Ten Minutes of Talmud #162: The Magic of Shabbat (part 4)—Rabbi Amy Scheinerman

Rav Chisda said that Mar Ukva said, “One who prays on Shabbat evening and recites Va-y’khulu (Genesis 2:1–3): the two ministering angels who accompany that person place their hands on [the person’s] head and say, And your iniquity has passed, and your sin has been atoned (Isaiah 6:7).” 

It was taught [in a baraita]: R. Yosei bar Yehudah says, “Two ministering angels accompany a person on Shabbat evening from the synagogue to their home: one good and one evil. If, when they reach home, they find a lamp burning and a table set and the bed made, the good angel says, ‘May it be Your will that it shall be like this for another Shabbat.’ And the evil angel answers against its will, ‘Amen.’ But if not [(i.e., if the home is not prepared for Shabbat] the evil angel says, ‘May it be Your will that it shall be so for another Shabbat,’ and the good angel answers against its will, ‘Amen.’”

INTRODUCTION

The past three editions of TMT have discussed a story-rich passage in tractate Shabbat: #159–the story of Yosef Who Cherishes Shabbat teaches that our investments in making shabbat a sacred and special time pay us back many times over; #160–the story of R. Yehoshua b. Chananiah’s conversation with the Roman emperor teaches a similar lesson, that observing shabbat as a holy day lends special flavor to our lives; #161–Rav Hamnuna expounds on Va-y’khulu (Genesis 2:1-3), the prelude to Kiddush on Friday evening, explaining that by reciting Va-y’khulu we can become God’s spiritual partner in the very creation of the universe. In this edition, we bring one final installment: two teachings that provide both inspiration and warning.

COMMENTARY

Rav Chisda shares an imaginative teaching he learned from Mar Ukva, the Exilarch of Babylonia, which follows logically on the tail of Rav Hamnuna’s exposition of reciting Va-y’khulu (see #161). Mar Ukva teaches that whose who go to synagogue to pray Kabbalat Shabbat and Ma’ariv on Erev Shabbat are accompanied home by two angels assigned to them by Heaven. The angels recite a verse from Isaiah that confers on them the blessing of God’s forgiveness. The story is exceptionally terse, but I imagine that Mar Ukva wishes to convey that our Friday evening prayers facilitate a review of our week (if we choose, the psalms of Kabbalat Shabbat, assembled in the 16th century, can serve to mirror not only the first week of Creation, but as a vehicle for each of us to review our personal week past). The Amidah in Ma’ariv always includes the opportunity for repentance. Our prayers at the beginning of shabbat thereby afford an opportunity to repent the mistakes or false steps we have made in the week ending and enter shabbat with a clear conscience and a clean slate. Angels may be understood as literary spiritual expressions of the manifestation of God in our lives. The shabbat angels convey the assurance that God accepts our repentance and forgives us, allowing us to enter shabbat whole. Every shabbat, therefore, can be like a mini-Rosh Hashanah, affording us the opportunity to repent and start anew. Our weekly celebration of Creation is a time for spiritual renewal and recreation. That’s a powerful spiritual gift, a  weekly reminder that we can alway change and improve.

R. Yosei bar Yehudah shares another teaching concerning the two angels that accompany a person home from synagogue on Friday evening. This teaching combines positive encouragement with warning. The two shabbat angels here have opposing, labels: “good” and “evil.” The labels do not reflect their natures so much as their roles as observers of our our lives. If, upon arriving home, the angels find our home prepared to welcome and celebrate shabbat, the “good” angel  affirms and the “bad” angel is compelled—against its will—to respond, “Amen.” This alone tells us that R. Yosei is not promoting a concept of angels as creatures or beings with agency. The point, I think, is a far subtler one about human nature.

