"Orlando Enrique Fiol" > wrote in message
. ..
> Ellen K. > wrote:
>>[For anybody who doesn't know how cholent is made, my method is that once
>>all
> the ingredients are in the pot one turns on the fire on high (I do this
> with
> the pot uncovered), then when it boils one covers the pot, turns the heat
> down
> very low, covers the fire (most people use a sheet of tin for this
> purpose, I
> use a "heat diffuser"), and leaves it alone until lunchtime the next day.
> Since the fire is covered by shortly before sunset on Friday, this means
> the
>>simmer time is about 18 hours.]
>
> If a baby needs warm milk on the sabbath, will orthodox Jews heat it?
>
> Orlando

The short answer is yes.

The process is as follows:

In order to be able to have hot coffee and/or tea over the sabbath, hot
water is kept available by using usually an electric urn of the type you
will find at buffets, although some still use a regular teakettle that sits
from Friday afternoon on the metal sheet that covers the other fires on the
stove. The urn or teakettle is filled and heated prior to the sabbath, no
new water is added on the sabbath.

When it's time for the baby to eat, the baby bottle is stood in an empty pot
and hot water from the urn is poured over it into the pot. The bottle then
continues to warm up in the hot water. This process can be repeated if the
milk does not become warm enough after one pouring. The only restrictions
are that the milk is not allowed to become hotter than 113 F (which would
anyway be too hot for a baby to drink), and that the hot water poured over
the bottle is not allowed to completely submerge it (which most people would
anyway not do).

It's also possible to use an electric bottle warmer that was on since before
the sabbath, provided it either has a thermostat that can be set not to
exceed 113 F, or is designed so as never to reach that temperature in the
first place. If it is the type with a thermostat, it must be actively
heating at the time the bottle is placed in it.

The reason for the temperature limitiation is that it is permitted to WARM
the milk, but not to COOK it.