Lessons in Memory of my brother Dale Alan Konigsburg
November 24, 2003
Number 5764-8 Thanksgiving
We like to think of Thanksgiving as an American holiday. Its history goes back to Christian pilgrims to our shore, and to the Native Americans who helped them through a bitter winter and who taught them the skills to survive in this new land. It was this spirit of co-operation and gratitude that inspired later generations to make the last Thursday of November a national holiday of thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving, however, is built on Jewish roots. The Pilgrims, fundamentalist Christians all, knew their Bible well. They knew all about a festival in the fall to thank G-d for the blessings of the harvest. They understood that Sukkot was a time to thank G-d for the miracle of growing crops, for the balance of sunshine and rain, and the strength they needed to tend the gardens and hunt for food. Their holiday was modeled after the Biblical Sukkot, the traditional time of thanksgiving for Jews.
While I advise Jews to stay away from celebrating Christmas, St. Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s day and Halloween, I make no such claim against Thanksgiving. There is a very Jewish dimension to Thanksgiving. The final sections in the book of Deuteronomy are concerned with showing gratitude to G-d for our many blessings and the curses and dooms that will come if we forget to acknowledge our debt to our creator. The Sages of the Talmud decreed that the proper way to show our thanks and appreciation is to say a blessing before we take advantage of any part of our life. There are blessings for the foods we eat, fruits, vegetables, bread, and all other kinds of food. After we eat our fill, we once again thank our Creator for not only the food we eat, but for all the many kind things that G-d showers down upon us every day. In the presence of the wonders of nature, storms, mountains, rainbows, oceans, in the presence of great wisdom, beauty or even unusual shapes for human beings, there is a blessing to recite. At all the different seasons of the year, holidays, special days, happy times, and sad times, and the first time we do something new, there is a blessing to recite. The Ancient Rabbis taught that there are no less than 100 reasons each day to bless and thank G-d. With a list of blessings, they tried to make sure that we never neglect the things in life that are really important.
All too often today we forget to be grateful. We pass people on the street who help us in so many ways, and we never say a word to them. Most of our time on Thanksgiving is dedicated to eating and football. We give little thought to what Thanksgiving stands for and think only of shopping and sports. So many people are there to help us every day, and we ignore their actions. The telephone repairmen, the grocery clerks, the hairdresser, the delivery boy, police officers, firefighters and paramedics, we need to acknowledge how much we rely on them and thank them for their diligent efforts on our behalf. Life would be so much more difficult if they were not working on our behalf.
Sometime this Thanksgiving day, pause with your family and make a list of 100 things for which we are thankful. Make sure to write it all down. Post it on your refrigerator to remind you, every day, the 100 ways we have to thanking G-d. Take nothing for granted, and take no one for granted. Spread around your feelings of thankfulness and you will be surprised at the response you get back. Just saying a Thank you to the server who fills your water glass in a restaurant, will insure that your glass will never be empty. You can make a difference in someone’s life, even save a life, just by expressing our gratitude to G-d for all the many blessings in our life.
Let us all be thankful on this Thanksgiving day. It is the American and the Jewish thing to do.
