
Shabbat:
a Hebrew word meaning "to interrupt work".
It is the Hebrew name for Saturday, the seventh and last day of the week.
Devout Jews abstain from work and pray to celebrate the Creation of the world completed by God on that day.
Here's a good idea, don't you think?
Interrupt work, to refrain from work.
Now, the idea of "celebrating the creation of the world completed by god that day" could appear to many as a pretty tale that might be more difficult to digest.
And yet.
During these days of COVID-19, the world literally stopped in its frantic race to produce.
A tiny microbe declared a universal "Shabbat" by forcing the greatest number to stop their work as usual.
It forced them to replace it with new forms.
I am aware that consequences vary for everyone.
But this is not my purpose.
I mean that we are creating a new world right now.
Because we still have the choice to take part in Creation, through each of our decisions, one day at a time, one minute at a time.
In Judaism, the Shabbat holds a central place.
It contains the idea of absolute freedom, and complete harmony between Man and Nature, between Man and Man.
It expresses the metaphysical idea of Man's victory over Time, sadness, and death.
When I wish you a Shabbat Shalom (a "Shabbat of peace" or "Peace of the Shabbat"), I am wishing you a complete harmony between you and the world you are in at that moment.
I am wishing for you to experience the peace, serenity or tranquility of your heart as a full experience.
You don't have to be a believer in God or anything to live this moment.
This is what I wish you all, if only for a moment, a moment of eternity. Shabbat shalom !!