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K’dushat HaYom - The Holiness of the Sabbath Day

By R. YK 

Introduction

One of the sections of prayer from the Shabbat Amidah that profoundly affects me is K'dushat HaYom - The Holiness of the [Sabbath] Day. This section of the Shabbat Amidah teaches us not only to zakor (remember) and shamor (keep) the Shabbat but also reminds us of the benefits of remembering and keeping the Shabbat. The particular verse of K'dushat HaYom that literally touches me weekly in a profound and meaningful way is "V' taher li'beynu l'ahv'd'chah be'emet. - And make our hearts pure to serve you in truth. The purpose of this paper is to analyze K'dushat HaYom and to expound upon my personal response to this prayer.

The History of K'dushat HaYom

K'dushat HaYom can be seen as presenting a practical theological framework for Shabbat. One of the earliest references to this prayer is found in the Talmud in Tanhuma Va'yayra 1: " There are eighteen (blessings) we pray every day, but they are not entirely of praise of the Holy One, blessed be He. Only the first three and last three are; twelve blessings consist of requests. Therefore they are not recited in the Shabbat Sh'money Esray, for if someone has an ill (relative) at home, he is remembered in the blessing "heal the sick people of Israel," and [the one praying] is troubled. But Shabbat is given to Israel for holiness, pleasure and rest, and not for distress. Therefore, we recite the first three b'rachot and last three, and speak of rest [Shabbat] in the middle." (1)

Rabbi Lawrence Hoffman in his book Shabbat Morning Shacharit and Musaf which is Volume 10 in the My People's Prayer Book series points out that K'dushat HaYom  "entered the liturgy relatively late. Even in the tenth century, though widespread, it was by no means universal." (2) The inclusion of this prayer in the Shabbat Amidah was widely debated among the rabbis including Rashi (1040- 1105), and his grandson Rabbeinu Tam (1100-1171). Rashi challenged the inclusion of this prayer while Rabeinu Tam leapt to its defense. Unlike the other "prayer book" traditions of his time, Maimonides (1135-1204) includes K'dushat HaYom in the Shabbat Musaf Amidah. (3) Over time, K'dushat HaYom was included in the Shabbat liturgy of the major prayer traditions.

Basic Structure and Major Themes of K'dushat HaYom

K'dushat HaYom consists of four stanzas. Each stanza can be characterized as a mini- Midrash on a specific Scripture and / or Biblical principle that relates to Shabbat.

The basic themes that are presented in K'dushat HaYom are the following:

  1. Zakor - Remember: Shabbat is God's matanah (gift), which He chose to specifically give to the Jewish people. Furthermore He gave this unique matanah to the children of Yisrael through the hand of Moshe on Mount Sinai.
  2. Shamor - Safeguard: Shabbat is an eternal covenant between God and Yisrael. The children of Yisrael should preserve the memory of this sacred covenant by keeping and honoring Shabbat.
  3. La'asot - do or observe: The Jewish people will derive the full benefit of God's holy Shabbat by observing or doing all the mitzvot associated with Shabbat.
  4. Oneg - delight: One who delights in Shabbat will find himself refreshed and renewed in his body, soul, mind, and spirit.
  5. Kedushah - Holiness: Shabbat is unlike any other day of the week. God separated Shabbat from the other days of the week by sanctifying it at the time of Creation. "The notion of Shabbat being the only sanctified day is explicit in the first creation story (Gen. 2:3), suggesting that it is God's favorite day, even though this idea of favoritism is never explicit in the Bible" (4) This idea of Shabbat as God's favorite day is alluded to in Targum Yerushalami. (5) Since HaShem has sanctified Shabbat, it is incumbent upon the Children of Yisrael to do likewise.

Analysis and Commentary

Stanza One - Yismach Moshe (Moses rejoiced): The principal pasukim (verses) alluded to in stanza one are Shemot 32:15-16:

" 15 Moshe turned and came down from the mountain bearing the two Tablets of the testimony in his hand, Tablets inscribed (so that the letters could be miraculously read) from both their sides. They were inscribed on both sides. 16 The Tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the Tablets."

