Q&A: Source for the Inclusive Prohibition of Labor on Yom Kippur
Source for the Inclusive Prohibition of Labor on Yom Kippur
Question
Have a good week, Rabbi,
Following up on the possibility you raised in your Yoma chapter 8 lecture, that some maintain that food-preparation labor is permitted on Yom Kippur, except that the prohibition on eating prevents it, I saw what seems to be contrary evidence in the verses in the book of Numbers in the sections about the festivals:
28:16 "And in the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, is Passover to the Lord."
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28:17 "And on the fifteenth day of this month is a festival; seven days unleavened bread shall be eaten."
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28:18 "On the first day there shall be a sacred convocation; you shall do no servile work." … 28:25 "And on the seventh day you shall have a sacred convocation; you shall do no servile work."
28:26 "Also on the day of the first-fruits, when you bring a new meal offering to the Lord at your Festival of Weeks, you shall have a sacred convocation; you shall do no servile work."
29:1 "And in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a sacred convocation; you shall do no servile work."
29:7 "And on the tenth day of this seventh month you shall have a sacred convocation, and you shall afflict yourselves; you shall do no work at all."
29:12 "And on the fifteenth day of the seventh month you shall have a sacred convocation; you shall do no servile work."
29:35 "On the eighth day you shall have a solemn assembly; you shall do no servile work."
It seems that on all the festivals there is a prohibition of "servile work," and only on Yom Kippur is there a prohibition of plain "work." In your opinion, is this good evidence against the position that, in principle, food-preparation labor is permitted on Yom Kippur?
Best regards,
Answer
It would be good to give a link for the benefit of readers who don't know what this is referring to.
This could work according to Nachmanides' approach, who distinguishes between work and servile work. But not all the medieval authorities agree with him. And even according to his approach, it's possible that the Torah states the bottom line, since in the end everyone agrees that food-preparation labor is also prohibited. But it's a nice point in support of the views that Yom Kippur is different from the other festivals. That is also the accepted view: Yom Kippur is called a complete Sabbath, meaning that it is like the Sabbath.
Attached is the link to the relevant lecture: