The Sabbath: A Cornerstone of Judaism
When
examining some of the Ten Commandments, however, it is much more difficult to
perceive their profound significance. Belief in God and abstention from
unethical and immoral activity are certainly cornerstones of any religion;
however, they were not the only commandments etched into the stone tablets.
The
fourth commandment, that of observance of the Sabbath, is clearly neither a
fundamental belief nor a rule of ethical or moral conduct. The Sabbath is a
ritualistic institution, a commemoration of God's creation of the Universe. As
the Torah explicitly states, "For in six days God made the heavens and the
earth, the seas and all that is in them and He rested on the seventh day;
therefore, God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it."[1]
The question arises quite powerfully - why has a relatively insignificant rite
of commemoration been placed among the ranks of "thou shalt not kill"
and "thou shalt not steal" - laws of the utmost importance,
foundations upon which all of civilized society rests? The question of the
apparent overemphasis of the Sabbath's importance does not stop here. In Exodus
35:2 the Torah prescribes the most severe death penalty, that of stoning, for
the Sabbath violator. The Talmud states emphatically and unequivocally that
"anyone who willfully violates the Sabbath is considered to have
worshipped idolatry."[2]
These statements clearly contradict the commonly held opinion that the Sabbath
is a relatively unimportant ritual, a mere celebration of the birthday of the
Universe.[3]
In order to
resolve these difficulties, one's idea of the nature of the Sabbath must be
clarified considerably. On the Sabbath, it is true, we commemorate God's
creation of the Universe by refraining from all creative activity (melakha). In reality, however, the significance of the Sabbath extends much
further than a mere "commemoration."
On the Sabbath, we are given an
opportunity to approach the Universe in an entirely different manner than we
are accustomed to during the week. Sunday through Friday, we manipulate God's
creation in accordance with our wishes - changing things to better suit our
desires, improving things to better satisfy our needs, and creating things to
help us accomplish our tasks more efficiently. On the seventh day, we step back
from any creative involvement in the Universe and attempt to appreciate it
objectively - not as a tool for accomplishing our needs and desires, but as an
awesome manifestation of the infinite wisdom of the Creator. We contemplate the
perfection and grandeur of the Universe, and we are compelled to realize what
an insignificant component of it we truly are.[4]
Indeed, despite all of our thoughtfulness and creativity we remain helplessly
subject to the unchanging laws of the magnificent Universe of which we are but
a small part.[5]
Jewish law demands that we partake of three meals during the Sabbath so that we
are physically satisfied and emotionally prepared to enter the world of
abstract thought. The practices of lighting candles, bathing, and donning fine
clothing prior to the Sabbath all serve to emphasize the honorable nature of
the day's pursuits, and to create an atmosphere ideal for and conducive to
intellectual activity. In fact, according to the strict legislation of Jewish
law, one is required to refrain from any discussion that does not pertain to
the acquisition of knowledge or that may distract one from involvement in its
apprehension.[6]
On the Sabbath, we approach the Universe with our minds rather than our hands,
and we relax, free of the troubles of everyday life, to enjoy the most
delightful beauty we are capable of perceiving - the profound wisdom manifest in Nature. As the Psalmist states, "The heavens declare the glory of
God, and the firmament displays His handiwork."[7]
Our Sages teach us that human perfection and true happiness can be achieved
only through the acquisition of knowledge. In the words of Maimonides,
"when a person ponders His great and wondrous works and creations and
recognizes thereby His wisdom that is immeasurable and infinite he immediately
loves, praises, and extols and is filled with a great desire to know the
Supreme Being...And when he contemplates these things he is immediately drawn
back with great reverence, realizing that he is a tiny, insignificant,
unenlightened creature standing with his frail intellect before He Who is
perfect in knowledge."[8]
[9]
Similarly, he writes: "the commandment to love God requires that we
analyze and gain an understanding of His commandments, statements and actions
until we acquire true knowledge of Him and experience by way of this knowledge
the ultimate enjoyment...Thus I have explained that through contemplation you
will arrive at true knowledge and experience the aforementioned enjoyment, and
the love will of necessity follow."[10]
