925. Sharing a Courtyard With a Heretic

Eiruvin 2:15

Let’s say that a number of Jews share a courtyard with a non-Jew and windows open from one Jew’s house to another’s. If they make an eiruv via the windows, permitting them to transfer objects from house to house through the windows, then the non-Jew’s presence impedes their ability to transfer via the door unless they rent his property. This is because we do not consider a group of people who have made an eiruv as a single individual when there is also a non-Jewish resident.

Eiruvin 2:16

A Jew who publicly desecrates Shabbos or commits idolatry is considered a non-Jew in all ways. He may not participate in an eiruv, nor may he forgo ownership rights to his property. Rather, we must rent his property as we would that of a non-Jewish resident. When it comes to a heretic who neither commits idolatry nor desecrates Shabbos, like the Sadducees and others who deny the Oral Law, we have a dilemma. On the one hand, the general rule is that whoever denies the mitzvah of eiruv may not participate in one. On the other hand, his property may not be rented because he is not considered a non-Jew. The only option is for him to forgo his ownership rights in favor of an observant Jew. Similarly, if an observant Jew shares a courtyard with a Sadducee, the Sadducee’s presence impedes his ability to carry unless he forgoes ownership rights in favor of the observant Jew.