Q: I was at my friend's house for Shabbat lunch and he served me this dish called “Cholent.” They told me it has been cooking since Friday and is a special Shabbat staple. Although it was pretty good, I’ve never tasted anything quite like it and was wondering what the origin and reason for this food is?

 

A: Ahh, Cholent! Someone once told me a joke that proof of God's existence is that we can go to sleep after eating cholent and still wake up… In all seriousness, there is a very profound reason why we eat it.

 

The Torah comprises two parts, the written Torah and the Oral law which serves as an interpretation of the written law. Fundamental to our belief is that both parts are divine, and we follow the Oral law even if it takes the written Torah out of its most literal meaning.

 

The Torah says that on Shabbat we should not have a fire burning. Taken literally this means you can’t have a fire burning on Shabbat even if it was kindled before Shabbat began. However, we know from the Oral law that the prohibition is only to actually light a fire on Shabbat itself. The Sadducees, a sect during the second temple era which didn’t believe in the oral law only ate cold food on Shabbat because there was no way to keep food warm according to their mistaken belief as they couldn’t have any fire burning. We therefore specifically eat food that has been cooking throughout Shabbat (put on the fire before Shabbat) to prove them wrong and affirm our belief in the Oral law.

 

Pls note: There are Halachic requirements as to how cooked the food needs to be before Shabbat comes in. Please consult your Rabbi for guidance.

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