Most of the holidays during the upcoming Yamim Tobim season (5774) fall on Thursday and Friday, leading right into Shabbat, thus giving us the opportunity to fulfill the important Misva of Erub Tabshilin. Over the next few days we will, please G-d, discuss some of the relevant Halachic details of this Misva.
The Rabbis enacted a prohibition against preparing on Yom Tob for Shabbat unless one prepares an Erub Tabshilin (which consists of two food products) before Yom Tob begins. By preparing the Erub Tabshilin before Yom Tob, one is considered to have already begun preparing for Shabbat before the onset of Yom Tob, such that he does not begin making Shabbat preparations on Yom Tob, and he is then allowed to prepare on Yom Tob for Shabbat. And thus when Yom Tob falls on Thursday and Friday, one must prepare an Erub Tabshilin on Wednesday, Ereb Yom Tob, which allows him to make preparations on Friday for Shabbat.
Two different reasons have been given for why the Sages forbade preparing on Yom Tob for Shabbat without an Erub Tabshilin. One reason is that this preserves the honor of Yom Tob. When people realize that it is forbidden to cook food on Yom Tob in preparation for Shabbat, they recognize the importance of Yom Tob and that preparing on Yom Tob for a weekday is certainly forbidden. Others explain that this Halacha serves to enhance the honor of Shabbat, as the Erub Tabshilin reminds a person to make special food on Shabbat, rather than just eating the leftovers from Yom Tob.
The Shela Ha’kadosh (Rav Yeshaya Horowitz, 1558-1630) writes (listen to audio recording for precise citation) that the Misva of Erub Tabshilin is especially meaningful, noting the Gemara’s comment in Masechet Yoma (28) that Abraham Abinu observed this Misva. If even Abraham performed Erub Tabshilin, the Shela writes, then certainly there must be deep and profound concepts underlying this Misva. It is therefore important to familiarize oneself with the laws and details of this Misva in order to ensure to fulfill it properly.
