Shabbat On Board Ship

In ancient times, overseas travel meant sailing by ship. Sea travel was slow and unpredictable; without even a steam engine, travel time depended on manpower and weather conditions. Voyages lasted weeks, sometimes months. How did Jews conduct themselves during such voyages? How were the laws of Shabbat observed while on board ship?

For a ship's passengers, the issues were not too complex. The main consideration was the prohibition of traveling beyond permitted boundaries on Shabbat (techumin) on a long-distance journey. The Gemara (Shabbat 19) states that, "A person should not set sail less than three days before Shabbat," as if he does so, it will look as if he is actively planning to travel during Shabbat itself. If he boards the ship more than half a week before Shabbat, however, this concern does not apply. Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel explains that this rule applies to long journeys, but traveling from Tyre to Sidon (for example) is permitted even on Friday, as Tyre and Sidon are on the opposite sides of the same bay, and the voyage between them might take only an hour or two.

The Gemara relates how several great Sages were traveling home after a mission to Rome. They sailed from the city of Prandsin (today called Brindisi) toward the Land of Israel, and during the voyage, Shabbat arrived. Rabbi Yehoshua ben Chananya and Rabbi Akiva did not move from their places on the ship, as halachah (Jewish law) states that someone who travels beyond the distance permitted on Shabbat may not move beyond the four cubits within which they find themselves. Rabban Gamliel and Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah, however, walked freely around the entire ship, as they considered the ship as their temporary "home" and according to halachah, one's home is like a four-cubit space -- and this is the accepted halachah.

On another occasion, the ship the Sages were traveling on arrived at the port at dusk on Friday afternoon. The non-Jewish passengers disembarked but the Sages remained on-board, as even if the entire ship was considered like four cubits, the port was not and they were thus forbidden to disembark on Shabbat. Rabban Gamliel, however, told them that via his special telescope he had seen that the ship entered the port before the sun set. Therefore, the ship was considered within the city's limits and they were allowed to disembark and also move freely around the entire city.

Then another problem emerged. Were they permitted to make use of the gangplank erected by the non-Jewish sailors during Shabbat? Rabban Gamliel pointed out that the non-Jewish passengers had already made use of it to disembark and therefore, they were permitted to benefit from this action of a non-Jew on Shabbat, since it was not done specifically for them.

On another occasion, the Sages were stranded onboard ship during Sukkot. Rabban Gamliel, who was very wealthy, promised one thousand zuz to whoever could obtain an etrog for him, and one was found. With regard to Pesach, halachah requires that a person who boards a ship within a month before the festival must check his home and belongings for chametz before setting sail, in case he does not return until Pesach begins.

But what does one do when the captain himself is Jewish? How should he conduct himself on Shabbat? 

An interesting episode from the early 5th century CE testifies to the devotion of Jewish seafarers to Jewish law. Synesius, a philosopher and poet of Jewish origin who converted to Christianity and became the bishop of Acre, happened to be traveling on a ship owned by a Jew named Amarantis, to Cyrene in North Africa. Half the sailors were Jewish, and there were also around fifty passengers. The journey proceeded smoothly, until Friday toward evening when a storm arose. As the sun set, Amarantis let go of the captain's wheel, saying that on Shabbat it was forbidden for him to steer the ship.

The passengers, led by Synesius, objected vehemently but to no avail. According to the bishop's account, the ship's owner stood "like a true Maccabee observing his religion" and did not comply with the demands to resume sailing. In vain did Synesius hurl insults and accusations, claiming that the Jews were seeking to get everyone killed. Even when a soldier drew his sword, Amarantis continued reading from his holy book. However, at midnight he returned to the ship's wheel, explaining that the storm had increased in intensity, threatening all their lives. Therefore, he was permitted to steer the ship to safety. This is the well-known principle that saving a life overrides Shabbat.

Another practical question that often arose was how to apportion the losses when goods were thrown overboard in order to stabilize the ship. An entire Talmudic discussion deals with this issue, which is also addressed at length by the later halachic authorities.

In some cases, all the passengers are responsible for making good the losses of those whose possessions were tossed into the waves, as all their lives were saved as a result. A person who loaded more possessions on board than he was entitled to, however, must bear his losses himself. The halachic authorities also discuss a case where a donkey went beserk in the middle of a voyage. The animal pranced and kicked and bit people until the passengers had no choice but to throw it overboard. The Beit Yosef and the Rema disagree on whether all the passengers should share in this loss. According to the Beit Yosef, the donkey's owner was at fault, as it was his donkey that went crazy. According to the Rema, the loss is shared among all, given that it is permissible to bring a donkey on board, and it is possible that the donkey became seasick, which was not the owner's fault. The main thing, of course, is that the passengers were safe.