Monday, November 24, 2003
Monday, November 17, 2003
HMS; 5764-7 Shabbat III - Physical vs Spiritual Pursuits
Lessons in Memory of my brother Dale Alan Konigsburg
November 17, 2003
Number 5764-7 Shabbat III - Physical vs Spiritual Pursuits
While everyone wants to have the spiritual benefits of Shabbat, many do not realize the preparation that must go into Shabbat to experience these benefits. Author and Play write, Herman Woulk not only noticed that Shabbat took all the tension and stress out of his work week, but that the quiet of Shabbat also enabled him to do his best work once he returned after the holiday (Herman Woulk, "This is My God", see: A Personal Digression)
To understand how Shabbat works we need to see that as our physical activities wane, our spiritual resources increase. Let us look at the four different parts of Shabbat and see how this change takes place. In chronological order, these four parts are: Friday Night; Sat. Morning/Lunch; Sat. Afternoon; and Sat. Night. These understandings are based on the work of Franz Rosenzweig, a Jewish Philosopher in the 1800's
Friday Night - Friday night is rich in Physical stimulation. There is the Kabbalat Shabbat service which is sung traditionally in 3/4 time (Waltz Time) a very grand and stately kind of music. The Theme of the service is G-d as Creator, the physical actions of G-d. The Friday night service is a coronation/wedding of Shabbat as a royal bride, with all the pomp and ceremony of this event. The Shabbat Dinner is a full course dinner, usually the best dinner of the week. Jews would save their money to make Shabbat dinner the best it could possibly be. The Zemirot tend to speak to the food of the dinner as a way of celebrating Shabbat. The lighting of candles, the rich egg challah, the blessings of family and food all designed to stress the physical side of life. Even the mandate that Friday night is also a special time for sexual relations between a husband and wife highlight the physical nature of this part of Shabbat. Spiritually, though, things are very low. We often arrive at Friday night tired from a long hard work week, and tired from the frantic push to get Shabbat ready before candles must be lit. Spiritual concerns are far from our mind during this part of Shabbat
Saturday Morning/Lunch - We awaken Saturday morning refreshed and rejuvenated and ready for the main service of the day, Shacharit. During this service we will offer a special Amida for Shabbat and a Musaf Amida in honor of the day. We will pause to read from the Torah, to get some religious learning in as well as a reading from the Prophets in the Haphtara. Clearly our Spiritual side is rising. Without the distractions of job and responsibilities, we are free to let our spiritual side shine. There is still some significant physical aspects to Shabbat here. The time of the music is 4/4 (March Time) and the theme is G-d as King. Lunch is not the sumptuous feast of Friday Night, but, prepared in advance, the lunch menu is still satisfying and complete. Often guests will join us for the meal and for the singing. The Zemirot stress more spiritual themes, however, focusing on Shabbat Rest and learning. During this part of Shabbat, with spirituality rising and the physical declining, they are about even on the chart.
Saturday Afternoon - The physical almost disappears as the afternoon wears on. Shabbat Afternoon is often the time for a Shabbat nap, a Shabbat walk or time to read a Shabbat book. There are no schedules to keep, phones to answer or problems to solve. It is a time to talk to our children, perhaps play some unhurried games with them. The third meal of Shabbat is almost no meal at all. Perhaps a hard boiled egg, some cheese, perhaps some tuna salad and bread. It is a pretty spartan meal. The songs sung during the meal are often wordless niggunim, songs best hummed or filled with La-la-la’s and Bim bam bim. Spiritually we are very high, feeling a part of nature, not an opponent of nature. Our life has slowed down to the point where we even begin to lose track of time, noting only that the sun is slowly setting and that Shabbat will, eventually come to an end. The theme of the afternoon service is Redemption, a theme based in the future, and we contemplate a world where it is Shabbat all the time. We are feeling closer to G-d and have a better understanding of our place in G-d’s universe.
Saturday Night - Having reached a spiritual high in the afternoon, as soon as the sun sets and Shabbat ends, we are suddenly free to re-enter the chaos of the week. It is a spectacular crash as spiritual perfection meets reality once again. While the crash is unavoidable, the Havdala service is designed to cushion the fall. Havdala consists of four blessings. One for wine - reminding us that there are other reasons to celebrate beside Shabbat. The second blessing is over spices - reminding us that there are other sweet things in life beside Shabbat. The third blessing is over the Havdala candle, a multi-wick candle that resembles a torch, to light our way into the darkness of the new week, and a final blessing to G-d for creating a distinction between secular and holy days. The spirituality of Shabbat leaves us and we once again return to work and chores. Still, the spiritual time of Shabbat has changed us and we are able to look at the new week with new eyes and with a refreshed soul.
