Un cerrojo de la puerta [pegado en las paredes o el alféizar de la puerta para cerrar la puerta], en cuyo extremo hay un dispositivo de fijación [es decir, cuyo extremo es grueso y redondo como una granada y hecho como una mano de mortero, adecuado para golpear la pimienta ] —R. Eliezer prohíbe (usarlo) (en Shabat), y R. Yossi lo permite. [A pesar de que tiene el estado de una embarcación, R. Eliezer lo prohíbe a menos que esté atado y colgado en la puerta. La halajá está de acuerdo con R. Yossi.] R. Eliezer dijo: Sucedió en una sinagoga en Tiberíades que lo trataron como permitido, hasta que R. Gamliel y los ancianos vinieron y se lo prohibieron. R. Yossi dice: Lo trataron como prohibido, hasta que R. Gamliel y los ancianos vinieron y se lo permitieron.
Bartenura on Mishnah Eruvin
נגר – a kind of door-bolt that they insert in the walls or in the lintel to lock the door.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Eruvin
Introduction
This mishnah deals with a bolt or type of peg that they would use to lock a door. The bolt has a knob on one end of it, which makes it possible to do other types of work (for instance grinding) with the contraption.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Eruvin
גלוסטרא – that its top is wide and round like a pomegranate and is made like a club (with a handle used as a door-bar – see Talmud Eruvin 102a) that one uses to pound with it peppers, and even though it has the status of a utensil, Rabbi Eliezer forbids it other than it if is attached and hanging on the door. But Rabbi Yosi permits it and the Halakha is according to Rabbi Yosi.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Eruvin
A bolt which has a knob at one end: Rabbi Eliezer forbids it [to be moved]; But Rabbi Yose permits it. Rabbi Eliezer forbids using this type of bolt on Shabbat, whereas Rabbi Joshua permits it. There are several explanations for this debate. One is that Rabbi Eliezer holds that the bolt is not considered to be a “vessel” and hence it is muktzeh. The knob, which is a vessel, is secondary to the bolt and hence it is not considered. Rabbi Judah holds that the knob is primary and hence the entire contraption is considered to be a vessel. Another explanation is that according to Rabbi Eliezer when he puts the bolt into the door, it looks as if he is building, because the bolt is not a “vessel.” In contrast, Rabbi Joshua holds that since the bolt is a vessel, it does not look as if he is building.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Eruvin
Rabbi Eliezer said: It happened in a synagogue in Tiberias that they were customary to permit it, until Rabban Gamaliel and the elders came and forbade it to them. Rabbi Yose said: they treated it as forbidden, Rabban Gamaliel and the elders came and permitted it to them. In this section both rabbis bring precedents for there rulings. Both precedents are really opposite versions of the same event. According to Rabbi Eliezer the people used to permit its use until Rabban Gamaliel and the other elders came and prohibited. According to Rabbi Joshua, the people used to prohibit until Rabban Gamaliel came and permitted it. One thing I find interesting in this story (in either version) is the relationship of the rabbi to the synagogue and its customs. In the beginning, the synagogue operates separately from the realm of the rabbis and in halakhic contradistinction to them. There certainly is no “synagogue rabbi”, an invention which is rather modern. However, according to the story, the rabbis seem to be periodically visiting the synagogues and when they get there they issue a halakhic ruling which is followed. The relationship of the rabbis to the synagogue in antiquity is a complex subject, one about which much has been written. This mishnah demonstrates how complex the subject can be.
