Shabbat Message: A sanctuary in time
Update: 2025-11-14
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Welcome to the daily Bitachon . As we mentioned, this coming Rosh Hashanah is going to be on Shabbat , and therefore since we don't have the shofar , the year before we need to make sure we're on our best behavior on Shabbat , so with Hashem's help we'll be talking about Shabbat on Fridays.This week's parashah , coincidentally, Chayei Sarah , talks about the passing of Sarah and it talks about that when Rivka came into the tent, the miracles returned. What were the three miracles? Miracle number one was she lit the candles on Friday afternoon and lasted throughout the week. She, the bread that she made was warm all week and there was a cloud of the Shechinah on top of her tent.What is the significance of these three miracles? These three miracles have to do with the woman's three mitzvot , which all revolve around Shabbat . Hafrashat challah , which brought the blessing into the challah , you make challah for Shabbat . Lighting the candles, and the cloud that comes down which has to do with taharat hamishpacha , family purity, which brings the Shechinah upon the home. All of these three mitzvot of Shabbat that the lady has corresponds to certain articles in the Beit Hamikdash . The lighting of the candles corresponds to the menorah . The bread refers to the shulchan with the lechem hapanim , and the cloud upon the tent refers to the holy ark that had in it the two luchot that was where the Shechinah dwelled.And this brings us into an important concept that Shabbat has the aspect of Beit Hamikdash in time. That means it's not the place of the Beit Hamikdash , it's Beit Hamikdash in time. That's why in our Friday night prayers we say, הפורש סוכת שלום עלינו ועל ירושלים. There's a sukkah of peace that comes upon us and Yerushalayim . Yerushalayim is invoked on Friday night because on Friday night we're all in Yerushalayim , we're in the Beit Hamikdash . And many of our Shabbat activities correspond to Shabbat . And we'll give you some of them and maybe you'll think of some others on your own. First of all, we sing zemirot , like the Levi'im sang song. Second of all, we say kiddush on wine, like they poured the wine libations. Third of all, the minimum to wash your hands, minimum washing before Shabbat is wash your hands and feet like in the Beit Hamikdash where they washed their hands and their feet. We wear special clothing like the bigdei kehunah . We have incense, ketoret , in the Beit Hamikdash which is either symbolized by the custom to smell certain fragrances, specifically hadasim , or some say it refers to the smell of the food on Shabbat . כי מציון תצא תורה ודבר השם מירושלים. The Torah comes out of Tzion , it comes out of the Beit Hamikdash . The Sanhedrin was in the Beit Hamikdash , the high court, and therefore we say extra divrei Torah at the Shabbat table. Shabbat is called me'ein Olam Haba . Shabbat is a microcosm of the world to come. And it says so too when you enter the Beit Hamikdash , you felt you were in another world. That's why it's they said in the Beit Hamikdash , min ha'olam v'ad ha'olam , from this world to the next world. When they enter the Beit Hamikdash , you felt you were in another world. And that's so is Shabbat , the feeling of being in another world.And there's a beautiful concept that Rav Moshe Feinstein brings out from a personal experience. He walked into the Russian Embassy in New York and he was originally from Russia. And when he entered the embassy, he felt like he was in Russia. The clock was Russian, the tables were Russian, everything about the place was Russian. You felt like you were in Russia and even legally, if someone's born in the Russian embassy, they're Russian even though in America. The area of the embassy is culturally and legally like that nation. And so too he said that God's embassy on Earth is the Beit Hamikdash . When you walked into the Beit Hamikdash , you felt like you were in another world. You felt like you were in God's world and you were legally in God's world. There was no flies, there was no smell. All the wonders that existed in the Beit Hamikdash , you were in a different world, in a different zone. And in a certain way, on Shabbat we're also in a different world, we're also in a different zone, the world of me'ein Olam Haba , a microcosm of the world to come. And therefore, let's appreciate what goes on. Just like when you're by the Kotel and you're at the Beit Hamikdash , you act differently, you feel differently. So too Shabbat we have to realize we're in a zone. We're in the sanctuary of time, which is called Shabbat . And it's not just a nice allegorical comparison to a parable. As we stated, there are many real things that we do on Shabbat that correspond to the Beit Hamikdash . And I'm sure every... of them. The most obvious is Kiddush and the wine. The most obvious is the two challot , the Lechem Mishneh on the Shulchan . The candles are the Menorah . The Havdalah ceremony on Saturday night. These are all things that we do in our mini- Shabbat home experience of the sanctuary in time that we inherited from the Beit Hamikdash , and it's not a coincidence. It's a real connection. Let's talk about Kiddush on Friday night. Why do we make Kiddush on Friday night? First of all, the word Kiddush itself. What does it mean? When you say something is Kadosh , holy, Kodesh , it is dedicated and designated for a specific purpose. And that is what is called kedushah . So, the kedushat hayom , the sanctity of the day of Shabbat , we take a cup of wine, we make a L'chaim on it. Some people make a Shehecheyanu also on the wine, because it represents the joy of Shabbat . But we are making Kiddush . We are declaring the day holy. In fact, the word Kiddush is related to the word kiddushin , which is marriage. It's a special, unique relationship. We also know that there is such a thing as Kiddush Hashem , sanctifying God's name, or God forbid, Chal Shem Hashem , that we should not do which is the opposite, Chillul Hashem , which is the desecration of God's name. So the word Kiddush means to make something holy and special. In the Kodesh Kodashim , the Holy of Holies in the Beit Hamikdash , was a place where heaven and earth kissed. It's that special. Shabbat is that special time of the week. Now, where do we get this idea of Kiddush from? It's a pasuk in the Torah, and it actually appears twice. In the first Ten Commandments, the pasuk says, זכור את יום השבת לקדשו, remember the Shabbat day to make it holy, to sanctify it. And the second of the Ten Commandments, it says שמור את יום השבת לקדשו. Now, there's a famous story in the Mishnah of Shabbat , Perek Zayin , Mishnah Bet . The Gemara , the Amora'im , were discussing what's the best oneg, pleasure of Shabbat ? And one Amora , Reish Lakish , said chamra v'reichana . What's chamra v'reichana ? Chamra is wine. Reichana is beautiful smelling spices. So Reish Lakish said, Chamra v'reichana leisanei . These are the best for the enjoyment. We make a L'chaim , a Borei pri hagafen on the wine and Borei minei vesamim on the spices to enhance the joy of Shabbat .
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