Shabbat 90 – Taking out food on Shabbat

How much food must one carry in a public area on Shabbat to transgress and be liable for a sacrifice? Seasonings - enough to season a chicken egg; various spices combine with one another to complete his liability.

Food colorings, such as nut husks, pomegranate peels, and safflower, are enough to dye a small cloth on a woman's hat. Incidentally, if he takes out any of the seven cleansing agents used to wash away the blood – enough to launder a small cloth on a woman's hat. However, Rabbi Yehudah finds a use for a smaller amount and says - enough to remove a blood stain.

Pepper and tar – any amount. However, this is not our common pepper, for that would be a spice, which we already discussed. This pepper - we don't know its identity. Metal, too, is considered useful in any amount since even the smallest amount can be used to fashion an instrument dangerous to life. Stones from the Altar are also important in any amount, and one violates Shabbat by carrying them. The same applies to idols' accoutrements, since they are all prohibited.

Art: Still Life with Eggs by Thoman H. Hope