pops up on STW like an unflushable floater
You can call me Mr. Hanky.
This includes making, transferring or adding fuel to a fire. This is one of the few Shabbat prohibitions mentioned explicitly in the Torah Exodus 35:3*. Many poskim ground their prohibition of operating electrical appliances in this melakha.
This prohibition also was (and in many circles, still is) commonly understood to disallow operating electrical switches. When actuating electromechanical switches that carry a live current, there is always the possibility that a small electric spark will be generated. This spark is classified as a kind of fire. However, as science became more advanced, and the properties of fire and electricity became better understood, this reasoning broke down: fire is a chemical reaction involving the release of energy; the flow of an electric current is a physical reaction. Therefore, some hold that the proper reason it is forbidden to complete electric circuits is because it involves construction or building
*3 Ye shall kindle no fire throughout your habitations upon the sabbath day.'
Going to great lengths to make life awkward for themselves and others. The true sign of faith.