Next week: Thanksgiving
November 17, 2003
Number 5764-7 Shabbat III - Physical vs Spiritual Pursuits
While everyone wants to have the spiritual benefits of Shabbat, many do not realize the preparation that must go into Shabbat to experience these benefits. Author and Play write, Herman Woulk not only noticed that Shabbat took all the tension and stress out of his work week, but that the quiet of Shabbat also enabled him to do his best work once he returned after the holiday (Herman Woulk, "This is My God", see: A Personal Digression)
To understand how Shabbat works we need to see that as our physical activities wane, our spiritual resources increase. Let us look at the four different parts of Shabbat and see how this change takes place. In chronological order, these four parts are: Friday Night; Sat. Morning/Lunch; Sat. Afternoon; and Sat. Night. These understandings are based on the work of Franz Rosenzweig, a Jewish Philosopher in the 1800's
Friday Night - Friday night is rich in Physical stimulation. There is the Kabbalat Shabbat service which is sung traditionally in 3/4 time (Waltz Time) a very grand and stately kind of music. The Theme of the service is G-d as Creator, the physical actions of G-d. The Friday night service is a coronation/wedding of Shabbat as a royal bride, with all the pomp and ceremony of this event. The Shabbat Dinner is a full course dinner, usually the best dinner of the week. Jews would save their money to make Shabbat dinner the best it could possibly be. The Zemirot tend to speak to the food of the dinner as a way of celebrating Shabbat. The lighting of candles, the rich egg challah, the blessings of family and food all designed to stress the physical side of life. Even the mandate that Friday night is also a special time for sexual relations between a husband and wife highlight the physical nature of this part of Shabbat. Spiritually, though, things are very low. We often arrive at Friday night tired from a long hard work week, and tired from the frantic push to get Shabbat ready before candles must be lit. Spiritual concerns are far from our mind during this part of Shabbat
Saturday Morning/Lunch - We awaken Saturday morning refreshed and rejuvenated and ready for the main service of the day, Shacharit. During this service we will offer a special Amida for Shabbat and a Musaf Amida in honor of the day. We will pause to read from the Torah, to get some religious learning in as well as a reading from the Prophets in the Haphtara. Clearly our Spiritual side is rising. Without the distractions of job and responsibilities, we are free to let our spiritual side shine. There is still some significant physical aspects to Shabbat here. The time of the music is 4/4 (March Time) and the theme is G-d as King. Lunch is not the sumptuous feast of Friday Night, but, prepared in advance, the lunch menu is still satisfying and complete. Often guests will join us for the meal and for the singing. The Zemirot stress more spiritual themes, however, focusing on Shabbat Rest and learning. During this part of Shabbat, with spirituality rising and the physical declining, they are about even on the chart.
Saturday Afternoon - The physical almost disappears as the afternoon wears on. Shabbat Afternoon is often the time for a Shabbat nap, a Shabbat walk or time to read a Shabbat book. There are no schedules to keep, phones to answer or problems to solve. It is a time to talk to our children, perhaps play some unhurried games with them. The third meal of Shabbat is almost no meal at all. Perhaps a hard boiled egg, some cheese, perhaps some tuna salad and bread. It is a pretty spartan meal. The songs sung during the meal are often wordless niggunim, songs best hummed or filled with La-la-la’s and Bim bam bim. Spiritually we are very high, feeling a part of nature, not an opponent of nature. Our life has slowed down to the point where we even begin to lose track of time, noting only that the sun is slowly setting and that Shabbat will, eventually come to an end. The theme of the afternoon service is Redemption, a theme based in the future, and we contemplate a world where it is Shabbat all the time. We are feeling closer to G-d and have a better understanding of our place in G-d’s universe.
Saturday Night - Having reached a spiritual high in the afternoon, as soon as the sun sets and Shabbat ends, we are suddenly free to re-enter the chaos of the week. It is a spectacular crash as spiritual perfection meets reality once again. While the crash is unavoidable, the Havdala service is designed to cushion the fall. Havdala consists of four blessings. One for wine - reminding us that there are other reasons to celebrate beside Shabbat. The second blessing is over spices - reminding us that there are other sweet things in life beside Shabbat. The third blessing is over the Havdala candle, a multi-wick candle that resembles a torch, to light our way into the darkness of the new week, and a final blessing to G-d for creating a distinction between secular and holy days. The spirituality of Shabbat leaves us and we once again return to work and chores. Still, the spiritual time of Shabbat has changed us and we are able to look at the new week with new eyes and with a refreshed soul.
