We are beginning siman 6, where the Chayei Adam will discuss the fifth criterion for it to be permitted to make an arrangement with a non-Jew before Shabbos regarding melacha on Shabbos. This criterion is related to the first criteria, in that it regards maris ayin.
Rav Moshe understands that there is a issur deoraysa of chashad, to do something which will appear to people as an aveirah. This issur is based on the pasuk in Matos, ve’hiyisem nekiyim meiHashem u’meiyisroel, that a person should not do something which will cause people to mistakenly believe he is doing an aveirah. Rav Moshe understands that this is an issur deoraysa.
Beyond the din deoraysa, Chazal instituted various takanos due to maris ayin, where an action has the appearance of something inappropriate. The difference between chashad and maris ayin is that when the issur in question is only chashad, it is only assur when people can see. If people cannot see, there is no issur of chashad. However, something which Chazal designated as maris ayin is assur even in private (except for specific places where Chazal did not extend it to private). The Gemara in Beitzah quotes Rav as saying that maris ayin is assur even in one’s inner sanctum.
In general, Chazal prefer to create issurim which are uniform, so that they are easier to keep. This is known as lo plug, and applies here in that maris ayin applies even in private.
In our siman, the Chayei Adam will introduce an issur which goes under the umbrella of maris ayin. When the non-Jew is working for the Jew in a public way, if the item is not attached to the ground, it can be hidden away and worked on in a place which people will not see. However, if it is attached to the ground, it is inevitable that others will see it, so there is a concern for maris ayin.
It is important to note that the Gemara says that our issur will not apply if the concern of maris ayin is not relevant. Thus, for example,maris ayin is only between a Jew and another Jew, so if there are no Jews around, the concern will not apply.
If another Jew will not think anything negative about the non-Jew working, it will be muttar as well. Meaning, we know that creating an arrangement with a non-Jew as a kablan is muttar, but as a sechir yom is assur. A third party has no idea which arrangement was made, unless it is a field of endeavor in which the standard arrangement is through kablanus. However, if there is a clear standard, it may be muttar.
In the first criteria, we discussed that the non-Jew must remove all of the work items off the Jew’s premises before Shabbos. This is due to the concern of chashad, that if people see the non-Jew removing the items from the Jew’s premises on Shabbos, they will think the arrangement was made on Shabbos itself. Over here, the concern is more basic, namely, that we are unsure regarding the type of arrangement in the first place.
The sixth criterion is that it should not be known publicly that the non-Jew is working for the Jew. This is a similar concern to criterion five. In a case in which the non-Jew is working in public, such as a mechanic with the garage doors open, we will have the same concern as criterion five. We will discuss these concerns further, be’ezras Hashem.
Summary
If one instructs a non-Jew before Shabbos, there are times when it will be muttar, depending on eight conditions.
The fifth condition is that the item not be attached to the ground, due to a concern of maris ayin.
However, if the maris ayin is not relevant, such as there are no Jews around, or the Jews around have no reason to suspect anything assur, it is not a problem.
The sixth condition is that the item may not be worked on in a public place, due to a concern of maris ayin.
