Just re-watched “The Big Lebowski”. In it Walter sez “…And I sure as hell don’t roll on the Shabbat!”, that is he doesn’t bowl on Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath.
But I though playing games was OK? Or is bowling a exception? Or was Walter just plain wrong?
Playing games isn’t prohibited. “Demolition” is, and knocking over pins likely qualifies for many Shabbat-observant Jews. Not to mention driving to the bowling alley. And most Shabbat observance seems to be focused on time spent with family and with other Jews, as with the all-important Shabbat meals.
Maybe bowling is prohibited because of automatic (i.e. electric) pinsetters? Googled this and didn’t find much.
Maybe he considers it serious work.
You’re probably allowed to play games that don’t involve work (like “20 questions”). Bowling is work.
I’d guess that’s all right. I was in a building where one elevator stopped at every floor on Saturdays for people observing the Sabbath. That implied that they could ride the elevator, just not push the buttons.
Keep in mind that Walter isn’t quite right in the head and tends to get violent when challenged.
But the elevator would have stopped at every floor anyway because that’s the setting it was on; the people riding it weren’t causing it either directly or indirectly. The act of knocking over the pins causes the pinsetter to come down and thus electricity to be used, so I would guess it’s forbidden. It’s the same principle that leads to having to unscrew the refrigerator lightbulb over Shabbos so it doesn’t turn on when you open the door. And not everyone holds that Shabbos elevators are allowed.
In the context of the movie I think this explanation makes the most sense. There is another scene where The Dude asks Walter to come give him a ride, and Walter only agrees to do it if it is a matter of life and death, since it’s the sabbath.
He’s obviously in fear of the ruthless Shabbat enforcer posse. They see him rollin’, they hatin’.
Walter could hire a Shabbas Goy.
Yes, except that he says that he doesn’t drive on the Shabbat and also " and as sure as hell don’t roll on the Shabbat".
DrDeth, you know you’re supposed to wait until Friday night to ask this question! 
Even assuming that you solve the pinsetter problem by hiring Shabbos goy to manually reset the pins, there’s still the issue of having to pay for the games. Jews aren’t supposed to carry money or engage in any sort of commerce on the Sabbath. This can mean anything from “buying on credit is OK as long as no currency changes hands” to “even credit is verboten because commerce is commerce.” But I don’t think Walter ever got that technical. His main beef was with the driving.
I know. * Tradition!* Hangs head in shame.
I don’t think he says “the Shabbat”, does he? If memory serves, it was “the Sabbath”, but it might have been “Shabbat”. I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone say “the Shabbat”.
Anyway, paying to bowl, making the pinsetter work when it wouldn’t otherwise have done so, and knocking down pins all seem to count as melachot. I think Walter was probably right.
Technically, if there were no electronics, there’s nothing forbidden about bowling on Shabbat inside of an enclosed building. For example, that impromptu bowling alley that the 4077th set up in an episode of MASH.
Still, most Shabbat-observant adults feel that playing sports is not in the spirit of Shabbat, which is a day of holiness. It’s one thing for children to engage in not-forbidden recreation to not be bored, but adults should be more mature about finding fulfillment in more spiritual ways.
I thought he says Shabbos, with the Yiddish pronunciation.
Edit: Here’s the video.
Yes, right.
I can’t recall, wasn’t he just saying he was Jewish because his ex wife was Jewish or something? I never had the feeling that his ideas about the religion were 100% accurate, which is what made it funny.
He converted to Judaism when he married a Jewish woman. They divorced, but that doesn’t mean he stopped being Jewish.