Next week: Thanksgiving
Monday, November 10, 2003
HMS; 5764-6 Shabbat II - Work and Shabbat
Lessons in Memory of my brother Dale Alan Konigsburg
November 10, 2003
Number 5764-6 Shabbat II - Work and Shabbat
The most widely know detail of Shabbat is the prohibition against work from sundown on Friday until sundown on Saturday. It is the most widely known law and one of the most misunderstood.
The Torah is very precise that "Melacha" is forbidden on Shabbat. It says many times that we must not do "Melacha" on Shabbat. What the Torah does not say is what the word "Melacha" means. The usual word for work is "Avoda" so the Sages understand that "Melacha" must be a special kind of work. Without a definition the word would have no meaning. Therefore the Sages looked through the Torah to find where the definition of "Melacha" could be implied. They found, at the beginning of Parshat Vayakel (Exodus 35:1-3) The command to refrain from "Melacha" on Shabbat just before the building of the Mishkan, the portable sanctuary, begins. The Rabbis ruled that whatever "Melacha" is, it must actions that are implied in the construction project that is about to begin. They then deduced 39 categories of work that are thus forbidden on Shabbat. These master categories prohibit: Ploughing, sowing, reaping, sheaf-making, threshing, winnowing, selecting, sifting, grinding, kneading, baking, sheep-shearing, bleaching, combing raw materials, dyeing, spinning, inserting thread into a loom, weaving, removing a finished article from a loom, separating into threads, tying a knot, untying a knot, sewing, tearing, trapping, slaughtering, skinning, tanning, scraping, marking out a pattern, cutting to shape, writing, erasing, building demolishing, kindling a fire, extinguishing a fire, the final hammer blow and carrying from one domain to another (public or private). Since the Torah calls for capital punishment for these offenses, the Sages then added another layer of prohibitions to keep people away from the major offenses. For example, if writing is not allowed, we do not allow sharpening a pencil since this may lead to writing. Some say that swimming is not allowed because placing a swim suit in water may constitute "washing"! Or we may tear off a branch from a tree to use as a swim aid. The Sages determined that one should not read by candle light on Friday night lest you tilt the candle holder to increase the flame. If, however another person is reading with you, you can read by candle light since the other person will remind you that it is Shabbat and the flame can not be increased. A third layer adds an additional fence around the law, so that carrying a pencil late Friday afternoon is also forbidden lest you forget you have it and write with it later that evening. Thus if you go around with a pencil behind your ear all day, or a needle and thread in your lapel for alterations, you have to put these away on Erev Shabbat lest you forget they are there and use them on Shabbat.
Many Sages from ancient to modern times see in this list creative acts, actions that bring about some change in the natural world. Since G-d rested from creative acts on Shabbat, so too we should let the physical world rest as we observe Shabbat, and not seek to change the world around us. It is this general rule that helps us understand if new things should be permitted or prohibited on Shabbat. For example, should electricity be used on Shabbat. If you consider electricity as fire, it would be prohibited, if not, it could be used. Clearly we can not use electricity to do another prohibited act. Sewing is prohibited so a sewing machine is also prohibited, as is an electric razor. Cooking is prohibited, even if the food is being cooked not on an open flame, but on an electric burner. What about electric lights? Are they a "flame" or not? Opinions vary. Some use electric lights others do not. To avoid a problem, some use timers to control the lights and thus the operation is automatic and not caused by our action. One could not adjust a timer on Shabbat but could use the light or other device that is set up to be run automatically by a timer. Television is a different problem. While a timer could be used to turn on an off the set, there is another problem of commercials. Do we want advertisements soliciting us to buy on a day when we can not handle money?
While there are interesting paradoxes, for example you can move your piano upstairs on Shabbat (since it stays in one domain) but you can’t carry a handkerchief outside (since it is moving from the private to the public domain), the general rule applies, we should not seek to change our world but to live in it and enjoy it the way G-d created it. Life is certainly different when walk instead of ride, and live without our cell phone, PDA or computer. When was the last time you had time in the afternoon to read a book or take a short nap? Not only does it refresh our soul but there is an added bonus that come from putting our work aside. After Shabbat, when we return to the working world, often we do our most creative work after our day of rest.
