We find ourselves in the year of the Sabbatical, the Rabbi’s Sabbatical. Just kidding, our Torah portion this week Parshat Mishpatim says, “Six years you shall sow your land and gather in its yield; but in the seventh you shall let it rest and lie fallow. Let the needy among your people eat of it, and what they leave let the wild beasts eat. You shall do the same with your vineyards and your olive groves.” Exodus 23: 10-11
This Parsha contains 53 of the 613 Mitzvot. One Mitzvah I found particularly fascinating was of the law of Shmitah, or also known as the sabbatical year. Every seventh year, God instructs the Israelites living in the land to stop harvesting it and let it rest. This is to give those who are less fortunate a chance to eat the fruit of the land without having to compete with wealthiest society members. It also allows the animals of the land a chance to eat their fill. Still the question remains why does G-d want to give the land a break? Our Chumash tells us “the land of Israel is seen as different from other lands. It is a sacred space, the appropriate place for a special people to live a special life. Just as a sacred people deserves Shabbat, so does the consecrated land.”
While we may not live in Israel we can take a lesson from this concept of Shmitah. Life during a pandemic is nonstop and we work twice as much as we used to because the boundaries of home and work have been so blurred it is hard to tell them apart. We must remember to give ourselves opportunities for our own personal Shmitah, our own sabbatical. It doesn’t have to be a full year, just a couple of days also works. By doing this it allows us to recharge and replenish ourselves with the motivation and drive we need to be the best versions of ourselves.
As we go into this Shabbat remember to treat yourselves every so often and rest when you need to. We are only as fresh and recharged as we allow ourselves to be.
Shabbat Shalom, Cantor Diamond
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CELEBRATIONS Mazel Tov to Allan and Adrienne Hausman on the engagement of their grandson, Caleb Hausman to Rachel Carlson.
My name is Samantha Kapitansky and I am raising money in memory of Dr. Andreula who recently passed away from lung cancer. I am about to become a bat-mitzvah; as part of this milestone event in my life, I participate in a "mitzvah project," some meaningful act of giving back to the community. Dr. A, as I and so many people referred to her, meant so much to me and she was the most beautiful, loving, caring person.
Click here to read the letter that I wrote to her family, which shows how much Dr. A. impacted me and how she will continue to live on in my heart. If you can make a donation in her memory, it would mean the world to me knowing I'm doing something to help others in her memory.
I'm raising money for American Lung Association and your contribution will make an impact, whether you donate $5 or $500. If you would like to make a donation, every little bit helps.
CONDOLENCES Our condolences to the Orbuch family on the passing of Janice Orbuch.
If anyone would like us to include a celebration or milestone in the weekly Shabbat Blast, feel free to send an email to: officestaff@cbohr.org.
Congregation Beth Ohr 2550 South Centre Avenue Bellmore NY 11710 (516) 781-3072 officestaff@cbohr.org
Affiliated with United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism