KollelBoker: Walking in front of a surveillance camera on Shabbos

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Vol. 1 Iss. 42

פרשת כי תצא

Dvar Torah

By: Rabbi Goldman

The gemara Brachos (10a) tells us about a discussion between Yeshayahu Hanavi and Chizkiyahu Hamelech. Yeshayahu informed Chizkiyahu that thee was a decree that Hashem had made that stated that Chizkiyahu would be killed in the near future. Yeshayahu told him that there was no room for davening to help anymore. Once there was a decree by Hashem its too late. However Chizkiyahu knew that there is still room for davening to help even after Hashem's decree. The gemara tells us that he davened to Hashem from the depths of his heart and he was answered.
The story seems to teach us that when we turn to Hashem and we try to daven properly then our tefilos can be extremely powerful.

Dvar Halacha

By: R' Chananya Berman

Question:
Can I walk in front of a surveillance camera on Shabbos?
Discussion:
Last week we talked about walking in front of a motion detector which causes a light to go on. We said that since one is walking in the normal manner without doing anything intentionally for the light to go on it is permitted (if necessary) to walk there. We also mentioned that the person does not want the light to turn on.

When if comes to surveillance cameras the potential problem is the electrical activity that is generated by the person walking through the field of vision of the cameras. The principals we mentioned are true for a surveillance camera as well (Kovetz Ateres Shlomo 6). Therefore in case of need one may rely on this opinion and walk in front of the camera. However, if one wants to be seen by the camera (i.e. the security guard will open the door for you if he sees you) then one would not be allowed to walk in front of the camera. One should consult a rav if this situation arises.

For all practical questions please ask your Rav.