Why Shabbat?

In the fast-paced, hectic world we live in, why would any of us want to celebrate Shabbat? Do I really need more restrictions and demands on my life? I live by enough rules already.

This is what many of us think, or hear when it comes to sanctifying the seventh day and celebrating Shabbat. If we don't just ignore it altogether, we try to meet some minimum threshold that we've defined for ourselves and occasionally attend a Friday night service at the synagogue. But is that what Shabbat is really about? Is the same God who created the universe out of love and mercy determined to add to our anxiety with additional rules and obligations each week? I personally don't believe this. There has to be something more to Shabbat, which is said to have "sustained the Jews" throughout the millenia.

I often hear people, including my wife, say that we need a break, or just to get away. They are usually referring to a quick trip, or getaway. What they fail to understand is that this break from life's demands is exactly what the Shabbat is all about. It has been referred to as a "sanctuary in time" and is a period set aside for stepping back from the pressures of life, contemplating and finding harmony and communion with God and nature. It is a time of remembering what the world is suppose to be like instead of getting burdened by the way it seems to be today.

One of the best introductions to why we need Shabbat is by Rabbi Harold Kushner. I'm paraphrasing and highlighting here some of what he says in his book, "To Life."

According to Rabbi Kushner, there are two reasons given in Jewish tradition for why we celebrate Shabbat.

1) Shabbat is a symbol of our freedom from slavery. In the past, it was a matter of who owned your body, as in the case of the Israelite period of bondage in Egypt. Today, it's a matter of who owns your soul and time. Shabbat is a time set aside for yourself and your family. Rabbi Kushner points out that the first rule mentioned in the Torah, after the giving of the Ten Commandments, deals with granting slaves their freedom. He explains that this illustrates God's desire that humans be free to serve him and not a human master. He also suggests that we look at Shabbat not as a set of prohibitions, but as a right your are entitled to as a free person.

2) We are told that Shabbat is the anniversary of the completion of creation when God rested on the seventh day following his work. Rabbi Kushner says that Shabbat is about transcending our animal nature and letting our godly dimension emerge by refusing to be simply a beast of burden and not being defined by what we do. It's about taking stock of our lives, who we are and who we want to be.

There are two words used in the Bible to describe God's rest on the first Shabbat. They are not the usual words for rest and thus give us some insight into the purpose of Shabbat. The first means quite simply, "He ceased from his labors." The second means, "He got his soul back."
"We are commanded to rest on the seventh day first to demonstrate our freedom from slavery and second to get our souls back," says Rabbi Kushner.

He elaborates on what he calls the three dimensions of Shabbat.

1) Resting is defined as leaving the world alone and restraining from our impulse to change it.

2) Shabbat rest is defined as freedom from obligation. The rabbi's personal definition includes the removal of his watch on Friday night and not looking at it again until after sunset on Saturday. I have a similar practice myself.

3) It is a time of detaching ourselves for a day from all of our problems, concerns and that which we have not yet completed. Even prayers for justice, health and prosperity are eliminated on this day, as we try not to dwell on the lack of these concepts in our lives and instead to see the world as it's supposed to be, if we could only get it right.

When the Torah commands us not to kindle a fire on Shabbat, one commentator poetically takes this to mean the fires of anger and jealousy also. He says not to shout on Shabbat, argue, or get into fights. These violate the spirit of Shabbat as much as the physical act of lighting a fire.

Rabbi Kushner says that when asked by people how they can fill a spiritual void in their lives, or build a Jewish home, his first recommendation is the Friday night rituals of "Welcoming the Shabbat." "They work their magic even on people who are ordinarily not given to religious ritual," he says. We will explore who the Shabbat is we are welcoming in a future discussion. By the way, his two other suggestions are the habit of giving tzedaka, or charity and to cleanse your speech of obscenities and malicious gossip.

Overall, I believe this is a simple, yet complete introduction of Shabbat and the spirituality it can add to our lives. I'd like to hear your thoughts and how you "remember and observe" Shabbat in your home. One other point of Rabbi Kushner is that it is we who make Shabbat. If we don't do anything, Friday is no different than Thursday, or Wednesday.

Until next time....

Shmuel