On Sun, 26 Oct 2003 12:17:21 GMT, "Bob Musicant"
wrote:

(snip)
Orthodox Jews may not write on the Sabbath. There is no prohibition against
playing games on the Sabbath, but in the case of Reshevsky, playing chess
was the way he made a living, hence, work. I gather Gulko's interpretation
is different. Chess is a game, playing games on the Sabbath is OK, writing
never is.

When electrical devices were introduced in the 19th century, a board of
rabbis reached the conclusion that electricity was sufficiently similar to
fire that it could not be used on the Sabbath. Mechanical clocks are OK.

Bob


Interesting. I believe I've heard that some Christian denominations
do not play games on their Sabbath, and must have assumed that the
rationale for Reshevsky not playing on his Sabbath was the same.