Tag: Shabbat

The beauty of the light

(photo from flickr.com/photos/scazon)

The sky turns shades of orange and mauve as I glance outside my dining room window and notice the sun slipping behind the trees. The havoc and chatter in the house has peaked. I call my daughter to come and light the Shabbat candles with me. It’s time. Eighteen minutes before sunset.

We light the candles, nine for me, representing each of our family members, and one for her. We cover our eyes and circle the flames three times with our hands as we say the blessing that ushers in the holy Shabbat. “Baruch ata Adonai Eloheinu Melech HaOlam, asher kidshanu b’mitzvotav, v’tzeevanu l’hadlik ner shel Shabbat kodesh.” (“Blessed are you, G-d, our Master of the Universe, who has sanctified us with His mitzvah, and commanded us to light the candle of the holy Shabbat.”) Instantly, the chaos subsides and peace and serenity reign. It’s visceral, and a mystery to me how it occurs every Friday evening.

The Shabbat candles warm the atmosphere of the Shabbat table. Their soft glow draws us in. All week, we run from home to work and school, activities and errands that fill our days. Many of us do not share meals or spend time together at all!

Only on Shabbat do we have the opportunity to have precious moments with family and share meals, discuss our week’s events, share Torah thoughts and stories of the parashah, to enjoy each other’s presence as well as that of our Shabbat guests.

Shabbat, the seventh day of the week, is the gift that G-d has given us in order to reconnect with family and friends, and teach us, by His example, to rest as He did after creating our beautiful world for us in only six days. We reconnect with our G-dly souls and recharge our batteries for the busy week ahead. We pray at home and in a synagogue and get a special spiritual feeling as we connect to G-d and our community.

We also have Chanukah, an eight-day festival of lights, falling yearly on the 25th day in the winter month of Kislev. Chanukah recalls the Jews’ victory, with a small army, over the huge Greek army in the second century BCE. It also commemorates the miracle of the tiny bit of light, enough to burn for one day, which lasted for eight days, until the rededication of the Temple was possible after the struggle.

The Shabbat candles are placed inside our homes, while the Chanukah candles are placed so they can be seen from outside our homes. Why the difference?

On Shabbat, we are supposed to enjoy and benefit from the holy glow of the Shabbat candles as they shine over the beautifully set Shabbat table, with its white tablecloth and lavish settings. It is the main attraction for those fortunate to have a place around the table.

On Chanukah, we are forbidden to use the light of the menorah for any practical purpose. As the Chanukah candles melt, we are not supposed to do any housework at all. Only after they’ve melted, can we celebrate the miracle of the oil with food and games.

From this, we can extrapolate an essential difference between Shabbat and Chanukah. Shabbat is for us, the Jewish people; it nourishes and reinforces us weekly. Chanukah reaches beyond the warmth of the home to light up the darkness of the outside world. It reminds us not to be afraid, even in the harshest times. And Chanukah candles teach us to stand up and speak out for those who do not possess this strength. This feeds a pride that transcends ego. This is our proud Jewish heritage and our gift to the world.

As I polish my Shabbat candelabra, candlesticks and our family’s chanukiyah, I smile as memories of past Shabbatot and Chanukah celebrations mingle with anticipation. This year, Chanukah begins on the evening of Dec. 12 and continues until the 20th. Wishing you a very happy and festive Chanukah.

Esther Tauby is a local educator, writer and counselor.

The challah represents unity

Photos from the Vancouver Shabbos Project event Oct. 26. (photo by Lior Noyman)

photo - Participants collect their supplies
Participants collect their supplies. (photo by Lior Noyman)

On the night of Oct. 26, hundreds of Jewish community members came together at Vancouver Talmud Torah to bake challah and socialize in a welcoming atmosphere. The event was part of the Shabbos Project, a worldwide movement where Jews across the globe celebrates a Shabbat together.

Why challah for Shabbat?

Most challot are braided with either three or six strands of dough. In kabbalah, when we talk about the mundane and physical world with its limitations, we consider the (three) aspects of time, space and matter, and the six days of creation and the six directions in our three-dimensional world (north, south, west, east, up and down).

