By Rabbi Label Lam
The Children of Israel shall keep the Shabbos, to make the Shabbos
an eternal covenant for their generations. Between Me and the
Children of Israel it is a sign forever that in a six-day period
HASHEM made heaven and earth and on the seventh day He rested and
was refreshed. (Shemos 31:16-17)
To make the Shabbos: Isnt the Mitzvah of Shabbos accomplished by
sitting and not doing and refraining from creative activity? If so
what is the meaning of the expression to make the Shabbos? Rabbi
Elazar Ben Parta says; All who properly keep the Shabbos are
considered as if they made the Shabbos. (Mechilta)
I make more money when I am asleep than when I am awake. (Warren
Buffet)
If it aint broke, dont fix it! (Conventional Wisdom)
How is it that one is considered to have made something by merely
refraining from destroying it? Why is the subject of Shabbos an
immediate prelude to the Sin of the Golden Calf?
It is troublesome to consider how any part of the Jewish People was
involved with an idolatrous act only 40 days after the presentation
of The 10 Commandments. They had just heard the declaration, "You
shall have no other gods before me." Just 43 days prior to that the
sea had split and even the smallest nursing child, we are told, was
able to lift his head, point, and say, This is my G-d and I will
glorify Him. How could the impact of such grandiose events have
evaporated from the psyche of a people so quickly?
Reb Chaim Shmuelevitz ztl. explains that the prophetic encounters
that the entire Nation of Israel experienced at that time was akin
to a gift. There is a difference of valuation when something is
earned with years of hard work and self-sacrifice and when
something is granted to a person with minimal effort. Things that
come to us with ease are more likely to be lost with ease.
It is not uncommon for winners of the lottery to squander their
wealth and those who inherit family businesses are more at risk to
fumble all that was gained through the agony of their parents.
Unfortunately, as earth shattering as those events were they didnt
make a deep and a long enough lasting impression to forestall the
possibility of even immediate failure.
Our sages tell us that the creation of the cure always predates the
introduction of the disease. In that spirit we can understand,
perhaps, why the flag of Shabbos is waved before the account of the
Golden Calf. The effort that allows one to maintain a gift is
gained by the hard work of appreciation just as the sweat equity
invested prior to earning something helps secure its value in the
mind of the recipient.
The job for all time then, to remedy that error, is to practice
receiving a great and holy gift. As with a priceless work of art,
we are well advised to protect its integrity. Dont disturb it! Dont
fix it! Let it be! Appreciate it! We are asked to stand back and
behold the awe and majesty of the day of Shabbos! It comes already
assembled.
Sure we can enhance Shabbos with some fine foods and fresh garments
but the biggest benefit is to be gained by not disturbing its
already pristine state of purity! In that way Shabbos may be seen
as a cure for the root problem of the Golden Calf. In weekly
installments, for all time, through the discipline of guarding
Shabbos, we are meant to gradually master the fine art of keeping
the holy holy!