2020 04 08
作者 Article by: Yvonne Zheng
Father Jim 在三月八日的講道提到猶太教的安息日，又提到多倫多西乃山醫院的安息日昇降機。傳統猶太人在安息日要遵守的禮教極多。現代的猶太人用現代的方式去守傳統的禮教。我曾經在西乃山醫院做事，知道在西乃山醫院有一座特為安息日設計的昇降機，不用按鈕會自動開啓的。它又會每一樓層都停一停，開門讓探病的家屬自由出入。西乃山醫院有十八層樓。如果要由地下上十八樓需要一段頗長的時間。為免費時失事，非猶太眷的醫護人員都不願意使用特定的安息日昇降機。昇降機不用按鈕的原因是因為按鈕的動作被視為一種工作，而傳統猶太人在安息日是不許工作的。猶太同事亦曾經說過有些家庭在安息日請外人在天黑時幫他們點燈。因為按電燈的開關也被視為工作。
如今安我們身處的安省因防止新冠疫情擴散，立令非必要行業暫時關門或請員工在家工作。經濟和生計上有損失是自然的事。那麽時間上呢？禁足在家對現代人來説是不是一件費時失事的舉動呢？有人比喻我們現今身處的情況為傳統安息日加長版-這又不能做，那又不能做。不如大家一起研究一下安息日是甚麽？
創世記2:3 「到第七日，神造物的工已經完畢，就在第七日歇了衪一切的工，安息了。神賜福給第七日，定為聖日。
出埃及記31:12-13 神向以色列人重訂了有關這一日的誡命，説：「當記念安息日，守為聖日」
遵守安息日是以色列人和神立約的一種記號，也是神賜予的禮物。大多數的猶太人每周都期望安息日的來臨，為守聖日作出各種準備，讓他們可以專心地與神交通。
讓我們善用在家禁足的加長板安息日做平時沒有時間做的靈俢功課。與神建立更親密的關係。也讓我們善用這時間和親友透過電話，視象或電郵一 聯絡聯絡。在不明朗的疫情下送出一些温暖。
Father Jim mentioned the Sabbath elevator at Toronto Mount Sinai Hospital during his sermon on Mar 8th. I remembered avoiding that elevator on Friday nights when I was still working there. The elevator is designed to stop on every floor and the door will open and close for visitors to go in and out without touching the buttons. To non-Jewish workers, the Sabbath elevator is a nuisance, a waste of time. To Orthodox Jews, they are just following God’s law. According to my Jewish coworker, some people even hire outsiders to turn their lights on and off at home during Sabbath. Is Sabbath really a waste of time? Let’s take a look at what the Bible says:
Genesis 2:3 New International Reader's Version (NIRV)
3 God blessed the seventh day and made it holy. He blessed it because on that day he rested from all the work he had done.
Exodus 31:12-13 New International Reader's Version (NIRV)
12 Then the LORD spoke to Moses. 13 He said, “Tell the people of Israel, ‘You must always keep my Sabbath days. That will be the sign of the covenant I have made between me and you for all time to come. Then you will know that I am the LORD. I am the one who makes you holy.
Sabbath day is holy. It is a sign of the covenant with God and it is a gift from God. Orthodox Jews take Sabbath seriously. No working means no working. All cleaning and food preparation are done before sundown on Fridays. Sabbath is a day people spent time with family and together they worship the Lord.
To combat the spreading of COVID-19 virus, we are all asked to stay at home and practice social distancing. Some of us are working from home, some of us are temporarily laid off. Work comes to a stand-still for many of us. Some people compare our situation of being forced to stay home from work as a prolonged Sabbath. What are we going to do to pass time? Besides watching Netflix or playing computer games, have you thought about adding devotional time to your daily schedule? Or contacting your friends and family by phone or via video chat to see if they are ok? Spending time with God and family is the purpose of having Sabbath. It is not a waste of time.