Throughout the week, we work to master our environment. We struggle with time – when is there ever enough? We are limited by space, and we attempt to control matter. We are preoccupied with succeeding in and dominating our physical world.

photo - The challah braid represents the unity of everything
The challah braid represents the unity of everything. (photo by Lior Noyman)

Shabbat arrives and it supersedes and gives meaning to all we do during the week. It brings us back to focus. Shabbat represents the soul and our inner self. It represents the G-dly, the infinite and the spiritual energy beyond the physical dimensions.

The challah braid represents the unity of everything. It ties all the physical properties of our lives to the divine.

Similarly, Shabbat uplifts time, space and matter and all the dimensions of the physical world. It brings everything and everyone together, reminding us of unity, peace and the purpose of creation.

Rabbi Shmulik Yeshayahu is director of the Ohel Ya’akov Community Kollel.

הקרב על השבת

(צילום: Dickelbers)

בית המשפט לזכויות האדם במחוז קוויבק קבע בפסק דין תקדימי, כי מעצב שיער יהודי ממונטריאול ששמו ריצ’רד זילברג, יכול לעבוד גם בשבתות כבקשתו. בית המשפט אף קבע לזילברג (בן החמישים וארבע) פיצויים בהיקף של 12,500 דולר.

זילברג שימש ספר שכיר במספרה סלון אורזן של איריס גריסי, שאף היא יהודייה, החל מחודש מאוקטובר 2011. זילברג עבד במספרה שישה ימים בשבוע כולל בשבת, שמתברר שהוא היום העמוס ביותר בשבוע.

במהלך חודש יולי 2012 גריסי הורתה לזילברג להפסיק לעבוד בשבתות, במסגרת מדיניות חדשה שלה שלא לאפשר לעובדיה היהודיים לעבוד ביום זה. גריסי אמרה לזילברג שלא לספר ללקוחות מדוע הוא הפסיק לעבוד בשבתות. זילברג חשב אחרת והוא כן סיפר ללקוחות שלו מדוע הוא אינו עובד עוד בשבתות, וזאת בשל היותו יהודי. גריסי שמעה על כך כחודש לאחר מכן מלקוח קבוע שהתלונן בפניה על כך מעצב השיער שלו לא עובד יותר בשבתות. הלקוח אף כעס עליה והתחיל לריב עימה. בשל כך גיריסי פיטרה מייד את זילברג והיא טענה אז כי הוא הפר את הסכם הסודיות שהיה לו עימה.

בצר לו פנה מעצב השיער היהודי תחילה לנציבות לזכויות האדם במונטריאול, שלאחר מכן פנתה בשמו לבית המשפט. זילברג אמר אז: “אני בן לעם היהודי ואני אוהב את האמונה שלי. אבל אני יכול לבחור איך אני רוצה לחיות את חיי”. גיריסי טענה מצידה בתגובה לטענותיו: “אני פשוט אינני יכולה להיות גזענית נגד זילברג כיוון שגם אני יהודייה. הסיבה לפיטורין שלו לא קשורה לטענתו כי אסרתי עליו לעבוד בשבתות, כי זה אינו נכון. אני פיטרתי אותו כי הוא לא היה אחראי והוא אף רב עם עובד אחר, בזמן שהם עבדו ביחד בשבתות. יש לזכור גם אני לפעמים עובדת בשבתות. אני לא מתכוונת לשלם לזילברג פיצויים, כיוון שאני מואשמת במשהו בטעות. אני לא אוותר ואלחם על כך גם בבית המשפט”. על טענותיה של הבוסית שלו לשעבר אמר זילברג בהחלטיות: “אולי איחרתי פעמיים לעבודה במשך עשרה חודשים, אך הרקע לפיטורים שלי ממש לא נעוץ בכך”. כיוון שגיריסי לא נענתה לדרישותיו של זילברג עד חודש אוקטובר 2015, התיק המשפטי הועבר לדיון בפני בית המשפט לזכויות האדם.

