Shabbat has been described as Judaism’s gift to the world, framing the working week with time for prayer, contemplation, and community. Shabbat begins each Friday at sundown, continuing for 25 hours to nightfall on Saturday.
You can check the time for Shabbat where you live here.
Shabbat is the jewel in our week. Shabbat brings heaven and earth closer. Shabbat nourishes each one of us, and we can also deepen our relationships by being together in our homes and communities in peaceful and joyful encounter. Shabbat is the day in which we limit our outer activities so we can refresh our inner lives. Shabbat – 25 hours of reflection, of sacred moments, of joy and contemplation – is one of Judaism’s greatest gifts to the world.
As the 12th century medieval poet Yehuda HaLevi wrote in the song Yom Shabbaton:
“The day of rest should not be forgotten;
Its memory is like a fragrant aroma.
On it the dove finds rest
There shall rest exhausted ones.”
As Reform Jews, we celebrate Shabbat in different ways that are meaningful to us, to our community and the people around us.
In this essay by Rabbi Dr Jackie Tabick, Convener of the Reform Beit Din (court), we are offered a glimpse into how she has made personal choices to ensure Shabbat is a transformative space in time for her and her family. We also get a sense of the hard work this can involve if we are to truly claim we have made our own informed decisions about our Shabbat observance, and place that within a communal context. Read more here.