Q&A: Electricity Produced on the Sabbath
Electricity Produced on the Sabbath
Question
Is the permission to use electricity that was generated through Sabbath desecration not somewhat problematic?
The extent of the Sabbath desecration depends on the load on the infrastructure, so if a large public such as the religious community stopped using electricity, far fewer workers would be needed and there would be much less Sabbath desecration.
Answer
I haven’t examined the issue on the factual level. There are halakhic responsa about this, and it is not at all simple to say that it is forbidden to use it. I recall a responsum by Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach, and Rabbi Moshe Levi cited it in his book, which deals with this at length; take it from there. In my opinion, there is room for the reasoning that using electricity is permitted because it is an essential public need. See my article here: