The men and women of the Bible held the Sabbath so dear that they made it the Fourth Commandment—placing it above the injunction against murder…
Judith Shulevitz, The Sabbath World
By the Rev. Barbara Mraz
When our rector and his family return from their sabbatical, we will hear all about it: the experiences, the adventures, the insights. They will also hear about what happened at St. John’s in their absence.
Here are some preliminary responses, preceded by a personal reflection on the challenging, persistent command to observe the Sabbath, even after summer ends.
Sabbatical and Sabbath
Both demand a break from the ordinary, the routine, the unnoticed, business as usual. The Scriptural mandate that the seventh day of the week “belongs to God,” has been replaced today by seeing Sunday as the last day of the weekend, perhaps interchangeable with Saturday. In fact, for many it often looks identical to Saturday, with the same tasks calling and the same schedule in place.
As Judith Shulevitz writes, “God stopped creating after six days to show us that what we create becomes meaningful only once we stop creating it and start remembering why it was worth creating in the first place. …We could let the world wind us up and set us to working like dolls that go until they fall over because they have no way of stopping. But that would make us less than human. We have to remember to stop, because we have to stop to remember.”
I admit I have been sloppy about Sundays. While I almost always go to church, from noon on can be catch-up time: laundry, grocery shopping, yard work, house stuff. My grandsons have soccer practice and games virtually seven days a week some times. Weekly “family dinners” must be scheduled weeks ahead.
How, then, to “keep the Sabbath”? Remember, Sabbath can be observed whether you live alone or with a family or any other group that gathers on a regular basis and on any day of the week.
The major idea is to start small, remembering that the larger culture will rarely support you in your efforts. Overall, Americans are no longer a Sabbath people.
Sabbath and Community
The writer quoted above says this about the collective aspect of the Sabbath: “The Sabbath can easily be reconfigured as a twelve-step program for forging community spirit.”
I think that has happened this summer. We are socializing more often, hearing more diverse ideas from the pulpit, and have had the Sunday pressure and intensity reduced. This, in spite of the fact that during eight days at the end of July, we had three funerals!
More opportunities to give your thoughts and reactions will be coming soon.
Reflections on the Summer So Far
“I have loved the women power in the pulpit and at the altar! I hope it continues!”
“I like having the altar closer and distribution of Communion standing up and the chance for new service music.”
“We have dined and coffeed informally more this summer — not with sabbatical intentions— but with church people whom we have gotten to know. Perhaps the encouragement of the Sabbath dinners has helped this, or maybe just because we have felt closer to people.”
“The sermons from non-clergy provided us with insight that we may view as outside of the norm; I enjoy them during Holy week and again now.”
“The Sabbatical dinners are a blast! We all seem to let our guard down and really talk about ourselves and REALLY listen to each other.”
“I like Susan’s calm demeanor during the services.”
“I never knew how many supply clergy we had at SJE; we are really blessed! “
“As an 8 o’clock regular, I heard from people preaching who I never met; it caused me to listen harder, reflect on why they should impact me. The new made me work harder; more discussions at home, as well. The biggest point for me – I realize how lazy I’ve become, going by rote. Now it’s more like: Wait? What was said? What was referenced? I don’t remember that Eucharistic prayer at 8. Who is this? Why is ‘Hallelujah’ being sung before that sermon? I’ve woken up these last two Sundays, to go back and read 2 Samuel again and beyond. Is it odd that I feel ‘bring it on’ is in order? I am looking forward to seriously attending adult formation in the fall. I’ve never committed to that before.”
“It has been good to think about Jered and his family getting this time away together. Being the center of a church must be exhausting physically and emotionally and I imagine that this time will rejuvenate their family. When there are glitches on Sundays, it makes me smile and realize that everyone at SJE is pitching in to make the sabbatical work. The glitches have not been a negative but a positive.”
“I have really enjoyed the visiting preachers and the whole sermon series. New perspectives and new topics to consider.”
“Highlights for me have been the sermon series and dinners.”
“I’m not sure if it’s summer or the sabbatical but I feel less attached to the church and that there’s a little less of Jesus or God orientation in my life. It’s more guided by the fun activities of summer. I miss the structure. The ‘breaking bread and sharing stories’ dinners [that] were part of the sabbatical, these were positive.”
“Sunday attendance has seemed really good! I liked knowing who was coming up as a preacher and reading a little about them in the service sheet.”
“I have seen God through the smiles and positive feedback from folks who hosted and attended the dinners and ice cream social. I think our parish has needed the encouragement to JUST BE WITH each other. So many folks express the desire to get to know others but don’t always know how to go about it. This was a way in for people.”
