Quotes about Sabbath

Neither does He call man to observe Sabbaths simply for a cessation of labor, but rather for the purpose of drawing near to Him from whom our true sustenance comes.

Man is not a beast of burden, and the Sabbath is not for the purpose of enhancing the efficiency of his work.

The Sabbath is the day on which we learn the art of surpassing civilization.

Unless one learns how to relish the taste of Sabbath … one will be unable to enjoy the taste of eternity in the world to come.

The Sabbath is the most precious present mankind has received from the treasure house of God. All week we think: The spirit is too far away, and we succumb to spiritual absenteeism, or at best we pray: Send us a little of Thy spirit. On the Sabbath the spirit stands and pleads: Accept all excellence from me.

Zion is in ruins, Jerusalem lies in the dust. All week there is only hope of redemption. But when the Sabbath is entering the world, man is touched by a moment of actual redemption; as if for a moment the spirit of the Messiah moved over the face of the earth.

In Jewish tradition, dying in one's sleep is called a kiss of God, and dying on the Sabbath is a gift that is merited by piety. For the pious person, my father once wrote, it is a privilege to die.

The Sabbath is the presence of God in the world, open to the soul of man." God is not in things of space, but in moments of time.

The Sabbath is a reminder of the two worlds—this world and the world to come; it is an example of both worlds. For the Sabbath is joy, holiness, and rest; joy is part of this world; holiness and rest are something of the world to come."

There is a word that is seldom said, a word for an emotion almost too deep to be expressed: the love of the Sabbath.

The Jewish contribution to the idea of love is the conception of love of the Sabbath, the love of a day, of spirit in the form of time.

Just as we are commanded to keep the Sabbath, we are commanded to labor.