Eruv Tavshilin

Shabbat and Festival work prohibitions are different in one characteristic, regarding cooking and preparing food. On a Festival one may prepare food to be eaten that same day.(see Exodus 12:16) Festivals can often fall on the immediate days preceding Shabbat, either Thursday or Friday. Though the work of preparation of food for other days is abstained from on Festival days, it is nonetheless necessary and permissible to prepare food needed for an upcoming Shabbat. However in order to remind oneself that we are doing this only for the honor of Shabbat one makes an Eruv Tavshilin – an assorted mixture of both bread (or matzah) and cooked foods together to be used for Shabbat. The establishment of this eruv is often done by a Rabbi or leader for the entire community, though it is proper for each person to make their own for their household and guests. On the day before the Festival one should take the bread and a choice cooked food (such as meat, fish or eggs) and hand it over to another person who receives it on behalf of the entire community. While handing the items over the leader says:

אַנִי מְזַכֶּה לְכָל מִי שֶׁרוֹצֶה לִזְכוֹת וְלִסְמוֹךְ עַל עֵירוּב זֶה:

The person who receives the bread and food should take and lift them a tefach (a “hands-breadth,” approximately 3.5 inches) and then return them to the person making the eruv. Then the leader should then hold the food in hand and reciting the blessing:

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו, וְצִוָּנוּ עַל מִצְוַת עֵרוּב:

The following declaration is also made:

בְּדֵין יְהֵא שָׁרָא לָנָא לַאֲפוּיֵי וּלְבַשּׁוּלֵי וּלְאַטְמוּנֵי וּלְאַדְלוּקֵי שְׁרַגָּא וּלִמֶעְבֵּד כָּל צָרְכָּנָא מִיּוֹמָא טָבָא לְשַׁבְּתָא, לָנָא וּלְכָל יִשְֹרָאֵל הַדָּרִים בָּעִיר הַזֹּאת: