davidbu@loowit.wr.tek.com (David E. Buxton) (04/03/91)
Back in my college days, in the boys dorm, another engineering student and
friend of mine became engaged to be married. To listen to him you would
think that this was by far the most wonderful thing that could possibly
happen to any human being - it was something that absolutely every college
man must experience - being in love and engaged. He just could not contain
his exuberance about the subject. He was living way up there on cloud nine.
But there was one fly in his ointment that very clearly had him vocally
distressed - his poor roommate did not even have a girl friend. He just
could not imagine how anyone could go on living without being engaged to be
married - and here, right under his very own nose, was someone who did not
even have a girl friend. And so he set out with every means at his disposal
to get his roommate established with a girl friend.
That story illustrates my distress when people try to insist that God no
longer cares about the Sabbath day that Jesus created and would like us to
enjoy and remember for Him each week. Inspite of what the Mishna and other
works of man did to the Sabbath, it still shines through as God's day, the
day that Jesus created for man before the fall of Adam.
The rest of this is taken from an article by Clifford Goldstein, the editor
of "Shabbat Shalom", a magazine edited by Christians for Jews. Many of
the articles published in Goldstein's magazine are by Jews or Jewish Christians.
(No copyright was attached)
The Roman Emperor asked Rabbi Joshua Ben Hannania,
"Why is it that Sabbath dishes have such a fragrant scent?"
Rabbi Joshua Answered,
"We put in a certain spice called Sabbath."
The Emperor Said,
"Please give me some of that spice."
Rabbi Joshua Answered,
"It is effective only for those who keep the Sabbath"
(Shab. 119a).
The Rabbi was right. Only those; who enter into the joy, freedom, and the
experience of Shabbat can taste this exquisite spice. Everyone else, like
Emperor Hadrian, catches but whiffs of the Sabbath savor, a fragrance that
has suffused this weekly feast since it was first celebrated amid the fresh
crispness of the new creation.
Though the Sabbath has been derided as a legalist burden by those who don't
keep it, that's news to the Jews who do, for the Sabbath has been, is now,
and always will be -- a delight, the climax of the week, the peak of the
Jew's experience not only as a Jew but as a child of God. "To observe the
Sabbath," wrote Abraham Joshua Heschel, "is to celebrate the coronation of
day in the spiritual wonderland of time, the air of which we breathe when we
'call it a delight.'"
Since Sinai, the Jews have celebrated more than 150,000 Sabbaths--and,
despite some noticeable exceptions, the words of Isaiah 58:13 have formed
the universal spirit of each one of them: "Call the Sabbath a delight, the
holy of the Lord, honorable," The word translated "delight" is from the
Hebrew triliteral root take great delight," "to make merry over," as well as
the nouns "enjoyment," "pleasure," and "delight" -- all apt descriptions for
Sabbath observance.
The Jews have always regarded Shabbat as one of God's greatest gifts to
Israel. "The Holy One, blessed be He," says the Talmud (Shab. 10b), "said to
Moses, I have a precious gift in My treasure house, called the Sabbath, and
desire to give it to Israel; go and inform them." The Jews have looked upon
the Sabbath with such favor that the day has been called a foretaste of the
world to come.
Zionist essayist Ahad Ha-am, expressing the same slant but with less mysti-
cism, wrote, "One can say without exaggeration that more than Israel has
kept the Sabbath, the Sabbath has kept Israel. Had it not been for the Sab-
bath, which weekly restored to the people their 'soul' and weekly renewed
their spirit, the weekday afflictions would have pulled them farther and
farther downward until they sank to the lowest depths of materialism as well
as ethical and intellectual poverty."
Throughout centuries of persecution, the Jew found respite among the sacred
Sabbath hours. "The struggles of the Jew during the week," wrote Mendele
Moker Sefarim, "are but preparation for the finer things of Sabbath. This
is the all- pervading aim of his life and his dominating desire. To this
end, the Jew strives with his whole heart and soul; in this aim he finds
comfort and solace for his down-trodden and humiliated spirit. Then the Jew
sings to his bride, Sabbath, the traditional Hebrew melody 'Come, my
friend'; and the depression of his spirit passes away -- his will now is
submerged in the will of God."
The traditional Sabbath was always been a time of joyful rest. The atmo-
sphere at home and in the synagogue was bright, cheery, festive. Lights
were kindled, the tastiest food was prepared, the best garments worn. This
sense of joy, gladness, and praise to God were expressed by Isaac Moses in
his poem "The Sabbath Bride":
Now come thou blessed Sabbath bride,
Our joy, our comfort, and our pride;
All cares and sorrows bid thou cease
And fill our waiting hearts with peace.
Welcome, welcome, day of rest
Day of joy the Lord hath blessed.
The rabbis worked had to ensure the joy of Sabbath. They stressed that on
Sabbath the Jew should eat three, even four, special meals. Mourning and
fasting on Sabbath were forbidden, and only reluctantly did the rabbis allow
mourners to be comforted and the sick to be visited on Sabbath. The Jew
wasn't to voice distress, even in his prayers, because the Sabbath was
regarded as such a wonderful gift from God that nothing morbid was allowed
to intrude. Sabbath prayers were for peace, rest, sanctification, and
praise to God for "this ineffable bliss of the Sabbath." The rabbis espe-
cially encouraged marital relations on Friday night. Even a wife living
separately from her husband had the right to have relations with him on the
eve of the Sabbes.
Even today Shabbat is essentially a family affair. In modern life, the
weekly rush, the hustle and hassle, is transformed in the soothing, calm
menuah, or rest, of the Sabbath. The chaotic lights of television are
replaced by the gentle flicker of candles; instead of the blast of the
stereo, the sound of prayers and zemirot mix with the scents of Sabbath
meals.
The most essential Sabbath ingredients, however, are not the prayer books,
candles, or savory dishes, but the family itself. Father is not at work,
mother is not shopping, the children are not at school, and unlike any other
day of the week, work, shopping, and school are not allowed to intrude. The
home becomes a "mikdash me'at," a miniature sanctuary, in which the parents
are priests, the family table the altar, and the Sabbath a fence to protect
the sanctity of this private "temple in time."
Much preparation goes into "doing Shabbes." On Thursday, most shopping is
finished. Friday is spent cleaning, cooking, and baking, all in order to
welcome the most sacred of guests, the Sabbath queen. By the afternoon, the
house sparkles, mundane things are put away, the table is covered with a
white cloth decked with the shiny dishes special for the Sabbath meal.
The mother, symbol of the home, ushers in the Sabbath. Candles are lit,
blessing recited, prayers said: "Blessed are Thou, O Lord our God, King of
the universe, who hast sanctified us by Thy commandments and has granted us
Thy favor and given us Thy holy Sabbath as an inheritance." The best food
is eaten, and special songs are sung, like "M'nuchoh V'simchoh": DS L
Rest and rejoicing and light for the Jews!
Sabbath day, Sabbath, O day of delights!
All them that keep it so proudly declare
The world was created in six days and nights.
Sometimes the family goes to a late-night Sabbath service, but often the
time is simply spent at home, enjoying the rest that the Sabbath offers. On
the Sabbath day itself, the family attends services in the morning, and then
gathers for more meals. The afternoon is spent in various ways, depending
on the season. They go for walks, visit friends and relatives, and then
gather together for the third and final Sabbath meal. This time, however,
as the end of the Sabbath approaches and the weekday spirit begins to infil-
trate the home, the joy and relaxation of the other meals is not felt. The
songs are sung without enthusiasm. Because the Jew doesn't want to see the
Sabbath end, he prolongs the day until at least three stars are visible to
the naked eye before he ends the Sabbath with prayer.
that for the next 24 hours he is protected, immunized from hassles of the
world, to begin to appreciate what God has given to mankind in the Sabbath.
For six sevenths of his life, the world has a binding contract on him, his
time, thoughts, and energy; for one seventh, that contract is voided, and
this time is God's alone, to worship without interruptions, to acknowledge
in a special way that he is a created being and that God is his Creator.
We can read about Sabbath, talk about it, even study the theology behind it
-- yet not until we keep it can we understand the importance, the per-
tinence, and, perhaps most important, the joy of the Sabbath.
Oh holy Sabbath day draw near.
Thou art the source of bliss and cheer.
The first in God's creative thought,
The final aim of all He wrought.
Welcome, welcome, day of rest,
Day of joy the Lord hath blessed.
(From Shabbat Shalom April-June 1990)
There was no copyright.
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