Holy Time
Apr 30th, 00:00
If you reflect back on what has been truly special, significant, and meaningful in your life, more likely than not you will select specific occasions instead of material things. No doubt that items themselves can be and are special: a wedding ring, a piece of artwork, an automobile, a photograph. But more than material things, what really invokes deep meaning and memory are remembrances of time. We recall birthdays, anniversaries, a time of great achievement, or a time of grief and loss. For us Jews, especially, time itself is made holy.The week’s Torah portion makes note that there is holy time for God as well, and thus holy time for us. For Jews, Shabbat and the Festivals are holy because we set them apart from other days to recall wonderful historic events either in the cosmos or specific to the Jewish people. But these days are not holy unless we make them holy. To make something holy takes intention and action. Shabbat does not become Shabbat unless we do something, such as light the candles, say the kiddush, or sit down to a meal with friends or family (or even go to Temple!).
Holiness is not something that happens all by itself. It is not a passive occurrence; rather it takes work and action on our part. But that is true with anything that we want to make special, significant, and meaningful. So much work goes into planning a bar or bat mitzvah, a wedding, sometimes even a funeral. We know that the more we put into something, the more we get out of it.
The same is true with respect to our achievements. Whether in school or at work, our sense of accomplishment is directly tied to our dedication and devotion to the task. Again, there is the notion of intention. We do not attain our goals by passively sitting on the sidelines. Goals can only be achieved by direct, purposeful action. And these times in our lives are made special and holy in retrospect because of such action. So whether it is Shabbat or a holiday, a special occasion or achievement, such times are made holy because we separate them out from other times. And indeed that is what holiness is and means: to make distinct, to make special, to separate out.
Tonight at Temple at 7:30 PM, we will have our fabulous Musical Shabbat Service. As always, the service will be carried live over the Internet at www.templebethtikvah.com (click on Live Services). Tomorrow, religious school and Torah Study as usual and our Shabbat morning service at 10 AM. Tomorrow’s service will be led by the 4th and 5th grade Hebrew school classes. On Sunday, I hope to see you out at the JCC in Irvine for the annual Israel Expo. Be sure to stop by the TBT booth to say hello.
