Against Idolatry: Observing Shabbat

Yet this "not doing" leads almost inexorably to a "doing" of Judaism. In The Seven Colors of the Rainbow: Torah Ethics for Non-Jews by Rabbi Yirmeyahu Bindman, "Non-Jews may not make a new religion or invent religious events for themselves, not even based on the Seven Laws." Taking this interpretation to heart leaves the non-Jew one of two choices: relate to HaShem in a singular and rather lonely way, without ritual celebration or fellowship, or adopt the festivals and rituals of Judaism in a way that is appropriate for a non-Jew. To me, the choice was easy. I'm sure there are people who can isolate themselves and commune quietly with the Holy One. I'm not one of them. In spite of my introverted nature — or maybe because of it — I see religion as an activity that makes the most sense and is most fulfilling when practiced communally. If you take away the liturgical calendar and the public rituals of my childhood, you have to expect something to replace it. And the only something that works is Judaism — with its sabbath, its festivals, and its daily prayers.

I'm not alone. Many inquirers and Netzarim geyrim feel compelled to begin organizing their lives around the Jewish calendar. This is a good and natural impulse. How you go about doing so depends on your current skills (especially viz. Hebrew), your family life, and your work situation. But everybody can do something. And everybody can do a little bit more today than they did yesterday.

To begin, look at how you might begin to organize your life around shabbat. (In succeeding segments, we'll look at festivals and daily prayers). Before you begin, you should know that there is a potential conflict between the Netzarim position and that of mainstream Orthodox rabbis. Netzarim geyrim, having taken on observance of the Sheva Mitzvot, are expected to move toward comprehensive observance of Torah. This includes observing the mitzvot related to shabbat. At the same time, all Orthodox rabbis that I know of will tell you that the non-Jew should not observe shabbat as a Jew. As a practical matter, this potential conflict need not tie you up in knots. Orthodox halakhah does not prevent non-Jews from observing shabbat — only from observing it in the way that a Jew observes it. In fact, there is learned opinion that non-Jews should orient themselves to shabbat, even as they avoid observing it as a Jew. What this means to rabbis varies, but most will probably be satisfied that you are not observing shabbat if you keep all of the shabbat mitzvot except one.

With that being said, you can set out to orient yourself to shabbat. Unless you're coming from a sabbatarian background — and perhaps even if you do — this will represent a huge change for yourself, your family, and your co-workers. Take it easy at first. Make small changes. Get yourself and those around you used to the change — if you can. Make it part of your family tradition. And then move on to the next phase. If your spouse and children are in this with you, you'll be able to move along more quickly. Some of the changes — lighting candles, making kiddush, establishing regular shabbat meals — will feel instantly rewarding. Other changes — trying to prepare meals within the contraints of halakhah, learning prayers when you don't know Hebrew -- may be more challenging, even frustrating. Some changes — when the people around you aren't cooperative or don't understand what you're doing — will be hair-raising. Do what you can. Because my wife has chosen to continue to attend the church of her childhood, I cannot do as much at home as I would like. On the other hand, I had enough clout where I work to refuse, to the consternation of my boss, to work on shabbat anymore. Some of you will be able to move, initially, on the homefront faster than you can on the workfront. The idea — as you will discover from any beyt knesset worth its salt -- is not to be perfect all at once but to make steady progress and to continually "raise your level of kosher." This is a beautiful concept that I see in action at the beyt knesset I attend on shabbat. Going to a beyt knesset on shabbat is not something new geyrim should do right away. To avoid the pitfalls, you need to do quite a bit of preparation first. But it's well worth the wait. — KENNETH GUENTERT

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Copyright © 2004, Schueller House. Revised - 03/18/07

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