Halacha Thought Question

[rosends]

In the Bill Murray/Andi McDowell movie "Groundhog Day" the protagonist wakes up each day and it is Feb 2. Every day. Over and over.

Let's say that Feb 2 that year was a Tuesday and the main character is an observant Jew.

Does he ever have shabbos again?

One who is lost in the desert and does not know what day it is counts 6 days and then has a shabbos
Lost in the desert - when is Shabbos? | Sefaria . Is he lost (in time if not place)?

but the character in the movie knows what day it is -- it is always Tuesday!

But at the same time, days pass so from the original day, one could count and have Shabbos on the Tuesday 4 days later (would one daven shabbos, or shir shel yom of Tuesday?) even though he knows that the actual day is Tuesday.

Opinions (and sources...) welcome.

 

[Harel13]

I suppose the big question is whether being stuck in time is the same as not being sure what the time is. I think they aren't the same. However, that may not necessarily mean that a person stuck in time couldn't keep Shabbat. What comes to mind is המחדש בטובו בכל יום תמיד מעשה בראשית. Since a day might be defined as a period of time that is being renewed, even a day that is replayed is technically being renewed, plus the individuals stuck in that time period aren't necessarily doing exactly what they did during the last replay - even a minor change in the number of breaths they take is a change. From this aspect, it might be possible to consider each replay as part of a passage of time, thereby eventually bringing one to the seventh day.

With that said, from a technical aspect it would be difficult to keep Shabbat in that manner, particularly in the modern world. Sure, you could set up a Shabbat clock and whatnot the evening before, but next day you'd have nothing. So, cold food. And people around you would wonder why you're keeping Shabbat on Tuesday.

 

[rosends]

I hadn't thought of the problem of any preparation's disappearing. Here is a question about your final line -- if I am lost in the desert and I establish a seventh day, then I am rescued, I thought I learned that I must keep that new shabbos also into the future. Wouldn't this mean I am keeping shabbos on another day of the week which would confuse people also?

 

[Harel13]

I hadn't thought of the problem of any preparation's disappearing. Here is a question about your final line -- if I am lost in the desert and I establish a seventh day, then I am rescued, I thought I learned that I must keep that new shabbos also into the future. Wouldn't this mean I am keeping shabbos on another day of the week which would confuse people also?

I suppose it would, but at least people in your local circles would know what you were doing.

 

[rosends]

I suppose it would, but at least people in your local circles would know what you were doing.

That's a fair point. So you think I should count forward from the first day (assuming I spot the weirdness on day 2) and make the 4th iteration shabbos, and keep it even though everyone around me won't understand or accept my explanation?

In the movie, the character is a weather man on assignment, staying in a B+B. If he viewed the 4th day as shabbos, he could leave his room but not do much outside for lack of an eiruv. He couldn't do his job and would have no food (he didn't really pack and only stayed overnight because he was snowed in unexpectedly). Would he treat the end of day 3 as "Friday night" in terms of behavior and davening?

As my mind plays with this, I am reminded of the story of Rabban Gamliel and Rabbi Yehoshua about what day was Yom Kippur.