Ask Rabbi LJ -- Purim Edition

[gnomi]

OK, so. Purim starts immediately after Shabbat ends. That means that I cannot carry my Megillat Esther (and/or gragger) to shul for mincha/ma'ariv because it would mean that I'm carrying in the eiruv something I don't need for Shabbat, right?

Comments

[autotruezone.livejournal.com]

This may just be a quibble, since it doesn't really change your behavior, but I thought that not being able to take your Purim stuff to shul before Shabbat is over has less to do with the laws of eiruvim and more to do with the rule that you're not allowed to prepare for after Shabbat while it is still Shabbat.

If I'm correct, then if you had a megilla upstairs, and you were going to read it on Purim downstairs, you wouldn't be able to take the megilla downstairs as a preparation for your purim megilla reading until after Shabbat. This, despite the fact that you are normally allowed to carry things within a building.

On the other hand, there may be an out. It is both permissible and encouraged to study holy books on Shabbat. If you are planning to arrive at shul while it's still Shabbat, and you plan that as soon as you get to shul, you'll read a bit of your megilla (for the sake of learning Torah, not for the mitzva of megilla on purim), then I don't see anything wrong with carrying your megilla to shul (within the eruv) under those circumstances. However, a gragger (noisemaker) is almost certainly muktze (i.e. something that's not allowed to be used at all on Shabbat), and you shouldn't even move it within your own house while it's still Shabbat.

IANAR, so you should check with your Rav before following any of the above.

[gnomi.livejournal.com]

You're right on both counts, as far as I know. It's both an eiruvin issue and a preparing-on-Shabbat-for-after-Shabbat issue.

The gragger is a no-go either way. :-)