Articles tagged with: shabbat
Shmini: Bribe Yourself
The Bribe
This scene has probably played out in every family home. You are going to a wedding and don’t want to be late. But your children couldn’t care less and take their merry time getting ready. At your wits end, you do what any desperate parent does; you offer a …
Vayakhel: Love
Shabbat on Saturday
Several weeks ago I was asked why it is necessary to observe Shabbat on Saturday. Suppose I was feeling particularly restful and holy on Tuesday, is there anything wrong with observing Shabbat on Tuesday? Can’t a vast and loving G-d tolerate a Jew that prefers to rest on …
Ki Tisa: Family
Two Subjects
The instruction to keep Shabbat appears in the Torah[1] immediately before the story of the golden Calf. On the face of it the two subjects are unrelated, Shabbat is a celebration of G-d and worship of the Golden Calf was an act of apostasy. Yet their juxtaposition must be …
The Festival and Shabbat
Sanctity and Joy
When a Jewish festival falls on Friday, it merges directly into Shabbat. This gives us pause as we reflect on the differences between the festival and Shabbat.
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Emor: Shabbos Rest AND Exhilaration
A Curious Phrase
The lyrics to a popular Jewish children’s song proclaim, “If I would have the might I would run into the night and I would cry SHABBOS, SHABBOS, SHABBOS, SHABBOS.” Shabbos means to rest, but running around and screaming Shabbos doesn’t sound overly restful to me. What is the …
B’har: Going on Holiday
Sabbatical
I love the Sabbath, I really do. It’s a twenty-four hour break from monotony. The tedium of routine that constitutes our week can wear us down. The Sabbath is like going on holiday. It rides in on Friday evening, like a knight in shining armor, to save us from ourselves.
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Mishpatim: Whom do You Serve?
One and Others
Have you ever noticed that the classic proclamation of Jewish faith, the call Hashem Echad – G-d is one, can be easily mispronounced as hashem Acher – another G-d? Rather than proclaiming our faith in a single – one and only – G-d we can inadvertently slide into …
Eikev: A Question of Emphasis
Shema and Shabbat
The Midrash in this week’s Parsha quotes an interesting argument between Rabbi Levi and the sages as to the primacy of mitzvot. Rabbi Levi felt that the recitation of Shema is the primary Mitzvah. The sages felt that observing the Shabbat is primary.
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