This concept is constantly reiterated throughout Scripture,[11]
[12]
the Talmud and the writings of later sages. In the Ethics of the Fathers we are
taught that "an ignorant person cannot be righteous."[13]
Our Sages believed wholeheartedly that the laws of the Torah were fashioned
purely for the purpose of guiding all of us toward true wisdom and
understanding.[14]
The Torah itself expresses this in Deuteronomy,[15]
"For this is your wisdom and your understanding in the eyes of the people,
who will hear all these statutes and say, surely this great people is a wise
and understanding nation."[16]
The Sabbath, a day set aside for thought, contemplation, and honest
appreciation of the wisdom inherent in the Universe, is the clearest expression
of our unique philosophic system in which the acquisition of knowledge is
viewed as the ultimate goal for mankind.[17]
Idolatry,
however, stands in absolute contradiction to this approach to the Universe. Faced
with the daunting grandeur of God's creation, the idolater is gripped with an
overpowering sense of helplessness and despair. As a child, he had been
sheltered and provided for by his parents. Even during the most difficult
times, he had been able to find comfort in the knowledge that his parents would
always be there for him - to feed him, clothe him, and protect him from all
harm. Now that he has attained maturity, the feeling of security which had
sustained him since childhood has been torn from him mercilessly. Peering out
at the vast Universe, he witnesses the wonders and the horrors of Nature:
life-giving rainfalls and destructive floods, plentiful harvests and widespread
famines, the miracle of birth and the mystery of death. The anxiety and feeling
of utter defenselessness before Mother Nature is too much for the primitive
individual to handle.
Thus, the idolater "creates", by way of his
imagination, myriads of forces, spirits, and deities whom he can manipulate to
fulfill his desires. Once again he is safe, shielded from harm by
"gods" who are greater than he and who regulate and direct the laws
of nature. Dominated by his physical needs and desires, he is compelled to deny
the absolute and unchanging system of the laws of Nature anytime that it
conflicts with his wishes. Imprisoned in shackles of self-centered emotion, he
is unable to perceive knowledge and to enjoy its beauty and profundity.
Whenever the idolater meets with difficulty in the satisfaction of his
instincts he appeals to his gods through prayer or sacrifice,[18]
begging them to assist him by causing the Universe to operate in accordance
with his will. With a little imagination the idolater has restored the peaceful
situation of his childhood.
Einstein, in observation of this phenomenon, wrote
"Now what are the feelings and needs that have led men to religious thought
and belief in the widest sense of the word?....With primitive man it is above
all fear that evokes religious notions - fear of hunger, wild beasts, sickness,
death. Since at this stage understanding of causal connections is usually
poorly developed, the human mind creates illusory beings more or less analogous
to itself on whose wills and actions these fearful happenings depend. Thus one
tries to secure the favor of these beings by carrying out actions and offering
sacrifices, which, according to the tradition handed down from generation to
generation...makes them well disposed toward a mortal."[19]
Sigmund Freud wrote along similar lines, "It can clearly be seen that
possession of these (religious) ideas protects him (the idolater) in two
directions -against the dangers of nature and Fate, and against the injuries
that threaten him from human society itself."[20]
The idolatrous personality cannot conceive of the Universe outside of the
framework of his own needs and desires. In his philosophy, the Universe's very
existence is only valuable in so far as it provides him with the tools to
pursue and satisfy his instincts. Thus, the concept of a Sabbath is utterly
alien to the primitive individual. In his mind, an attempt to relate to the
Universe with anything other than one's animalistic drives would be unheard of,
even objectionable. The base, sense-perception oriented philosophy of idolatry
is diametrically opposed to any system of thought which would produce a
Sabbath. A day for contemplation of abstract beauty and objective appreciation
of the Universe has no place in the lifestyle of the individual steeped in idol
worship.[21]
It now
becomes clear why the Sabbath is so essential to Judaism, as well as why
desecration of the Sabbath is considered by our Sages to be tantamount to idol
worship. Violation of the sanctity of the Sabbath is equivalent to a rejection
of the philosophic principles upon which it is founded; and it is the rejection
of these principles, as our Sages rightly observed, that constitutes the very
essence of idolatry.