Next week: Shabbat III - Physical vs Spiritual Pursuits
November 10, 2003
Number 5764-6 Shabbat II - Work and Shabbat
The most widely know detail of Shabbat is the prohibition against work from sundown on Friday until sundown on Saturday. It is the most widely known law and one of the most misunderstood.
The Torah is very precise that "Melacha" is forbidden on Shabbat. It says many times that we must not do "Melacha" on Shabbat. What the Torah does not say is what the word "Melacha" means. The usual word for work is "Avoda" so the Sages understand that "Melacha" must be a special kind of work. Without a definition the word would have no meaning. Therefore the Sages looked through the Torah to find where the definition of "Melacha" could be implied. They found, at the beginning of Parshat Vayakel (Exodus 35:1-3) The command to refrain from "Melacha" on Shabbat just before the building of the Mishkan, the portable sanctuary, begins. The Rabbis ruled that whatever "Melacha" is, it must actions that are implied in the construction project that is about to begin. They then deduced 39 categories of work that are thus forbidden on Shabbat. These master categories prohibit: Ploughing, sowing, reaping, sheaf-making, threshing, winnowing, selecting, sifting, grinding, kneading, baking, sheep-shearing, bleaching, combing raw materials, dyeing, spinning, inserting thread into a loom, weaving, removing a finished article from a loom, separating into threads, tying a knot, untying a knot, sewing, tearing, trapping, slaughtering, skinning, tanning, scraping, marking out a pattern, cutting to shape, writing, erasing, building demolishing, kindling a fire, extinguishing a fire, the final hammer blow and carrying from one domain to another (public or private). Since the Torah calls for capital punishment for these offenses, the Sages then added another layer of prohibitions to keep people away from the major offenses. For example, if writing is not allowed, we do not allow sharpening a pencil since this may lead to writing. Some say that swimming is not allowed because placing a swim suit in water may constitute "washing"! Or we may tear off a branch from a tree to use as a swim aid. The Sages determined that one should not read by candle light on Friday night lest you tilt the candle holder to increase the flame. If, however another person is reading with you, you can read by candle light since the other person will remind you that it is Shabbat and the flame can not be increased. A third layer adds an additional fence around the law, so that carrying a pencil late Friday afternoon is also forbidden lest you forget you have it and write with it later that evening. Thus if you go around with a pencil behind your ear all day, or a needle and thread in your lapel for alterations, you have to put these away on Erev Shabbat lest you forget they are there and use them on Shabbat.
Many Sages from ancient to modern times see in this list creative acts, actions that bring about some change in the natural world. Since G-d rested from creative acts on Shabbat, so too we should let the physical world rest as we observe Shabbat, and not seek to change the world around us. It is this general rule that helps us understand if new things should be permitted or prohibited on Shabbat. For example, should electricity be used on Shabbat. If you consider electricity as fire, it would be prohibited, if not, it could be used. Clearly we can not use electricity to do another prohibited act. Sewing is prohibited so a sewing machine is also prohibited, as is an electric razor. Cooking is prohibited, even if the food is being cooked not on an open flame, but on an electric burner. What about electric lights? Are they a "flame" or not? Opinions vary. Some use electric lights others do not. To avoid a problem, some use timers to control the lights and thus the operation is automatic and not caused by our action. One could not adjust a timer on Shabbat but could use the light or other device that is set up to be run automatically by a timer. Television is a different problem. While a timer could be used to turn on an off the set, there is another problem of commercials. Do we want advertisements soliciting us to buy on a day when we can not handle money?
While there are interesting paradoxes, for example you can move your piano upstairs on Shabbat (since it stays in one domain) but you can’t carry a handkerchief outside (since it is moving from the private to the public domain), the general rule applies, we should not seek to change our world but to live in it and enjoy it the way G-d created it. Life is certainly different when walk instead of ride, and live without our cell phone, PDA or computer. When was the last time you had time in the afternoon to read a book or take a short nap? Not only does it refresh our soul but there is an added bonus that come from putting our work aside. After Shabbat, when we return to the working world, often we do our most creative work after our day of rest.