This stanza affirms the Divine origin and Authorship of the commandment to observe the Shabbat as well as God's choice of Moshe, His faithful servant, to be the one to transmit the gift of the Torah and Shabbat to the children of Yisrael. (6)

There are several opinions given as to why Moshe rejoiced. The main opinion being that Moshe rejoiced because, as mentioned above, "God considered him [Moshe] to be a faithful servant [Numbers 12:7], and that, in reward for Moses' dedication, God chose him to receive the tablets of the Ten Commandments which included the mitzvah of the Sabbath." (7) Alyssa Gray‘s quote of Abudarhum (14th century Spain) gives additional insight as to the source of Moshe's joy. " Moses will be pleased recollects the fact that Shabbat is a "gift" that God gave via Moses to the Jewish people." (8) This stanza subtly emphasizes the concept that Shabbat should be remembered (zakor) as HaShem's matanah to his people.

The crown of splendor is probably an allusion to Moshe's descent from Mount Sinai with the second tablets in Shemot 34:29-30:

" 29 (On Yom Kippur) Moshe came down from Mount Sinai and the two tablets of the testimony were in Moshe's hand when he came down from the mountain. Moshe did not know that the skin of his face had become radiant while he (God) had spoken with him. 30 Aharon and all the children of Israel saw Moshe and Look! The skin of his face had become radiant, and they were afraid to come near him."

Stanza Two - V' shamuru b'nai Yisrael (And the Children of Israel shall safeguard): This stanza transitions from the general description of Moshe descending from Mount Sinai with the Tablets of the Testimony to one of the specific Torah reasons for keeping (shamor) Shabbat. The principal pasukim cited in this stanza are Shemot 31:16 - 17:

" 16 The children of Israel should observe [shamor] the Sabbath, to make [l'asot] the Sabbath throughout their generations as an everlasting covenant. 17 It is an eternal sign [brit olam] between Me and the children of Israel that in six days God created the heaven and the earth, and on the seventh day He ceased (shavat) and rested (Yi'nafash)."

In other words as Reuven Hammer so aptly comments, " The Sabbath is God's chosen day and Israel is God's chosen people." (9) Throughout eternity Shabbat will serve as a reminder of God's unique relationship with the Jewish people and that He is the sole Creator of the Universe. Implicit in Shemot 31; 15-16 is the idea that by observing and making/doing (shamor v'l'asot) Shabbat one will find shavat (rest) and linfosh/yi'nafash (refreshment) for his nefesh (soul). The Hebrew word for soul - nefesh and the Hebrew word for to rest - linfosh share the same shoresh. Cp. Shemot 31:16; Bereshit 2:2

Stanza Three - V' lo n'tahto HaShem (And HaShem did not give): This stanza is a commentary on the above-mentioned pasukim namely Shemot 31:16-17. These comments reaffirm the exclusive nature of the Shabbat as being between "Me and the children of Israel" (Pasuk 31:17) The gift of Shabbat was only given to the "seed of Jacob." A private loving exchange between God the Chatan (Bridegroom) and Yisrael His Kalah (Bride). "Rabbi Yochanan in the name of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai used this phrase ("Between Me and the children of Israel") to indicate the special status of Shabbat among all the other mitzvot. God gave all the other mitzvot to Israel publicly, but Shabbat was given privately - "between Me [privately] and the children of Israel." (Beitsah 16a)." (10) According to our sages, such a personal gift is only intended to be enjoyed by the Jewish people - HaShem's Kalah! However this idea of Shabbat being the sole possession of the Jewish people seems to contradict the sense of Yehayahu 56:4- -8. These pasukim say that eunuchs and foreigners who keep Shabbat and bind themselves to the Lord will be brought to His holy mountain ... because His house will be called a house of prayer for all nations. This third stanza also introduces the idea as Shabbat being God's ‘coveted' day as mentioned above. "The notion of Shabbat being the only sanctified day is explicit in the first creation story (Gen 2:3), suggesting that it is God's favorite day, even though this idea of favoritism is never explicit in the Bible This idea of Shabbat as God's favorite day is alluded to in Targum Yerushalami."

