The Sabbath and Social Justice -The Biblical Basis for Tikkun Olam According to Abraham Joshua Heschel
By R. YK
One of the primary overriding principles that guided Abraham Joshua Heschel's life was the biblical and prophetic injunction to maintain social justice (cp. Isa. 56:1). Heschel's seminal book The Sabbath Its Meaning for Modern Man implicitly echoes the theme of maintaining social justice within the context of Shabbat.
"To set apart one day a week for freedom, a day on which we would not use the instruments which have been so easily turned into weapons of destruction, a day for being with ourselves, a day of detachment from the vulgar, of independence of external obligations, a day on which we stop worshipping the idols of technical civilization, a day on which we use no money, a day of armistice in the economic struggle with our fellow men and the forces of nature-is there any institution that holds out a greater hope for man's progress than the Sabbath?"(p. 28)
The purpose of this paper is to explore and examine the message of Shabbat as understood by Heschel in order to comprehend how this holy day might inspire us to take an active stance in righting the world ‘s wrongs. Or, as expressed in the words of the second paragraph of the Aleinu "lisakein olam bi'mal'chus Sha-dai" ("to repair the world through the kingdom of G-d")
Comprehending the Message of the Sabbath
For Heschel our core values and our very essence are determined by our comprehension of the Sabbath's message. "What we are depends on what the Sabbath is to us. The law of the Sabbath Day is in the life of the spirit what the law of gravitation is in nature." (p. 89) It is Heschel's hope that we might become "what we are" by understanding his vision of the Sabbath as a paradigm for social justice and then incorporating his vision into our daily lives by becoming involved in "lisakein olam bi'mal'chus Sha-dai"
Heschel's Vision of the Sabbath as a Paradigm for Social Justice
Heschel states that, "Judaism is a religion of time aiming at the sanctification of time." (p. 8) "The meaning of the Sabbath is to celebrate time rather than space...to try to become attuned to holiness in time. (p. 10). Heschel maintains "On the Sabbath we live, as it were, independent of [the values] of technical civilization." (p. 28) The values of today's technical civilization are self-centered, devoid of a concern to maintain justice. Heschel draws a parallel between these values and the values of The Roman Empire by quoting the words of Rabbi Shimeon ben Yochai.
"All that they made they made for themselves. They made roads and market places to put harlots there; they built bridges to levy tolls for them; they erected bathhouses to delight their bodies." (p. 35)
Because the Romans had " no conviction that there was any after life at all, certainly no conviction of an immortal felicity or retribution (p. 39) technical civilization as their highest goal, and time for the sake of space." (p. 48) In contrast, to paraphrase the words of Rabbi Shimeon ben Yochai, The message of the Sabbath is that spiritual life should be our highest goal and the use of our time should be for the sake of eternity.
According to Heschel, the Sabbath raises our awareness "to the ultimate significance of time." (p. 96) He goes on to say, "... when the Sabbath is entering the world, man is touched by a moment of actual; redemption; as if for a moment the spirit of Messiah moved over the face of the earth."
Heschel points out that the Prophet Isaiah connects the idea of social justice and messianic redemption with the concept of Shabbat.
"This is what the L-RD says: "Maintain justice and do what is right, for my salvation is close at hand and my righteousness will soon be revealed. Blessed is the man who does this, the man who holds it fast, who keep the Sabbath without desecrating it, and keeps his hand from doing any evil." (Isaiah 56:1-2)
Therefore, by implication, maintaining social justice is a practical way to bring the Sabbath message of messianic redemption to the world.
Furthermore, the command to remember the Sabbath day causes us to recall our own personal moment of messianic redemption when we were slaves in Egypt.
"Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the L-RD your G-d brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the L-RD your G-d has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day."(Deut 5: 15)
The weekly reminder to recall our liberation from slavery should inspire us to take an active role in the redemption of those in our world who are subject to the modern forms of slavery such as poverty, discrimination, and the lack of the basic human right of self determination.
Conclusion
For Heschel "the Sabbath as experienced by man cannot survive in exile, a lonely stranger among days of profanity. It needs the companionship of all other days. All days of the week must be spiritually consistent with the Day of Days. All our life should be a pilgrimage to the seventh day; the thought and appreciation of what this day may bring to us should be ever present in our minds. For the Sabbath is the counterpoint of living; the melody sustained throughout all agitations and vicissitudes which menace our conscience; our awareness of G-d's presence in the world." (p. 89)
By becoming socially active we can " lisakein olam bi'mal'chus Sha-dai" ("to repair the world through the kingdom of G-d") and at the same time give the citizens of our planet a taste of the coming messianic kingdom of G-d where "justice will be established through righteousness for all eternity." (Cp. Isaiah 9:6)