Q&A: LED Bulb
Originally published:
This is an English translation (via GPT-5.4). Read the original Hebrew version.
LED Bulb
Question
Is turning on an LED bulb on the Sabbath a Torah-level prohibition or a rabbinic one?
If it is rabbinic, is it permissible to open a refrigerator on the Sabbath when doing so turns on such a bulb, on the grounds that it is an inevitable result that one does not want in the case of a rabbinic prohibition?
Answer
Many hold that it is, and some have suggested that there may be no prohibition here at all. In my opinion, it is a Torah prohibition (see my column on the prohibited labor of building).
Discussion on Answer
Thank you. I didn’t know there was a distinction between “he wants it” and “he cares about it.” I gained twice over.
That is a dispute between Rashi and Tosafot in Sabbath 75a.
Why is it considered something he does not want? He definitely does want it. On that particular day, perhaps he just doesn’t care.