Sabbath rest...

The wisdom and value of honoring the Sabbath is time-tested.  Rabbi Heschel says: "It must always be remembered that the Sabbath is not an occasion for diversion or frivolity; not a day to shoot fireworks or to turn somersaults, but an opportunity to mend our tattered lives; to collect rather than to dissipate time."  Most Fridays are my Sabbath ~ a time to rest and walk ~ read and go inward.  It is a gentle way to practice a commitment to "slow living." Again, the Rabbi rings true:

To the biblical mind menuha is the same as happiness and stillness, as peace and harmony. The word with which Job described the state after life he was longing for is derived from the same root as menuha. It is the state wherein man lies still, wherein the wicked cease from troubling and the weary are at rest. It is the state in which there is no strife and no fighting, no fear and no distrust. The essence of good life is menuha. “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want, He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; He leadeth me beside still waters” (the waters of munuhot). In later times menuha became a synonym for the life in the world to come, for eternal life. The solution of mankind’s most vexing problem will not be found in renouncing technical civilization, but in attaining some degree of independence of it.

It seems that this is what Wendell Berry was pointing to in one of his Sabbath poems: 

Whatever is foreseen in joy

Must be lived out from day to day.

Vision held open in the dark

By our ten thousand days of work.

Harvest will fill the barn; for that

The hand must ache, the face must sweat.

And yet no leaf or grain is filled

By work of ours; the field is tilled

And left to grace. That we may reap,

Great work is done while we’re asleep.

When we work well, a Sabbath mood

Rests on our day, and finds it good.

Once I mentioned to my church leaders that I generally don't answer the phone ~ and much later, emails ~ on my Sabbath - and one woman became enraged.  "How selfish and un-Christlike" she scolded, "What if someone NEEDED you?!?" I replied, "Well, if they REALLY needed me I would go because that would be the right thing to do... but most of the NEEDS that are shared with me ~ on the Sabbath or at other times ~ are more like wants or even obsessions... so at least once a week I have to let them go and trust that God is God."  She was neither satisfied or amused.

It made me think of the old story of the cranky business executive who was complaining that the pastor hadn't returned his phone call.  "I was honoring the Sabbath.. it was my day off" the pastor explained.  To which the rich young man said, "Well, Satan NEVER takes a day off and you should always be available."  The pastor smiled and said, "That is probably true that Satan never takes a day off, and I'll be just like him if I skip my Sabbath." 

Amy Julia Becker observes:

Sabbath-keeping not only offers a day of rest, a rhythm that frees us from the incessant demands of technology and productivity. Sabbath-keeping also provides us with a chance to see ourselves as integrated parts of a community. According to Marva Dawn, “the Jews’ original intention was to be deliberate about their actions in order to recover their identity as the beloved, holy people of God.” Christians gather to worship God on Sundays. We also gather to remember who we are as disciples of Christ, sent forth into the world for the remainder of the week to minister to others. Moreover, the Sabbath is about other people: In our rest, we allow others to rest. We cease from making demands of others — the demand of returning a phone call or serving a meal in a restaurant. (read the rest of her article @ blog.christianitytoday.com/women/2010/11/secular_people_need_sabbaths_t.html)

The Sabbath Manifesto aims to reinterpret the ancient Jewish tradition of resting on the Sabbath in a way that is relevant for modern life. Based on ten principles, it has been created by a small group of Jewish artists, writers, filmmakers and media professionals in the US. The ten principles are:

1. Avoid technology
2. Connect with loved ones
3. Nurture your health
4. Get outside
5. Avoid commerce
6. Light candles
7. Drink wine
8. Eat bread
9. Find silence
10. Give back
(check it out @ http://jorgandolif.com/think/slow-living-the-sabbath-manifesto/)

A deep truth that the secular mind always fails to grasp is the conclusion of Heschel's quote: The solution of mankind’s (sic) most vexing problem will not be found in renouncing technical civilization, but in attaining some degree of independence of it.  So how do YOU honor the Sabbath - how do you give your soul space to be repaired - how do you practice unplugging from the madness?

It must always be remembered that the Sabbath is not an occasion for diversion or frivolity; not a day to shoot fireworks or to turn somersaults, but an opportunity to mend our tattered lives; to collect rather than to dissipate time.

(This has always been one of my favorite Sabbath tunes ~ from the time I was a child ~ until now...)