We human beings are creatures of habit. However glorious and meritorious our intentions, we tend to do today what we did yesterday, last week, and last year. However fervently we wish to change our patterns of behavior, we find it exceedingly challenging to do so. (Consider how long new year’s resolutions last.) R. Yosei’s tale of the angels conveys this truth about human nature: whatever we did this shabbat is what we are most likely to do next shabbat. This, of course, is a double-edged sword. The angels warn us that if we don’t get it together to prepare for shabbat this week, it’s unlikely we will next week. But if we do prepare to celebrate and enjoy shabbat this week, we are likely to do so again next week—and the week after. R. Yosei encourages us to use this knowledge of human nature, of ourselves as creatures of habit, to our advantage and launch ourselves down the road we want to travel into the future.

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER AND DISCUSS

1. Do you consider yourself a “creature of habit?” How has that served to help you, or hold you back, in your life? What methods have you used to instill in yourself new, better habits that you wanted to take on?
2. There is no definitive list of activities necessary to prepare for shabbat, any more than there is a canonized menu for shabbat dinner Friday evening (however much some people claim otherwise). However, with some forethought and advanced planning, household chores that must be done some time (e.g., cleaning, laundry, cooking) can be scheduled around shabbat. Similarly, we can plan family favorites to eat on shabbat. How would that look in your home?
3. Would it help you to have an artistic depiction of the shabbat angels hanging in your home to encourage and remind you to prepare for shabbat?

Ten Minutes of Talmud #161: The Magic of Shabbat (part 3) — BT Shabbat 119b — Rabbi Amy Scheinerman

Rava said, and some say it was R. Yehoshua b. Levi: Even an individual who prays on Shabbat evening must recite: וַיְכֻלּוּ Va-y’khulu (“And the heavens and the earth were finished…”) (Genesis 2:1–3), as Rav Hamnuna said: Anyone who prays on Shabbat evening and recites Va-y’khulu, the verse ascribes to that person credit as if they became a partner with the Holy Blessed One in the act of Creation. As it is stated: וַיְכֻלּוּ Va-y’khulu (“And the heavens and the earth were finished”) (Genesis 2:1–3). Do not read וַיְכֻלּוּ (va-y’khulu) “were finished,” but rather וַיְכַלּוּ va-y’khalu “finished.” R. Elazar said: Whence [do we know] that speech is like action? As it is stated: By the word of Adonai the heavens were made, [and all their hosts by the breath of God’s mouth] (Psalm 33:6). 

INTRODUCTION

Kiddush, meaning “sanctification,” refers to prayers we recite to declare the holiness of shabbat and festivals. We generally use wine when reciting Kiddush because wine conveys joy, an attribute we associate with the holy day. There is a form of Kiddush for the eve of shabbat and another for daytime, which is recited after morning prayers prior to lunch. 

The version of Kiddush recited on Friday evening is prefaced with a biblical passage that includes the second half of Genesis 1:31 and Genesis 2:1–3. These verses characterize shabbat as the culmination and climax of Creation: There was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. The heaven and the earth were finished, and all their array. On the seventh day God finished the work that God had been doing, and ceased on the seventh day from all the work that God had done. And God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, because on it God ceased from all the work of creation that God had done. The first word of Genesis 2:1 is וַיְכֻלּוּ /Va-y’khulu and thus when the Rabbis say “Va-y’khulu,” they are speaking of the verses from Genesis just quoted. 

Friday evening Kiddush is followed by the one-line blessing over wine (…borei p’ri ha-gafen) because wine will soon be consumed, and then the paragraph that is, technically speaking, the Kiddush: the declaration of the sanctity of shabbat. (You can find all three parts, complete with translations, transliterations, recordings, and a downloadable version here.)

COMMENTARY

Either Rava or R. Yehoshua b. Levi taught that even when you are eating shabbat dinner alone on Friday evening, you are nonetheless obligated to recited Va-y’khulu, which would seem to be a prelude to, or “announcement” of, the Kiddush to follow for those assembled around your table. The first thing we might notice is that the Rabbis cite both sages when they are uncertain of the teaching’s source, providing as complete a pedigree for the opinion as possible, and giving credit where credit is due as best they can.

