This month, the URJ's Eilu V'Eilu online publication, a point/counterpoint dialogue between two scholars providing for active participation from readers, focused on Shabbat, and attempted to answer the following questions:

What does Shabbat mean for today's Reform Jews? What Jewish values, perspectives and language define and describe our commitment to Shabbat observance? When observing Shabbat, how do we incorporate both individual experience and building relationships within our communities? How might Reform congregational culture change to accommodate both individual and community practices?

Check out the wonderful 4 part dialogue between Michelle Shapiro Abraham and Jim Ball by clicking on the links below.  After you've read them, we'd love to hear your comments!

Part 1 - Opening Statements
Part 2 - Responses
Part 3 - Response to Readers
Part 4 - Closing Statments

"The truth is we can talk about the joys and meaning of observing Shabbat until we're blue in the face and it won't really make much difference. It's like trying to describe the taste of chocolate to someone who has never eaten chocolate. Or in Jewish terms: na'aseh v'nishmah - we will do and [then] we will understand. Shabbat has to be experienced in order to be understood. Shabbat is not an intellectual pursuit; hence the challenge for us who are inheritors of a great intellectual Jewish heritage."

- Rabbi Sue Ann Wasserman
Director, URJ Department of Worship, Music, & Religious Living

A few weeks ago, many of our colleagues and friends participated in the Riding4Reform, a fund-raiser for the Israeli Reform movement. Cantor Ross Wollman, of Congregatin Sukkat Shalom in Wilmette, IL was kind enough to share part of his experience, which he describes as "five shabbatot in a row" with us:

We thought we'd help you get into the spirit of Shabbat with a little smile. Click the link below and enjoy!


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We've shared some with you, now it's your turn to share them with us!
If you have any yummy Shabbat recipes (especially for things that can be brought to Shabbat Oneg) please share them with us, either by clicking here or by posting them as a comment.

Looking forward to your mouthwatering submissions!

It seems like everyone is talking about Shabbat these days (which is great!)!

A friend called our attention to an article entitled, Many Ways to Celebrate Shabbat on MyJewishLearning.com. Now we're calling it to your attention.

We hope you'll check it out.
Enjoy!

As one of our readers helpfully pointed out, this Friday is...

Shabbat continues to be a hot topic in the blogosphere.  Check out this blogger's account of her "Do-It-Yourself Shabbat".

Here's a little sound-bite to whet your appetite:

"It all started with nothing to do. One Friday afternoon, as I realized I hadn't made plans for Shabbat dinner, I decided to, finally, gather people to my own table. The people I invited were purposefully not the usual Shabbat suspects, so I wasn't sure that an invitation to Shabbat dinner would be appealing.

Turns out it was."

As you head into Shabbat, we wanted to call your attention to this month's issue of Reform Judaism Magazine featuring an article by Rabbi Eric Yoffie entitled, "Reimagining Shabbat".  For those of you who missed out on Rabbi Yoffie's speech at Bienniel, this is a great recap.

Enjoy and Shabbat Shalom!

The members of our iWorship listserve raised a very important question recently:

This year, the first Passover Seder falls on a Saturday night - what changes (if any) should be made to the Seder? Should there be a Havdallah ceremony? If so, at what point in the Seder?

All good questions!

Here is the traditional answer:

If the Seder falls on Motzaei Shabbat (Saturday evening), Havdallah should be observed to separate the Sabbath from Passover (Yom Tov). The Havdallah ceremony will take place at the time of Kiddush over the 1st cup of wine (after lighting the  Yom Tov  candles). The blessing should be recited over the wine, and the usual Kadesh paragraph found in the Haggadah following Borei Pri Hagafen should be recited before continuing on with the other Havdallah blessings. The blessing over the spices is omitted so the next blessing after Kadesh will be the blessing over the fire (the Yom Tov candles may be used in place of a Havdallah candle). Following that is Hamavdil ben Kodesh and the Shehecheyanu. 

Shabbat affects the preparations for Passover in other ways as well.  Traditionally, all cleaning and burning of chametz is done before Shabbat begins. As well, the Fast of the Firstborn Child (traditionally observed by firstborn sons on the day leading up to Passover) is observed on the preceding Thursday, rather than on Shabbat.

For further reading, check out these books:
Pesach: Passover - Its Observance Laws and Significance, Rabbi Nosson Scherman & Rabbi Meir Zlotowitz
Every Person's Guide to Passover, by Ronald H. Issacs