Shabbos
Most non-Jews I know think of Shabbos law as a kind of privation. So many things you can't do, so you sit and be bored while thinking the Big Guy for 24 hours.
You can't turn any electronics on or off, you can't turn the stove on or off, you can't drive, you can't, you can't, you can't, you can't.
I think its the bit about electronics and driving that most people focus on. You're stuck at home with nothing to do.
A hundred years ago, Shabbos was a weekly party day. Farmers put down their plows or scythes, workmen put down their tools, Travelers found a friendly home to rest from their journey. Everyone pulled out whatever musical instrument they had or could make, and it was 24 hours of singing and dances and celebrating (which, by the way, is what Shabbos is supposed to be, a celebration). No one as really bothered by the things they couldn't do, because all those 'can't's did was give them a day off. What traveler, going by foot over hundreds of miles is going to complain about a law forcing him to rest for a day? What blacksmith putting in 12 hours a day over a hot forge is upset about needing to set aside his tools and sit? Since there were no cars, the law about traveling outside the boundary of the town walls was no real restriction.
Today, with a forty hour work week, few people desperately need the physical rest Shabbos once gave, and we're used to radio and tv and computer supplying our entertainment, not a gathering of friends. Visiting the next town over is a 2 minute drive, not a several hour journey. And so the laws that once made the Shabbos a day of rest and celebration now make it a day of restrictions.
Right?
Nope, Jews make good lawyers for a reason ;) We're interpreting the law from the day we turn 3 years old. Here's one example - non-Jews hear you can't turn electronics on or off and think that means you can't use electronics. Nope. All it means is I have to turn my computer on before sundown friday night, and leave it on until sundown saturday.
Can't start a fire on Shabbos means can't use the stove, right? My Ima would turn on a burner at low and put a tea pot or large kettle on. Tea was constantly available to anyone who wanted it, and when it was time to cook dinner? Move the tea kettle to the side and put a pot for pasta or corned beef over the burner. (personally, I tend to make the argument that since the pilot light is always on, I can't turn on any burner during Shabbos b/c I'm not lighting a fire, I"m adding fuel to one that is already burning ;D)
The only restriction that really can't be worked around one way or another is not driving (setting off hundreds of tiny explosions a minute definitely counts as lighting fires, I'm afraid). In some ways it can be frustrating. It would be nice to drive down to the park on Shabbos and enjoy the river. Or go visit friends the way people used to do before most friends were more then walking distance away. On the other hand, after a week of running errands, driving kids all over, keeping track of doctors appointments, etc . . . well, I love the idea of a day when I wake up in the morning and ask myself 'What do I have today, where do we have to go? It's Shabbos - Nothing! NoWhere!' No schedule to keep, no appointment ot make, just relax.
I really tend to keep the laws more 'in the breach then the observance' as the old saying goes. To many jobs that required me to work on Shabbos when I couldn't afford to be picky. To many times when the days flow one into the other and I forget that it is Shabbos until I've turned off the bathroom light or driven down to the store for some milk.
But I love the Shabbos, the idea of it, the meaning of it. While it can be a day of worship, it is really a gift. The Big Guy gave it to us and said, here, enjoy.
Whatever faith you keep, or if you eve keep a faith, whatever meaning this day may or may not have for you, that would be my wish for you. Here is a day we have all been given, to live, to love, to struggle, to rest, to make of what we will. Enjoy.
You can't turn any electronics on or off, you can't turn the stove on or off, you can't drive, you can't, you can't, you can't, you can't.
I think its the bit about electronics and driving that most people focus on. You're stuck at home with nothing to do.
A hundred years ago, Shabbos was a weekly party day. Farmers put down their plows or scythes, workmen put down their tools, Travelers found a friendly home to rest from their journey. Everyone pulled out whatever musical instrument they had or could make, and it was 24 hours of singing and dances and celebrating (which, by the way, is what Shabbos is supposed to be, a celebration). No one as really bothered by the things they couldn't do, because all those 'can't's did was give them a day off. What traveler, going by foot over hundreds of miles is going to complain about a law forcing him to rest for a day? What blacksmith putting in 12 hours a day over a hot forge is upset about needing to set aside his tools and sit? Since there were no cars, the law about traveling outside the boundary of the town walls was no real restriction.
Today, with a forty hour work week, few people desperately need the physical rest Shabbos once gave, and we're used to radio and tv and computer supplying our entertainment, not a gathering of friends. Visiting the next town over is a 2 minute drive, not a several hour journey. And so the laws that once made the Shabbos a day of rest and celebration now make it a day of restrictions.
Right?
Nope, Jews make good lawyers for a reason ;) We're interpreting the law from the day we turn 3 years old. Here's one example - non-Jews hear you can't turn electronics on or off and think that means you can't use electronics. Nope. All it means is I have to turn my computer on before sundown friday night, and leave it on until sundown saturday.
Can't start a fire on Shabbos means can't use the stove, right? My Ima would turn on a burner at low and put a tea pot or large kettle on. Tea was constantly available to anyone who wanted it, and when it was time to cook dinner? Move the tea kettle to the side and put a pot for pasta or corned beef over the burner. (personally, I tend to make the argument that since the pilot light is always on, I can't turn on any burner during Shabbos b/c I'm not lighting a fire, I"m adding fuel to one that is already burning ;D)
The only restriction that really can't be worked around one way or another is not driving (setting off hundreds of tiny explosions a minute definitely counts as lighting fires, I'm afraid). In some ways it can be frustrating. It would be nice to drive down to the park on Shabbos and enjoy the river. Or go visit friends the way people used to do before most friends were more then walking distance away. On the other hand, after a week of running errands, driving kids all over, keeping track of doctors appointments, etc . . . well, I love the idea of a day when I wake up in the morning and ask myself 'What do I have today, where do we have to go? It's Shabbos - Nothing! NoWhere!' No schedule to keep, no appointment ot make, just relax.
I really tend to keep the laws more 'in the breach then the observance' as the old saying goes. To many jobs that required me to work on Shabbos when I couldn't afford to be picky. To many times when the days flow one into the other and I forget that it is Shabbos until I've turned off the bathroom light or driven down to the store for some milk.
But I love the Shabbos, the idea of it, the meaning of it. While it can be a day of worship, it is really a gift. The Big Guy gave it to us and said, here, enjoy.
Whatever faith you keep, or if you eve keep a faith, whatever meaning this day may or may not have for you, that would be my wish for you. Here is a day we have all been given, to live, to love, to struggle, to rest, to make of what we will. Enjoy.