Observance of the Sabbath clearly distinguishes Judaism, a
religion based on knowledge and created to facilitate intellectual perfection,
from the pagan religions, all of which were formed in attempts to provide false
security to primitive mankind. Belief in idolatrous religious principles is
truly destructive to human beings, causing them to deny reality, convincing
them to shun wisdom, breeding ignorance and demanding blind faith. For all
intents and purposes, the idolater conducts his life like an animal, obeying
his instincts and retarding his intellectual growth.
The Sabbath, on the other
hand, brings one who observes it properly the truest form of human happiness, that
which results from the acquisition of knowledge and understanding.[22]
[23]
It expresses quite clearly the unique philosophy and value system of Judaism.
In the poetic words of the Sabbath prayer service,[24]
"those who observe the Sabbath with joy will forever possess glory...those
who love its ideas have chosen true greatness."
[1]Exodus
20:11
[2]Tractate
Chullin 5a, as well as Maimonides' Laws
of the Sabbath 30:15, and numerous other places in the Talmud.
[3]The
Prophetic books abound with praise of the greatness and importance of the
Sabbath. For example, in Isaiah 58:13-14, we read "If you restrain your
foot because of the Sabbath, from pursuing your business on My holy day; if you
refer to the Sabbath as 'a delight', to the holy day of the Lord as
'honorable'; and you honor it, by not pursuing your business or speaking of
worthless matters, then you shall delight yourself in knowledge of the Lord;
and I will cause you to ride upon the high places of the earth..."
Statements like these are made quite frequently in the book of Isaiah as well
as in other books of the prophets.
[4]In
the words of King David (Psalms 8:4-5), "When I consider Your heavens, the
work of Your fingers, the moon and stars that You have established - what is
man that You should take notice of him?"
[5]This
is not meant to imply that Judaism rejects the concept of Divine Providence. On
the contrary,it is a fundamental tenet of Jewish philosophy that God extends a
measure of His Providence to individual human beings which is in proportion to
the degree of perfection which they have attained. As Psalms asserts (91:14),
"For he has yearned for Me and I will deliver him, I will elevate him
because he knows My name." Our Sages teach us that God's "name"
refers to His wisdom as it is expressed in His actions, i.e., the laws of
nature. (See Maimonides' Guide for the
Perplexed, Book One, Chapters 61-64,
where this topic is dealt with in its entirety, as well as the
commentaries of Rabbi Obadya Sforno and Ibn Ezra on Exodus 3:14-15 and 6:2-3
and the commentaries of Ibn Ezra and Radak on Zechariah 14:9.)
[6]Tractate
Shabbat 113a as well as Maimonides' Laws
of the Sabbath 24:4-5 and Shulchan Aruch, Mishnah Berurah and Tur Shulchan
Aruch Section 307.
[7]Psalms
19:2
[8]Maimonides,
Laws of the Fundamentals of the Torah, Chapter
II, Law II.
[9]Compare
Albert Einstein, "Everyone who is seriously involved in the pursuit of
science becomes convinced that a spirit is manifest in the laws of the
Universe, a spirit vastly superior to man and one in the face of which we with
our modest powers must feel humble."(Albert Einstein, The Human Side, Helen Dukas and Banesh Hoffman, p.33)
[10]Maimonides, Book of The Commandments, Positive
Commandment III.
[11]In
fact, two books of the Bible, Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, are devoted
exclusively to praise of the life guided by wisdom.
