Dear Friends,
There is a great animated cartoon about Shabbat that was made by a company in Israel. It depicts a very busy day in Manhattan, a lot of noise and a lot of traffic, and you see a policeman in the middle of all this traffic, but he doesn’t have a face—he has a whistle in place of his head. And then you see many people walking down the street, but nobody has a face -- one fellow has a computer monitor for a head, another has a pen for a head, and another has a wrench for a head -- it is a faceless world.
You see, everyone has become their job. They are no longer people with jobs, they are jobs. The cartoon goes on to depict a feeling of stress on the street and every few moments you see a clock that is ticking towards some set time.
One fellow, who has an attaché case for a head, is shown walking quickly towards home. When he finally reaches his house, he enters, sits down on a comfortable couch, and an alarm clock rings. At that moment his attaché case head melts into a radiant smiling face and he joyfully says: “Shabbat Shalom”!
You know, that famous Shabbat song called Lecha Dodi, we sing the words “Pinie Shabbes – let’s greet the face of Shabbat.”
What does it mean to “receive the face of Shabbat?
One answer is this: During the week my face was a briefcase, or a wrench, or computer, but tonight, because we celebrate Shabbat, we acquire a new face, “a Shabbat facelift,” a face that reflects serenity, holiness and love.
There’s no greater gift you can give yourself, a gift you will never forget...no better way to express our faith than by embracing the gift called… Shabbat!
Shabbat Shalom!
Rabbi Fishel & Ettie Zaklos