Preventing a Child from Desecrating Shabbat
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Question
Sometimes my young son desecrates Shabbat, for example, by turning on the light on Shabbat. What am I required to do?
Answer
Hello,
The question does not mention the age of the young son, and there are 4 different age categories:
A. An infant who understands nothing, in this case, as long as the infant does it by himself, there is no need to prevent him at all.
B. A young child who does not understand what Shabbat is but understands the concepts of forbidden and permitted [there is no fixed age for this; it all depends on the child's development], at this age, the father, and some say the mother as well, must prevent him from desecrating Shabbat. However, for Sephardim, there is no obligation for others to prevent him from desecrating Shabbat. For Ashkenazim, in the case of a Torah prohibition, others are also obligated to prevent him, but in the case of a rabbinic prohibition, there is no obligation to prevent him. At this age, there is still no need to educate him in positive commandments.
C. A child who understands what Shabbat is, the father, and some say the mother as well, must educate him to fully observe Shabbat, both in positive commandments and in prohibitions. However, for other Sephardim, there is no obligation to educate him in positive commandments, and for Ashkenazim, in Torah commandments, it is the obligation of all to educate him, while in rabbinic commandments, the obligation is only on the father, and some say also the mother.
D. A teenager who has reached the age of Bar Mitzvah is already obligated in all commandments, and every Jew is obligated to do what they can to prevent him from desecrating Shabbat.
The question does not mention the age of the young son, and there are 4 different age categories:
A. An infant who understands nothing, in this case, as long as the infant does it by himself, there is no need to prevent him at all.
B. A young child who does not understand what Shabbat is but understands the concepts of forbidden and permitted [there is no fixed age for this; it all depends on the child's development], at this age, the father, and some say the mother as well, must prevent him from desecrating Shabbat. However, for Sephardim, there is no obligation for others to prevent him from desecrating Shabbat. For Ashkenazim, in the case of a Torah prohibition, others are also obligated to prevent him, but in the case of a rabbinic prohibition, there is no obligation to prevent him. At this age, there is still no need to educate him in positive commandments.
C. A child who understands what Shabbat is, the father, and some say the mother as well, must educate him to fully observe Shabbat, both in positive commandments and in prohibitions. However, for other Sephardim, there is no obligation to educate him in positive commandments, and for Ashkenazim, in Torah commandments, it is the obligation of all to educate him, while in rabbinic commandments, the obligation is only on the father, and some say also the mother.
D. A teenager who has reached the age of Bar Mitzvah is already obligated in all commandments, and every Jew is obligated to do what they can to prevent him from desecrating Shabbat.
Source
Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chaim, Siman 343, Paragraph 1) Mishnah Berurah there.
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