Next week: Shabbat III - Physical vs Spiritual Pursuits
Monday, November 3, 2003
HMS 5764-5; Shabbat I - The Origins of Shabbat
Lessons in Memory of my brother Dale Alan Konigsburg
November 3, 2003
Number 5764-5 Shabbat I - The Origins of Shabbat
The oldest holiday on the Hebrew Calendar is Shabbat. The Torah dates it from the seventh day of creation. On that day, G-d ceased creating and rested. The name "Shabbat" is one of those words that seem to have no history. We don’t find any word or any concept in the ancient world that is comparable to the Jewish Shabbat. All attempts to find a source for Shabbat in ancient writings has been futile.
Shabbat is also the only holiday mentioned in the Ten Commandments. The fourth commandment insists upon a day of rest for every member of the family, including the hired help and any working animals in the household. Shabbat therefore is linked to one of the most important moments in Jewish history, the Revelation at Mt. Sinai.
Shabbat is also linked to the future. The Sages of the Talmud taught that to experience Shabbat was to experience 1/60 th of the "World to Come." Our rest, therefore, is tied directly to future time, a time when the whole world, perhaps the whole universe will know the peace of Shabbat.
These three understandings of Shabbat are reflected in the three main services that we perform on Shabbat. Friday night is dedicated to Shabbat as the pinnacle of Creation. So we sing "Vayechulu HaShamaim, a quote directly from the creation story. On Shabbat morning, the service is dedicated to Revelation, and we sing, "V’Shamru B’nai Yisrael" that refers to Shabbat as a commandment of G-d. The Shabbat Mincha Service is dedicated to the end of days, When all the world will benefit from the rest we observe on Shabbat. Shabbat is the only day on the calendar where the Amida for Maariv, Shacharit and Mincha, are all different from each other. This too reflects the three themes, Creation, Revelation and the Final Redemption.
Shabbat has always been a difficult Mitzvah to perform. The Maccabees had to suspend Shabbat during their war with the Greek forces since the Greeks would wait to attack on Shabbat when the Jews would not fight. The Pagan Romans would laugh at the Jews who would not work seven days a week. To a pagan, work was the way one acquired power from the gods. The Roman’s could just not understand why the Jewish G-d would not have them work every day! Throughout the middle ages, Shabbat kept the Jewish people united. Achad HaAm, one of the great writers of the Emancipation noted, "more than the Jews have kept Shabbat, Shabbat has kept the Jews." Abraham Joshua Heschel, the great American philosopher, calls Shabbat a "Palace in Time" noting that all week long we work in the world of things, making things, changing things altering things, but on Shabbat we leave the world of space behind and choose to dwell in the realm of time.
In Judaism the whole week revolves around Shabbat. The days of the week do not have Hebrew names, they are only numbered as the first, second or third day before Shabbat. Some see Shabbat as the pinnacle of the week, with each day leading up to this highlight of our days. Others see Shabbat as a wave, with Wed, Thurs, and Friday as days leading up to Shabbat and Sun, Mon, and Tues as days that bring us down from Shabbat. The Psalm that is said on Wednesday is Psalm 94. We add to that Psalm on Wednesday the first few verses from Psalm 95, the Psalm that opens up the prayers of Kabbalat Shabbat on Friday night, calling attention to the fact that Wednesday is the swing day that leads us back to the heightened spirituality of Shabbat
While Shabbat starts with a great feast and with grand pageantry, over the 25 hours of Shabbat the physical aspects of the holiday begin to wane. The meals become more meager and the music becomes simpler. At the same time, the harried and hurried pace we start Shabbat with, slowly, over the 25 hours of the day, becomes slower and slower. The spirituality that thrives on our rest and relaxation begins to grow stronger and stronger. By the end of Shabbat we have almost left the physical world and spiritually we are very strong. Unfortunately, Shabbat then comes to an end and we have a sort of "crash" as we begin to adjust to the real world again. The Havdala Service, four simple blessings, over wine, over spices, over the light of a special candle and over the transition from holy time to secular time, we cushion our fall and prepare to begin another week.
