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May a child be asked to turn a light on or off on Shabbos?

Q. Is there a way I can get my child to turn on the light on Shabbos?

A. When a need arises to have a light turned on or off on Shabbos (whether due to a mistake before Shabbos, a mishap during Shabbos, etc.), some might entertain the thought of holding a young child up next to the switch hoping that they get the hint and flip the switch to the desired setting; however, this is expressly forbidden on Shabbos. The only permissible solution is to place an exceptionally young child—one who doesn’t understand the significance that flipping the light switch has to his parents—in the general area of the light switch in the hope that they might play with it and achieve the desired result.

Following are additional halachic guidelines relevant to children of various ages:

The mitzva d’rabanan of chinuch (rabbinical requirement for education) is that children who have reached the age of chinuch, who understand the significance of mitzvos (approximately 5-6 years old), must be trained by their father to perform mitzvos.

The mitzva of chinuch for a lo sa’aseh (a negative commandment) applies from an even younger age. Once a child is bar havana (capable of understanding), i.e. they can grasp the concept of something being prohibited when so told (approximately 2-3 years old)—even if they don’t yet understand why, they must be prevented by their father from violating a lo sa’aseh (a negative commandment).

A child who understands that a specific action benefits their parents—even a very young child—may not do a melacha (an activity forbidden on Shabbos) to benefit their parents. According to some Rishonim, this is due to a mitzva d’Oraysa of shevisas beno (a biblical obligation that one’s children refrain from doing forbidden activities on their parents’ behalf on Shabbos). According to the Alter Rebbe, this principle applies only mid’rabanan, but to any aveira (transgression) and to any adult, not just the parents; thus, if one sees any child doing a melacha on Shabbos—or any activity that’s forbidden for an adult—on an adult’s behalf, one should stop the child from doing so.

Issur sefiyah: It is forbidden min ha’Torah (biblically) for any adult to actively cause a child of any age, even if he lacks understanding, even a one-day-old, to do an aveira, e.g. feed a child non-kosher food. Instructing a child to desecrate the Shabbos is included in this prohibition. Halacha2go.com #519*

Wetness alarm on Shabbos

Q. We’re working on toilet training a 4-year-old who’s been a difficult customer. He is now wearing a wetness alarm that goes off if there is an accident. Not wanting the alarm to go off motivates him to go when he needs to. Can I have him wear the alarm on Shabbos with the battery out without him knowing?

A. According to the strict halacha, it’s not an issue. However, if your son understands what Shabbos is and its associated prohibitions, and he thinks it’s possible that it will go off on Shabbos, it would probably not be recommended from a chinuch standpoint. #12877*

Using a child for Tevilas Keilim

Q. May a child perform the mitzva of tevilas keilim?

A. Any male or female over the age of bar or bas mitzva may perform the immersion, provided they are shomer Shabbos.Some are stringent and only allow individuals who are halachically considered having entered adulthood to immerse utensils that require immersion mid’Oraysa.

Regarding a child under the age of bar or bas mitzva, the halacha depends on the which materiel the vessel is made of:

Regarding metal vessels the halacha is as follows: One may not have a child immerse the vessels on his own, since the testimony of a minor, even of a precocious child, is halachically unacceptable. The child may however immerse the vessels in the presence of an adult and the tevila is valid, and the child can even make the bracha. [Theoretically, even if a utensil is immersed properly of its own accord, without human intervention, the immersion is valid.] However, you would need to confirm with the adult that he was present and saw it happening and he can vouch that the child conducted a valid immersion. Your child may have the adult call you to inform you of his presence.

Whereas when toiveling glass vessels, for which the obligation is only rabbinic, or plastic vessels—for those who are stringent a­­­­nd treat them as they do glass vessels—one is permitted to have a child toivel them, and we trust the child that they actually toiveled the vessels properly (although some are stringent here too). Halacha2Go #203*

* References are available for this Halacha on: www.Halacha2Go.com and www.AskTheRav.com

Please note that these halachos apply in general situations, if you are unsure whether the halacha applies to your particular situation, please consult a Rov.

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