When Was Your Last Sabbath?

From The Pastor’s Desk—

Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 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, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servants, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 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 20:8-11

Since Jen and I were able to get away for a week of vacation, I’ve been thinking a lot about Sabbath. In the Fourth Commandment, listed above, we find instructions on the meaning and keeping of sabbath. But, like the other nine commandments, we have an awfully hard time keeping to such simple instructions. I want you to consider: when was the last time you took a day of sabbath?

Many of us would protest that the Sabbath comes each Sunday. And, given that we are religious people, we keep sabbath by attending church, perhaps by having a special Sunday dinner, or time of relaxation. As important as those observances are, they alone are not sabbath. If we look to the practice of our Jewish siblings, particularly of the Conservative or Orthodox traditions, Sabbath begins at sundown on Friday evening, and lasts until sundown on Saturday. It is most often celebrated with a shabbat meal, where candles are lit, prayers are recited, and bread is broken. No work is done during this period of time, at all, which can lead to some interesting workarounds. My first job as a chaplain was at the Miriam Hospital in Pawtucket, RI, and in deference to the predominantly Jewish community it served, on the sabbath elevators would stop at every floor. The simple act of pushing a button for the 4th floor was seen as work, and thus forbidden. So, the elevator would stop at each floor along the way, to ensure that people could get where they needed to go, without violating the commandment against work on the sabbath.

I ask again: when was the last time you took a day of sabbath? When was the last time you took a 24 hour period without attending to phone calls, emails, correspondence, errands, and the general busyness of life? As Jesus reminds us in Mark 2:27, the sabbath was made for humankind, and not humankind for the sabbath. This time away from work and responsibility was created for humanity, to enjoy rest and a time of relaxation and recuperation. And, as we see in the reading from Exodus, that grace is offered for everyone, even servants (the text actually reads: slaves), foreigners dwelling among you, even animals.

We live in a society that demands that we are always in motion, always working, always worrying. From 24 hour news cycles, to the onslaught of world events, to the summer visitors flocking to our town, it can seem impossible to find a time of rest. My prayer for each one of you is that this week, and in all the weeks to come, that you will find time -dedicated time- to enjoy sabbath. To remember that this world, and all in it, was created and called good. In the midst of all that is busy, may you find time for peace, and for thanksgiving.

—Pastor Jon