שופט בית המשפט, איוון נולן, קיבל את טענותיו של זילברג שבאיסור עליו לעבוד בשבתות גריסי פוגעת בזכויות החופש, המצפון והדת, כמו גם שמירה על כבודו וכן גם על הזיקה לכבד את חייו הפרטיים. מדובר גם על אפלייה על רקע דתי לעומת העובדים האחרים שאינם יהודים. כאמור השופט אף פסק פיצויים למעצב השיער בגובה של 12,500 דולר. חלוקת הפיצויים היא כדלקמן: 6,000 דולר עבור הנזק החומרני, 4,000 דולר עבור נזקים מוסריים ו-2,500 דולר עבור נזקי עונשים שנגרמו לו. יצויין שנציבות זכויות האדם שהגישה את התביעה מטעמו של זילברג, דרשה במקור פיצויים בהיקף של 20 אלף דולר. זילברג היה מאוכזב שסכום התביעה במלואו לא התקבל על ידי בית המשפט. אך מצד שני הוא ציין כי ההמתנה הארוכה בת החמש השנים להחלטתו של בית המשפט הייתה שווה. לדבריו בית המשפט קיבל את טענתו שאין לפגוע במה שהוא מאמין בו. הוא הוסיף: “בפילוסופיה היהודית אין מקום לאפלייה אפילו לעצמנו, אפילו בין יהודי ליהודי”. גריסי לא הגיבה עד כה לפסק הדין נגדה.

Share light of Shabbat

“We want to share Shabbat with those who are alone, or those who might have difficulty cooking for themselves. Plus, we want to help every Jew feel connected and part of the community,” said Rabbi Yechiel Baitelman of Chabad of Richmond, who started the Light of Shabbat program in 2011. “This is not tzedakah; it’s about making a connection with other Jews and helping them celebrate the mitzvah of Shabbos.”

With help from devoted community volunteers, full kosher Shabbat meals are cooked and delivered to those who are elderly, alone, recovering from illness, or homebound. Currently, deliveries are done every other week to about 10 people in Richmond. Each Shabbat box contains challah, grape juice and Shabbat candles, plus a meal of soup, salad, chicken, vegetables and dessert – all homemade. They even include a little card with the blessing for lighting candles, the Torah portion for the week and information about why Jews celebrate Shabbat.

“The boxes are personalized, depending on the needs of the recipient, so some boxes contain more than one meal,” said Grace Jampolsky, coordinator of the Light of Shabbat program. Chabad of Richmond has delivered 495 boxes to date.

“I like to bake the challah myself, but other volunteers make the soup, cook the chicken and vegetables, and bake the desserts,” added Jampolsky.

Richmond resident Courtenay Cohen and her friends, some of whom aren’t even Jewish, bake cookies, cakes and brownies for the Shabbat boxes. Cohen started volunteering a year or two ago. Asked why she recruited non-Jewish friends to help bake, Cohen said: “They’re very involved in their own religious community, but when I told them what I was doing, they wanted to help. It’s a great way to teach them about Judaism.”

Taking on a bigger role this year, Cohen now oversees the baking part of the Shabbat boxes. Not only does she bake, but she also helps pack the boxes and deliver some of them. “Delivering the boxes gives me a chance to visit elderly Jews and others in our community and make a person-to-person connection with them. It’s also a way to check in on them and make sure they’re living in safe and suitable conditions,” added Cohen. “Plus, they really love talking to young people.”

Pam, one of the Shabbat box recipients, said: “It’s fantastic! It’s very generous of Chabad to do this.” Pam said she especially likes when the kids decorate the boxes, and she enjoys the short visit with them. She said that, with the recent snow and an elevator that wasn’t working, she couldn’t leave her apartment for a week, so the Shabbat box was very helpful to have.

Rabbi Yeshurun Blumenfeld, along with his 6-year-old son and 4-year-old daughter, make volunteer deliveries of a Shabbat box to a couple in their 90s every other week. “Not only do I create an ongoing relationship with this couple, but it’s a way to teach my kids about the importance of doing mitzvahs,” said Blumenfeld, who added that promoting a mitzvah is a sanctification of G-d’s name.

Blumenfeld also shared a story of how, one day, when he was at a Richmond bakery buying challah for his family, he happened to bump into the wife of this elderly couple to whom he delivers a Shabbat box. She was shlepping a bunch of groceries, and he asked her how she was getting home. She told him she had called a taxi. He immediately said they should cancel the taxi, and he would drive her home himself. He said it was a very special moment for him, to make that connection with another Jew.

The Light of Shabbat program began in memory of Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg, shluchim who started the Chabad House in Mumbai, India – the couple was murdered by terrorists in 2008.