Stanza Four - Elohenu vay Elohai avoteynu (Our God and the God of our Fathers): Stanza Four, tells us that the mitzvah of Shabbat, tries to direct the body, soul, mind, and spirit to the dimension of the holy." (11) The principal pasukim for this stanza is Yeshayahu 58:13-14:

"13 If you restrain your foot because it is the Sabbath; refrain from accomplishing your own needs on My holy day; if you proclaim the Sabbath ‘a delight (oneg),' and the holy [day] of HaShem ‘ honored,' and you honor it by not engaging in your own affairs, from seeking your own needs or discussing the forbidden - 14 then you will delight (oneg/tit'tanag) in HaShem, and I will mount you astride the heights of the world; I will provide you the heritage of your forefather Jacob, for the mouth of HaShem has spoken." (12)

The phrase "ritzeh be'mi'nuchatenu" (may You pleased with our rest) is the key to understanding stanza four. The word menuchah (rest) is related to the word for the afternoon sacrifice or offering (minchah) that was offered up to HaShem in the Beit HaMikdash. In other words, one's disengagement from one's regular weekday activities, by restraining one's foot because it is the Sabbath, and refraining from satisfying one's own needs demands an act of self sacrifice. Directing one's body, soul, mind, and spirit away from the realm of the profane towards the dimension of the holy and into the state of Kedushah demands a decision of the will - a triumph of the yezer hatov over the yezer harah. Then, and only then, can HaShem " mount one astride the heights of the world," through as stanza four verse two says by "sanctifying us with Your commandments, granting our share in Your Torah; satisfying us from Your goodness, gladdening us with your salvation and purifying our hearts to serve You sincerely." (13) Stanza four concludes with a reaffirmation of the Kedushah of Shabbat.

Personal Reflections and Conclusion

As mentioned in the Introduction to this paper, the one phrase in K'dushat HaYom that profoundly affects me each week is V' taher lebaynu l'ahvdichah b'emet which I translate as "and cleanse and purify the hearts of your servant with truth." The following is my Midrash on a Midrash. "In the Midrash we are told the word for heart (Lev) in Devarim 6:5 is actually hearts (L"vav). Rashi indicates that the word hearts in this pasuk indicates that God has to be loved by both the yetzer hatov and the yetzer harah."(14) In the same way HaShem needs taher lebaynu - to purify and cleanse the good and evil inclination of our heart (s). Each week I enter Shabbat with the hope and the expectation that HaShem through the truth of His Torah will cleanse my heart(s) from my personal sins and the spiritual pollution of the week. Then, like Moshe, I will be able to rejoice in the gift of my portion because God will also consider me to be His faithful servant who serves Him in truth.

Footnotes

  1. Steven M. Brown, Higher and Higher - Making Jewish Prayer Part Of Us, 8th ed.; New York: International Youth Commission United Synagogue Of Conservative Judaism, 2007, Page Number 127
  2. My Peoples Prayer Book, Vol.10 Shabbat Morning Sacharit and Musaf, ed. By Rabbi Lawrence A. Hoffman. Woodstock, Vermont:  Jewish Lights Publishing 2000, Page Number 117
  3. Ismar Elbogen translated by Raymond P. Scheindlin, Jewish Liturgy A Comprehensive History, Philadelphia & New York: The Jewish Publication Society & The Jewish Theological Seminary of America, 1993, Page Number 97
  4. Hoffman, Page 109
  5.  Rabbi Nosson Scherman, The Complete ArtScroll Siddur Nusach Ashkenaz, First Edition; Brooklyn, NY: Mesorah Publications, Ltd., 1984, Page 425
  6. Torah citations taken from The Gutnick Edition Chumash, 1st ed., New York / London: Kol Menachem 2003-6, Rabbi Chaim Miller, and Editor.
  7. ArtScroll Page Number 424
  8. Hoffman, Page Number 113
  9. Reuven Hammer, Entering Jewish Prayer A Guide To Personal Devotion And The Worship Service, New York: Schocken Books, 1994, Page Number 192
  10. Hoffman, Page Number 113
  11. Abraham Joshua Heschel, The Sabbath It's Meaning For Modern Man, New York: Fararr, Straus and Giroux, 1951, Page Number 74
  12. Scripture quotation taken from The Stone Edition Tenach, 1996, Rabbi Nosson Scherman and Rabbi Meir Zlotowitz, General Editors
  13. My paraphrase of the second sentence from the fourth stanza.
  14. The Rev. Dr. A. Cohen, The Soncino Chumash, London: The Soncino Press, 1947, Page Number 1022