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Sabbath
shabat, shabas, shabes [Hebrew, "rest"] - A day
of rest after a week of work; one of the oldest and most
enduring holy
days in the Jewish tradition.
The Sabbath is a commemoration of the day the Creator
rested after
the creation of the world. The Ten Commandments included a
command to
observe this day: "Six days you shall labor and do all your
work, but
the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you
shall not
do any work... For in six days the LORD made the heavens and
the earth,
the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the
seventh day.
Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it
holy." (Exodus
20: 9�11).
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The Sabbath begins on Friday evening and ends
on Saturday evening (Jewish calendar). Jews are completely
banned from
doing any work that would demonstrate their mastery of
nature, since the
Lord rested that day. Religious law names 39 different kinds
of work
that are forbidden during that time, most of which are
related to
agriculture and shepherding, influencing nature, such as
ploughing,
sowing, shearing sheep, as well as building things, lighting
fires and
writing.
In order not to break this ban on work unintentionally,
no
activities are allowed that are even similar to those that
are banned.
These include printing, drawing or turning electric lights
on and off.
In order to avoid some of the bans (such as moving things
out of the
house), Jewish communities were surrounded by a wire or
string (eruv),
which symbolically created one "household" encompassing the
entire
neighborhood or even town. In many Jews homes, a non-Jew
(shabes goy)
was hired during the Sabbath to do all the necessary
domestic work.
Before the Sabbath begins, Jews go to the mikva for
ritual baths.
The holy day begins with the lighting of two candles on
Friday, just
before sunset. They symbolize God's light and man's soul.
The women
light them and say a blessing over them, which is their most
important
religious obligation. It is believed that if they fail to do
this, they
are in danger of dying during childbirth. Men greet the
Sabbath in
synagogue. In very religious families, the women and
children wait for
them at home, or taking a walk outside in their Sabbath
finest.
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After the men come back home, there is a
special meal, which begins with Kidush. No one should be
hungry during
the Sabbath, which is why in many homes poor people or
students are
invited to share the meal. The most popular dishes in
Eastern Europe
were herring and challah, as well as stuffed fish, chopped
liver and
cymes. For Saturday dinner, chulent, stuffed chicken necks,
kishke and
kugel were served. On Saturday evening, the third Sabbath
meal was
eaten, seuda shlishit (suda), and Sabbath songs were sung
(zmirot).
Chasidim, in the belief that the Messiah would come on a
Saturday,
made the final meal and singing last late into the evening.
The holiday
ends with a special Sabbath blessing, Havdala [Hebrew,
separation],
which separates the period of the holiday from that of daily
life. A
blessing is said over light, wine and aromatic herbs, which
are placed
in besamin boxes. Two entwined candles are lit, symbolizing
holiness and
daily life.
(H.W./CM)
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