Israel – Kosher Electricity on the Way

Israel – Kosher electricity is coming to the Israel. Israel Electric will supply kosher power to every settlement.

Central to the proposed solution will be to hiring 150 "Shabbos goys" to work at power stations.

Does that mean the electricity Israelis have been using for generations is treif? It depends who you ask. According to Rabbi Avraham Yeshayahu Karelitz (1878-1953), known as the Chazon Ish, there is no justification for the desecration of Shabbas that takes place every week to keep the power coming.

Other rabbis argue that supplying electricity on Shabbat is like slaughtering a cow for a sick person who needs meat, which is permitted according to Halacha. Just like you have to ritually slaughter the entire cow even if you only need one steak, so too you cannot supply electricity solely to the sick people in hospitals and at home. You need to supply electricity on a national level. After you've already slaughtered the cow or supplied the electricity for the sick, the healthy can partake of the meat (raw) or the energy.

Nevertheless, tens of thousands of people agree with the Chazon Ish, refusing to use electric company power on Shabbat. Instead, they rely on their own generators, and can be sure that no Jew is violating Shabbas to keep them running.

But electric company officials say the phenomenon of pirate suppliers has gotten out of hand. "We have already had several accidents in which young charedi children have received electric shocks," they said. And a combination of factors has led to the spread of pirate generators, increasing the risk of electric shocks and the need for a solution.

Therefor did Israel Electric agree that it will supply kosher power by hiring 150 "Shabbos goys" to work at power stations.