Sabbath Day: Most Succesful Start-Up of the Jewish People

The Jewish people was founded on revolutionary ideas, and throughout the millennium has continued to spawn some of the most trans formative movements/religions/political parties. The Jewish people has never been "big," in terms of corporate development, never truly centralized, always with a bit of healthy chaos (much like any start-up).

For now I want to focus one of the Jewish people's first major start-up social initiatives, the Sabbath. One the one hand, hugely successful, so much so that in the US and parts of Western Europe there are  two Sabbath days....but it all  started  with one day,  on weekly cycle, which three thousand years ago was quite a move away from the norm, which was never ending back breaking work, especially for the Jews-to-be,  the  descendants of  Jacob who ended up slaves in Egypt.

Recently the concept of Sabbath has become trendy, in an age of 24/7, blackberry addiction, messaging on the go globalized world, there is a need to rediscover the Sabbath day. A few months ago Mark Bittman wrote an engaging piece in the New York Times on the move to a "secular sabbath" (see  http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/02/fashion/02sabbath.html?_r=2&pagewanted=all&oref=slogin&oref=slogin).

Bottom line,  Bittman wants a break from the laptop,  the cellphone, etc, all the trappings of  the digital information age.

Even more powerful for me, however, than the Sabbath itself are the preparations for the Sabbath day. Knowing that either you have been commanded or have chosen to set aside a day for non-profit pursuits, to step off the fats track, there is a necessity to prepare. In the talmud we read of the discussions about what projects can be started on a Thursday, because you don't want to start something that will necessarily roll into the Sabbath day. Traditional Jews do all their cooking, baking, in the days leading to Friday night, when the Sabbath starts.

I bring all this up because sometimes we forget just how revolutionary old ideas were and are--human nature is not to set aside a day a week for a different lifestyle. But at least I feel I am a much healthier and well-balanced person by "shutting down" for the Sabbath. But I do need to prepare.

Much like the counseling I give all entrepreneurs -- work hard but have life balance. And prepare all the time.  And then rest. You need it and deserve it.

Comments

[Michael Rubin]

Yasher koach.

We Jews have always been radical thinkers. We don't think about what is today, but what can be. It's our eternal optimism mixed with realism.

Shabbes is the break we all must take to clear our heads, focus our hearts and breathe without restrictions.

Michael

[Linda Pringle]

Please help me to understand what one does and does'nt do to keep the Sabboth day holy, besides reading the Bible and not working to make money. I'm not clear about whether it's ok to do housework ( I'm thinking probably not)or sew or crochet, garden. Thanks for your help.
Linda Pringle