[12]Note
the statement of King Solomon (Proverbs 3:13-18), "Happy is the man who
finds wisdom, and the man who acquires understanding. For the value of it is
greater than the value of silver, and its gain than that of fine gold. She is
more precious than rubies, and all things you may desire are not to be compared
to her...Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. She is
a tree of life to those who hold fast to her; happy are those who rely upon
her."
[13]Ethics
of the Fathers, 2:5
[14]Maimonides
discusses this point at length in his Guide
for The Perplexed, as do Gersonides (see, for example, his introduction to
his commentary on the Bible and his comments on Genesis chapters 1-3), Rabbi
Obadya Sforno (see, for example, his introduction to his commentary on the
Bible and his comments on Genesis chapters 1-3, as well as his introduction to
his commentary on the Book of Ecclesiastes), Rabbi Abraham Ibn Ezra, the
Chinuch (see, for example, his explanation of the philosophic basis for the
commandment to fast on the Day of Atonement), the Meiri (see, for example, his
introduction to his commentary on the Talmud), Rabbi David Kimchi (also known
as the Radak; see, for example, his introduction to his commentary on the Bible
as well as his introduction to the Book of Joshua), Rav Saadiah Gaon, Rabbi
Bachya ibn Pekuda, Rabbi Joseph Albo, Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzato (refer, for
example, to his work entitled The Way of Wisdom), and many later
authorities.
[15]4:6
[16]Similarly,
the Psalmist declares (Psalms 19:8), "The ordinances of the Lord are
trustworthy, making the simple one wise."
[17]Compare
the words of King David (Psalms 92:1, 2 and 5-6), "A psalm, a song for the
Sabbath day. It is good to give thanks to the Lord, and to sing praise to Your
name, O Exalted One....For You have gladdened me through Your deeds, when I
perceive the works of Your hands I sing glad song. How great are Your deeds, O
Lord; exceedingly profound are Your thoughts."
[18]For
an explanation of the concepts of prayer and sacrifice in the highly
sophisticated and rational framework of Judaism,
see "The Role of the Sacrificial Service in Judaism" by this author.
[19]Albert
Einstein, Religion and Science, 1930.
Found in Ideas and Opinions.
[20]Sigmund
Freud, The Future of an Illusion, 1927.
[21]The
stark contrast between the world view of the idolater and that of the Jew is
the basis of the Talmudic adage (Tractate Kiddushin 40a), "Anyone who
accepts idolatry is considered to have rejected the entire Torah, and anyone
who rejects idolatry is considered to have accepted the entire Torah." Along
similar lines, Maimonides stated in his Guide
that "the principle objective of the Torah is the extirpation of
idolatry."
[22]Einstein
expressed his unconventionally religious love for and devotion to knowledge in
the following manner: "To know that what is impenetrable for us truly
exists and manifests itself as the highest wisdom and the most radiant beauty
whose gross forms alone are intelligible to our poor faculties , this
knowledge, this feeling...that is the core of the true religious sentiment. In
this sense....I rank myself among profoundly religious men."(Albert
Einstein, The Man and his Theories, Hilary
Cuny, P.149)
[23]Maimonides
writes (Laws of the Sabbath, 30:10),
"...This was the custom of the pious men of old on the Sabbath day: they
would pray the morning and additional service in the Synagogue, then return to
their houses to eat the afternoon meal; after this they would go to the House
of Study..until the afternoon service.." Similarly, the Jerusalem Talmud
states, "The Sabbath was given to the Jewish people only to provide them
with free time to engage in Torah study." See also the Meiri's
introduction to his commentary on the Talmud, the Sefer HaChinuch Mitzvah 31
and 32, Maimonides in his final letter to his son, the introduction of Abraham son of Maimonides
to his work The Guide for Worshipers of
God, the commentaries of Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra, Rabbi Obadya Sforno, Rabbi
David Kimchi and Gersonides on Genesis 2:3 and Exodus 20:8-11, the Shulchan
Aruch, Mishna Berurah and Tur Shulchan Aruch 290:2, and Midrash Tanchuma
Vayakhel.