The reason one should recite Va-y’khulu even if eating alone is because, as Rav Hamnuna taught, doing so makes one not merely a creature in God’s universe, but a co-creator of the universe with God. How can a verse that says “they were finished,” referring to all the elements of Creation—including humans, who were created on the last day!—be understood to say that we are God’s co-creators? Rav Hamnuna supplies a clever reading of first word in Genesis 2:1. In the age of the Rabbis, Torah did not yet have written vowels. Vowels points were added by the Masoretic scholars in the 7th–8th centuries C.E. The lack of vowels in their day affords the Rabbis an interpretive opportunity; they  often suggest alternative vowels to the canonical reading, resulting in a beautiful midrashic interpretation. Here, Rav Hamnuna  asks us to read וַיְכֻלּוּ va-y’khulu /“[they] were finished” instead as וַיְכַלּוּ va-y’khalu /“[they] finished.” The contextual meaning of Genesis 2:1 is that by the end of the sixth day of Creation, heaven and earth and all their array were finished; God had completed the creation of the universe. Changing one vowel, Rav Hamnuna converts the passive verb “[they] were finished” to the active verb “[they] finished,” which thereby changes “heaven and earth” from the subject of the sentence to the object of the verb. The subject is still “they” but cannot refer to “heaven and earth.” It must be God and —?—. Rav Hamnuna’s innovative reading opens the door to include people who recite these verses on Friday evening to be included in the “they” that created the universe. Rav Hamnuna is fully aware of the order of creation described in Genesis chapter 1. He understands that humanity was created on the sixth day. His purpose is not to amend the text of Genesis, but to convey a powerful spiritual teaching: In observing shabbat, we become God’s spiritual partners and co-creators. 

Can merely reciting a few verses make us God’s co-creator? R. Elazar reminds us that speech is powerful and impactful. As Psalm 33:6 recalls, God created the universe with speech. Hence, our recitation of Va-y’khulu can create for us the spiritual the Sages sought to teach. 

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER AND DISCUSS

1. Do you think the Rabbis’ teaching is about our desire to be God’s partner, or God’s desire to partner with us?
2. Rav Hamnuna’s teaching encourages us to focus on the wonder of the universe and recognize how our lives have impacted the world in the past six days. How would you assess your impact on the world?
3. The midrash below suggests that if we read “God rested” to say that God’s rest was a creative act, then what was created was rest, ease, contentment, and quiet—by observing shabbat. Does shabbat infuse your life with these qualities? If not, how might your observance of shabbat do so?

R. Berekhiah teaches in the name of R. Yehudah b. Shimon teach that one could read, and [God] rested on the seventh day from all the work that [God] had done (Genesis 2:2) as implying that God’s act of resting was itself intended to make or create something. What did God’s resting create? Undisturbed rest, ease, contentment, and quiet. (Bereishit Rabbah 10:1)

TMT #160—Shabbat Culinary Magic (part 2)—BT Shabbat 119a—Rabbi Amy Scheinerman

The [Roman] emperor said to R. Yehoshua b. Chananiah, “Why is the fragrance of a cooked shabbat dish so wonderful?” [R. Yehoshua] said to [the emperor], “We have a particular spice called Shabbat that we add to [cooked dishes] and its fragrance wafts out.” [The emperor] said to him, “Give us some of it.” [R. Yehoshua] said to him, “It is effective for anyone who keeps shabbat, but it is ineffective for one who does not keep shabbat.” 

The Exilarch said to Rav Hamnuna, “What is the meaning of [the verse], [If you refrain from trampling the sabbath, from pursuing your affairs on My holy day, if you proclaim the sabbath a delight,] the holy one of Adonai is honored (Isaiah 58:13)?” [Rav Hamnuna] said to him, “That is Yom Kippur, on which there is neither eating nor drinking, and Torah said honor it with a clean garment.” And you shall honor it [the next word in Isaiah 58:13]—Rav said by making it earlier; and Shmuel said [by making it] later.  

The sons of Rav Pappa bar Abba said to Rav Pappa [their father], “Those like us who consume meat and wine every day, what can we do differently?” [Rav Pappa] said to them, “If you are accustomed to [eating] early, [eat] late. If you are accustomed to [eating] late, [eat] early.”