Supporting the Light of Shabbat program is a huge mitzvah on many levels. And, as there are a lot of seniors and others in Richmond who would appreciate a good Shabbat meal, Chabad of Richmond desperately wants to expand the program, but needs more donors, sponsors and volunteers to sustain it. Their goal is to substantially increase the number of meals they deliver every week. Each filled Shabbat box costs approximately $25 to $28. To donate to the program on an ongoing or one-time basis, contact Baitelman at 604-277-6427 or [email protected].

 

Celebrate Shabbat, Pesach

One look, and it’s clear – it’s springtime in Vancouver. It is no accident that Passover is celebrated at this time of year. (photo from Alex Kliner)

This year, Passover begins on Friday night, April 22, and continues through Saturday, April 30. The first seder is on Shabbat and the second is on Saturday evening. What is the significance of this?

Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon (Rambam or Maimonides) was born on the eve of Passover in 1135 in Cordoba, Spain. He writes that, on the night of the 15th of Nissan, it is a positive commandment of the Torah to relate the miracles that transpired with our forefathers in Egypt. For it is written, “Remember this day on which you went out of Egypt.” The meaning of “remember” here is similar to that which is written about Shabbat: “Remember the day of Shabbat.”

The Rambam explains, at the beginning of the Laws of Shabbat, that resting from labor on the seventh day is a positive commandment, for it is written, “On the seventh day you shall rest.” The fact that the Rambam begins the laws with the positive command indicates that the main aspect of Shabbat observance lies in the positive aspect. Shabbat is a weekly occurrence, when we take a break from our work and enjoy time with family and friends at home and in synagogue, as we focus on the spiritual aspects of the day.

By connecting the tale of the Exodus on 15 Nissan to the remembrance of Shabbat, the Rambam is indicating that, with regards to relating the events of the Exodus, the main aspect is the positive step of becoming free. So, the obligation to relate the story of the Exodus involves not only the recalling of our release from slavery, but the recounting of how we became free. The Haggadah adds that an individual is obligated to feel as if they themselves had just gone out of Egypt.

As Passover approaches, the Torah instructs us that this festival of liberation should always be celebrated in the spring – Chodesh Ha’aviv, the month of spring. It relates that, on the day of Rosh Chodesh Nissan (the head of the month of Nissan), two weeks before the deliverance from Egyptian enslavement, we received the first mitzvah: sanctification of the new moon, whereby the first day of each month is sanctified as Rosh Chodesh, in conjunction with the molad (rebirth) of the moon as it reappears as a narrow crescent.

Together with this came other details of our Jewish annual calendar. Our calendar is based on the lunar year (12 lunar months), coupled with an adjustment to the solar year by the insertion of an additional month every two or three years, making a leap year, consisting of 13 months, as we just marked with the months of Adar I and Adar II. In this way, the accumulated lag of the lunar year relative to the solar year, 11.5 days, is absorbed. This requirement and the necessity for Nissan to fall in the spring, the time of the Exodus, is vitally important, so all our other Jewish festivals also occur in their proper season; for example, that Sukkot takes place in autumn.

On Rosh Chodesh Nissan, G-d instructed us, the Jewish nation, about the Passover sacrifice and the laws of the festival of Pesach, which is also known as the Festival of our Liberation. This was deliverance from our physical slavery from ancient Egypt. However, given that the instructions in the Torah are eternal and valid at all times and wherever Jews live, in every generation, the Festival of our Liberation is also freedom in a spiritual sense; that we might be liberated from our limitations and leap over our everyday shackles.

How? By focusing our energy on our being free and thanking G-d for allowing us to be able to use our minds to release ourselves from any obstacles we may face. Also, by remembering that G-d loves us so much that He Himself redeemed us, not wanting to send any angels to do this precious job for His suffering children. Due to His great love for us, He took us out in the spring, when the weather was favorable.

This Passover, in the Lower Mainland, we are fortunate to be able to see the renewal in the earth, as trees and flowers bloom and fruits blossom, the rainy weather that we have endured for months changes to sunshine and baby birds and animals are born.

May we enjoy this special Passover, which begins and ends on Shabbat, with family, friends and guests at our seders, yom tov meals and synagogue or Chabad House attendance. May G-d grant us, as the Haggadah concludes, “Next Year in Yerushalayim,” with the imminent coming of Moshiach.

Wishing everyone a special Shabbat shalom and a kosher and happy Passover!

Esther Tauby is a local educator, writer and counselor. This article is based on talks that were given by the Lubavitcher Rebbe z”l.