#havdala

[girlactionfigure]

[jewish-education]

Do you think it would be okay to celebrate Shabbat on a Thursday night instead of a Friday night? My job requires that I work all day and night on Fridays and weekends and by the time I get home it's often 1 am or 2 am but I really miss celebrating shabbat. I'm a lapsed Reform Jew trying to get back into Judaism in an area without many Jews. Being able to say the prayers, light the candles, sip the wine, eat some egg bread (nowhere to buy challah around me), and contemplate would be very nice.

I’m glad you’re looking for ways to connect with your Judaism, but like all questions of observance I can’t make the decision for you. However, I can give you a little background on why you might decide it is or isn’t okay. I can also throw in some alternative ideas. If you’ve got access to a Reform rabbi irl, it might help to reach out.@progressivejudaism is studying to be that Reform rabbi and I’m sure would be happy to help you think this through. ReformJudaism.org also takes questions and has rabbis that would (probably, I can’t read minds) love to talk about this with you. I’ll do my best to answer, but I’d really like you to talk with a Reform rabbi since my answer might read more liberal Conservative than Reform.

Traditionally speaking, Shabbat is Friday at sundown to Saturday at sundown. Period. The end. It also traditionally requires specific day-long observance in addition to the Friday night candles/challah/liquid-grape ritual.

However, since when have all Jews done everything the same way? Never.

You’re not the first person to consider moving Shabbat around. At times, German and American Jews have moved (or considered moving) Shabbat to Sundays. If you want to read more, here’s a scholarly article and here’s a shorter read covering similar information. Today, it’s considered pretty controversial to move Shabbat around, and it’s quite likely any rabbi will advise against it.

(Warning: in the following paragraphs I use “practice” as in ‘do something over and over again to learn’ and “practice” as in ‘observance.’ I tried subbing things out and this didn’t work. I’m sorry non-native English speakers and basically everyone)

Even without moving Shabbat around, you could certainly “practice” for Shabbat whenever you’ve got the time. Your evening off might be a great time to start figuring out what works for you and building your own Shabbat practices. 

Many Sunday school kids “practice” saying the Shabbat blessings over candles, wine, and challah. If you feel comfortable, you might choose to “practice” these blessings for learning. This could be little iffy from a traditional Jewish law perspective (especially if you already know the blessings), but I think it’s worth bringing up with a rabbi. A rabbi might also have ideas for when/how you could work these rituals around your busy Friday/Saturday work schedule.

But keeping Shabbat isn’t just the Friday night candles/challah/wine. There are many ways to keep Shabbat, some traditional and some not. There are lots of books on keeping a traditional Shabbat, both rules and why (but I don’t know of any written from a Reform perspective). Shabbat practices like eating good food, relaxing, studying Jewish texts, spending time with family/friends, and not doing “work” (as halachically defined) are 100% okay to try outside Shabbat. Your night off might be a time to play around and develop an observance for that someday when you can get Saturdays off.

Even if you can’t make Shabbat work out, I’d ask a rabbi about havdala. Havdala is a really beautiful ritual that marks the end of Shabbat. It’s traditionally performed after sundown on Saturday night, but I’ve heard at least once (but can’t seem to source this so maybe I’m wrong) that it can be celebrated late, even as late as Tuesday! I have personally found that havdala is less meaningful if I haven’t already marked that Shabbat as special in some way, but I still think it’s worth your consideration. If you (or anyone) ends up looking to learn how to say havdala blessings, Moishe House has a video.

If you’re in the U.S., there are some legal protections (Title VII of the Civil Rights Act) that might help you change your schedule to be more compatible with Shabbat. Depending on your job and how shifts are divvied up, it may or many not help. I’m not sure. A rabbi or an organization like the ACLU might know more.

[eshetjayil]

Shavúa Tov. "Así que la zona medía doscientos sesenta y cinco metros en cada lado y tenía un muro alrededor para separar lo santo de lo común." -‭‭Ezequiel‬ ‭42:20‬‬. #torah #havdala #shavuatov (en Corrientes, Argentina) https://www.instagram.com/p/BsjfdlRlZ6I/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1xvb41dwb585f

[yes-universal-world]

Blessing you and your loved ones

[hipernikao]

🍷 Shavua Tov uMevorach from Kosher Culture Foundation 🍷 🔥 with appreciation to Hashem for the wondrous world He's given us! with love, www.facebook.com/KosherCulture.org 🔥 ❤ Have a happy, healthy, successful, blessed, safe week, for Am Yisrael, Eretz Yisrael, Klal Yisrael & Ohavei Yisrael! ❤ שָׁבוּעַ טוֹב ♥ Gut Voch ♥ 良い週 ♥ Bonne Semaine ♥ хорошая неделя ♥ Uma boa semana para todos! [image via Harrington Events] #Havdala #havdalah #melavemalka #ILoveHashem #JewishObservance #JewishHolidays #JewishCulture #JewishLaw #JewishCustom #JewishTradition #KosherCultureFoundation #JewishGreeting #JewishPrayer #Hashem #LoveHashem #LoveTorah #ILoveTorah https://www.instagram.com/p/BqBUgjthuIk/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=hhc978z1001m

[jewish-education]

[thejewishlink]

Historic Siyum Sefer Torah in Times Square – CTEEN EVENT

A historic Torah completion ceremony in New York’s Times Square honored victims of the recent Parkland, FL shooting, following an emotional Havdalah by singer Yoni Z and rousing concert by rapper Nissim Black and Gad Elbaz.

CTeen made history with a inspirational Siyum Sefer Torah and concert in Times Square.

The moving and emotional havdalah was hosted by Yoni Z, with a special performance by Jewish Rapper Nissim Black, and surprise guest, superstar Gad Elbaz. The highlight of the event included a Siyum Sefer Torah, with Torah letters dedicated to CTeen shluchim, teens, as wells as the survivors of the Parkland shooting.

“The energy was palpable,” shared Sarah Salles of Cooper City, Florida. “Our lives were so closely affected by the shooting; knowing that we have our CTeen family to turn to in times like these makes all the difference.”

“I’ve never experience anything like this in my life!” shared Aby Singer, teen leader from Panama City, who was chosen to lead the crowd of over three thousand people in singing Shema Yisroel. “The energy was palpable.”

“Tonight’s event was a Kiddush Hashem and a Kiddush Lubavitch,” shared Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky, CTeen’s Chairman, who filled in the last letter of the Sefer Torah. “Tonight, CTeen took their outreach to a new level, and we expect it to continue growing from here.”

  Courtesy of Colive.com

Photos by Itzik Roytman

      Historic Siyum Sefer Torah in Times Square – CTEEN EVENT Historic Siyum Sefer Torah in Times Square - CTEEN EVENT A historic Torah completion ceremony in New York's Times Square honored victims of the recent Parkland, FL shooting, following an emotional Havdalah by singer 

[yoramkelmer]

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Havdala service in the big shul of Vienna led by Rav Eisenberg, shortly before slichot #havdala #ביתכנסת #שול #הבדלה #סליחות #slichot #wien #vienna #stadttempel (hier: Stadttempel)