Menachem Bluming Muses: Shabbat More than Unplugging


I was interviewed for a blog and out of concern that you will not read it :) I am posting it here in order to share the ideas with you:

“So Rabbi Menachem Bluming, many these days are taking a day to unplug and to disconnect, to regain their sanity and to center themselves, in what way does that differ from the biblical Sabbath? Why the need for the many restrictions and observances?”

“Yes, although in the past the idea of taking a day to disconnect may have been less appreciated and recognized, today it is an absolute necessity,” Mendel Bluming asserted.

“However,” Bluming continued, “Shabbat is so much more than disconnecting. The Talmud in the tractate of Shabbat page 10 teaches us that before God shared the Sabbath with the Jewish people he told Moses, “I have a precious gift in My storehouse of hidden treasures. Shabbat is its name, and I desire to give it to the Jewish people; go and inform them.”

“Why did he deem it a gift rather than a list of restrictions?” Menachem Mendel Bluming posed.

“When you tell someone in advance that you are giving them a gift, you intensify the suspense and excitement. If you giftwrap it with a bow and a card, you show them that this is something very precious for you and I am so excited to be giving it to you.” Bluming explained.

“G-d was inviting us to unwrap a gift that is not just about unplugging but truly about reconnecting with our deepest self. It is an invitation from G-d to enter into a personal relationship with Him and that is quite humbling; what a privilege!

“We can easily become distracted and engrossed in the outer world and neglect our inner world. Shabbat gives us a chance to reconnect with family, with G-d and with our inner mission and voice.” Bluming concluded.

Wishing you many great Shabbats! Mendel (Menachem) Bluming

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