 

INTRODUCTION

As noted in TMT #159, shabbat is the spiritual-religious climax of the week because it commemorates Creation. We spend our days working to effect change in the world, but stop for rest and restoration, and devote ourselves to appreciating the world and meditating on our place in it.

COMMENTARY

Tradition holds that R. Yehoshua traveled to Rome as an emissary and negotiator for the Jewish people on several occasions and hence Talmud records numerous conversations between him and the Roman emperor. In this charming legend, the powerful Roman emperor asks the rabbi: What makes the food your people prepares for shabbat so amazingly delicious? What is your special spice? Today he might say: what is your secret sauce. R. Yehoshua responds that observing shabbat lends special “flavor” to everything that happens on that day: even food is tastier because keeping shabbat elevates the religious, spiritual, and emotional experience of eating. Sprinkling an herb from a jar cannot accomplish what observing shabbat can. This would have been a powerful and encouraging message for Jews on the periphery of Jewish life.

R. Yehoshua b. Chananiah’s conversation with the emperor is followed by Rav Hamnuna’s conversation with the Exilarch, the highest civil official in the Babylonian Jewish community (see TMT #157), concerning the meaning of Isaiah 58:13. The verse speaks of keeping shabbat as a holy day and then refers to “the holy one (i.e., holy day) of Adonai,”  which the Exilarch thinks alludes to another holy day. Rav Hamnuna identifies the “holy one (i.e., day)” as Yom Kippur because it is geared entirely to God and not to the delight of people. Yom Kippur is a day of complete fasting. Therefore, when  Isaiah 58:13 continues, “and you shall honor it,” Rav Hamnuna understands this to prescribe wearing clean clothes on Yom Kippur. In contrast, Rav and Shmuel, the two great rabbinic sages of their day, understand “and you shall honor it” to refer to shabbat (not Yom Kippur). Rav suggests it means we should change our normal schedule and eat shabbat dinner earlier than usual. Shmuel takes the opposite tack: eat shabbat dinner later than usual. The point is: we honor shabbat by doing things differently to mark the day as unique in the week.

The Sages taught that we should enjoy three complete meals on shabbat. That doesn’t sound extraordinary to us, but in the ancient world, most people ate only two meals a day. In addition, the rabbis encouraged people to indulge  in wine and better food in celebration of shabbat. The sons of Rav Pappa, the Exilarch, ask their father how they should fulfill “and you shall honor it,” given that the Exilarch’s family is wealth and likely sat down at a table laden with wine and fine food thrice daily. Rav Pappa conveys the recommendations of Rav and Shmuel, which we might have thought was advice intended for people who lack the means to indulge in delicacies on shabbat. The juxtaposition of this story with Rav and Shmuel’s interpretations of “and you shall honor it” suggests that for all of us, there are uncomplicated ways to set shabbat off from the rest of the week as special, regardless of our lifestyle or means.

The Sages taught that shabbat is a “taste of the world-to-come,” the messianic era—seasoned with the spiritual spice that is shabbat. The story of the spice that is shabbat, and Rav and Shmuel’s interpretation of “and you shall honor it” teach us that we hold the key: when we impart meaning to shabbat, magic happens in our lives.

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER AND DISCUSS

1. Many factors may contribute to determine how a meal tastes and how much we enjoy it, including who is present, venue, menu, and how the table is set and decorated. What factors enhance a meal for you? When it comes to shabbat dinner, what can your "shabbat spice curry" consist of?
2. If the special “spice” is observing shabbat as a holy day, why do you suppose R. Yehoshua b. Chananiah does not tell the emperor that the spice is available only to Jews?
3. Sweet-smelling spices are central to Havdalah, the prayers with which we bid goodbye to shabbat each week. They symbolize the sweetness of shabbat that we will miss for the coming six days. Can you come up with a selection of actual spices to cook with on shabbat by attributing symbolic meaning to each appropriate to what shabbat can mean to you?