home. There are over 200 eruvs (or eruvim) in the world.
An eruv must be 'completely enclosed'. The area is not enclosed by building a special wall round it - most of it is enclosed by existing natural boundaries like railway lines or walls. What matters is that the area is completely enclosed by boundaries that conform to Jewish law. The North West London eruv has been recognised as valid by the London Beth Din - the Orthodox Jewish religious court.
What does an eruv allow people to do?
Sara and Jeremy Kaye and their daughter Eliana, next to a post of the north-west London eruv ©
An eruv mixes the boundary between the area within the home and the area outside it. The result is that within an eruv Orthodox Jews can follow the same rules on the Sabbath that they would in their homes.
Jewish law says that Jews must not carry any item, no matter how small or for whatever purpose in a Reshus HaRabim (public domain - outside their home) on the Sabbath, even if they are allowed to carry them within their home.
Pushing things is also forbidden - so families with small children (who would use prams and pushchairs) or the physically disabled (who would use wheelchairs) are effectively housebound. They can't even go to the synagogue to fulfil their religious duties on the Sabbath.
But both carrying and pushing are allowed inside an eruv because it's regarded as within the home domain. So in an eruv Jews can:
- carry house keys (but not car or office keys)
- carry a handkerchief
- carry food or drink for use during the Sabbath
- carry prayer shawls
- carry books - normally a Jew can't even carry a prayer book on the Sabbath
- carry essential medicines - for example a diabetic Jew can now carry their insulin with them
- carry extra clothes such as a raincoat
- carry nappies
- carry reading glasses
- push a pram or wheelchair
- use a walking frame or crutches
An eruv therefore makes it easier for Jews to follow the spirit of the Sabbath by making it enjoyable and fulfilling, without breaking the rules that keep it holy.
What doesn't an eruv allow?
An eruv doesn't permit Orthodox Jews to carry things that cannot be moved at all on the Sabbath, such as mobile phones or pens or wallets, or carry things for use after the Sabbath.
Nor does an eruv permit Jews to do things that break the spirit of the Sabbath - such as going shopping or swimming, riding a bicycle or playing football in the park, or gardening.