Next week: Shabbat II - Work and Shabbat
November 3, 2003
Number 5764-5 Shabbat I - The Origins of Shabbat
The oldest holiday on the Hebrew Calendar is Shabbat. The Torah dates it from the seventh day of creation. On that day, G-d ceased creating and rested. The name "Shabbat" is one of those words that seem to have no history. We don’t find any word or any concept in the ancient world that is comparable to the Jewish Shabbat. All attempts to find a source for Shabbat in ancient writings has been futile.
Shabbat is also the only holiday mentioned in the Ten Commandments. The fourth commandment insists upon a day of rest for every member of the family, including the hired help and any working animals in the household. Shabbat therefore is linked to one of the most important moments in Jewish history, the Revelation at Mt. Sinai.
Shabbat is also linked to the future. The Sages of the Talmud taught that to experience Shabbat was to experience 1/60 th of the "World to Come." Our rest, therefore, is tied directly to future time, a time when the whole world, perhaps the whole universe will know the peace of Shabbat.
These three understandings of Shabbat are reflected in the three main services that we perform on Shabbat. Friday night is dedicated to Shabbat as the pinnacle of Creation. So we sing "Vayechulu HaShamaim, a quote directly from the creation story. On Shabbat morning, the service is dedicated to Revelation, and we sing, "V’Shamru B’nai Yisrael" that refers to Shabbat as a commandment of G-d. The Shabbat Mincha Service is dedicated to the end of days, When all the world will benefit from the rest we observe on Shabbat. Shabbat is the only day on the calendar where the Amida for Maariv, Shacharit and Mincha, are all different from each other. This too reflects the three themes, Creation, Revelation and the Final Redemption.
Shabbat has always been a difficult Mitzvah to perform. The Maccabees had to suspend Shabbat during their war with the Greek forces since the Greeks would wait to attack on Shabbat when the Jews would not fight. The Pagan Romans would laugh at the Jews who would not work seven days a week. To a pagan, work was the way one acquired power from the gods. The Roman’s could just not understand why the Jewish G-d would not have them work every day! Throughout the middle ages, Shabbat kept the Jewish people united. Achad HaAm, one of the great writers of the Emancipation noted, "more than the Jews have kept Shabbat, Shabbat has kept the Jews." Abraham Joshua Heschel, the great American philosopher, calls Shabbat a "Palace in Time" noting that all week long we work in the world of things, making things, changing things altering things, but on Shabbat we leave the world of space behind and choose to dwell in the realm of time.
In Judaism the whole week revolves around Shabbat. The days of the week do not have Hebrew names, they are only numbered as the first, second or third day before Shabbat. Some see Shabbat as the pinnacle of the week, with each day leading up to this highlight of our days. Others see Shabbat as a wave, with Wed, Thurs, and Friday as days leading up to Shabbat and Sun, Mon, and Tues as days that bring us down from Shabbat. The Psalm that is said on Wednesday is Psalm 94. We add to that Psalm on Wednesday the first few verses from Psalm 95, the Psalm that opens up the prayers of Kabbalat Shabbat on Friday night, calling attention to the fact that Wednesday is the swing day that leads us back to the heightened spirituality of Shabbat
While Shabbat starts with a great feast and with grand pageantry, over the 25 hours of Shabbat the physical aspects of the holiday begin to wane. The meals become more meager and the music becomes simpler. At the same time, the harried and hurried pace we start Shabbat with, slowly, over the 25 hours of the day, becomes slower and slower. The spirituality that thrives on our rest and relaxation begins to grow stronger and stronger. By the end of Shabbat we have almost left the physical world and spiritually we are very strong. Unfortunately, Shabbat then comes to an end and we have a sort of "crash" as we begin to adjust to the real world again. The Havdala Service, four simple blessings, over wine, over spices, over the light of a special candle and over the transition from holy time to secular time, we cushion our fall and prepare to begin another week.
Next week: Shabbat II - Work and Shabbat
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