SABBATH

SABBATH, from cover liberation, it’s a statement of their freedom to rest,” said Canon Varnell.

Canon Zartman equates the Deuteronomy verses to an assertion about the dignity of all human beings.

“Everyone in the household had to rest, even the animals,” she said.

The benefits of following God’s directive are powerful. Canon Zartman said that Abraham Joshua Heschel’s seminal 1951 book on the subject, The Sabbath, has helped her think about the practice.

“Heschel has this great quote, ‘the Sabbath is not for the sake of the weekdays; the weekdays are for the sake of Sabbath,’” she said. “’It is not an interlude but the climax of living.’ He makes the point that the Sabbath is the queen of days, and everything you do is oriented towards this time.”

Of course, in our materialistic world, this requires much intentionality.

“We move around in a world of things,” Canon Zartman said. “We work for things and we do things to earn more money, but the Sabbath is making time itself sacred. You can’t buy time, [and] you can’t trade it for something. The time itself is set aside and so that day is meant to be sacred.”

The good news is that we can do it anywhere. A fisherman might find God in the quiet of a lake. Canon Zartman gets replenished at home by reading religious works.

“When you think about early Judaism, when the temple was taken away there was no place,” she said. “But there was time. Sabbath is not a find time kind of thing, it is a make time kind of thing. And it’s supposed to be something that really feeds you.”

Making the time to rest is also a matter of remembering who we are in relation to God. Canon Varnell remembers a specific lesson during his first year of seminary.

“Our professor asked the question that if God rested and the world kept spinning, what were we doing that was so important we couldn’t rest?” he said. “There are probably lots of benefits to Sabbath as a day of intentional rest, but the real fruit is a reminder that we are not God. Very little in the grand scheme of things depends on us.”

Both Canon Zartman and Canon Varnell emphasize that the Sabbath is not “selfcare” and it is not intended to replenish your strength so you can work better. Rest is good in and of itself. Its worthiness doesn’t come from anything other than God’s command.

“Practicing the Sabbath made me realize that for many Americans ‘rest’ actually depends on other people working very hard,” Canon Varnell said. “For example, many will treat Sunday as a Sabbath, which is great, but we have sextons and childcare workers and others here at the Cathedral who are working really hard so people can enjoy their Sabbath. I think practice brings that to light and, ideally, should lead us to fight to make sure everyone can enjoy rest.”

For Canon Zartman, an 8-week stay in Jerusalem was an enlightening lesson in Sabbath keeping.

“For the Jewish population in Jerusalem it was a serious thing not to break the Sabbath,” she said. “So to suddenly be thrust into a totally different time was somehow really disorienting but also really wonderful.”

To get into the practice of rest, Canon Zartman counsels to first turn off your screens and find an accountability partner. While 24 hours is the goal, it may initially be too challenging.

“Give yourself four hours of Sabbath and then keep adding slowly,” she said.

Canon Varnell suggests working towards the Sabbath by getting all your work done in advance.

“Do the laundry, wash the car, weed the garden, so that on the Sabbath you are really free to just enjoy the day - take a walk, read, eat good food, nap,” he said. “Sabbath rest, rest from work, is rest from all work, not just paid labor.”

This includes kids.

“I worry that we’re not allowing our kids to rest, and we’re modeling a kind of life that, ultimately, will burn them out,” he said. “As Christians, we are invited to live in the Kingdom of God right now, and that includes living a life shaped by God’s own rest. Adults need to learn this, but so do kids.”

For Canon Zartman, safeguarding the sanctity of the Sabbath is a way to unload all the baggage that holds us back.

“Sabbath is an antidote to what enslaves us during the week,” she said. “We are supposed to be free people who serve God.”

was prepared to match every dollar contributed up to $5,000. Fulfilling our vision statement of “Rooted in Christ; Built on Christ” you are displaying compassion, generosity, and commitment. We will continue to collect donations through July 10, 2022. You can contribute by sending a check to the Cathedral with “Medical Debt Relief” noted on the memo line, using the QR code on page 2, or donating through the Cathedral’s website at www.christchurchcathedral. org/medicaldebt.

We will come together at Summer Place on July 10 to celebrate what we have accomplished. We can do this!

Summer Place continues

Summer Place is a special coffee hour during the Summer. Every Sunday through August 14 a different council will be hosting Summer Place in Reynolds Hall from 10 –11 a.m. Come by and see what the councils are up to and visit with friends old and new. All are welcome!

SCHEDULE July 3 Community Life July 10 Justice and Peace July 17 Mission Outreach Council July 24 Latino Ministry Council July 31 Welcome and Newcomers Council Aug. 7 Christian Formation & the Arts: Cathedral Reads Discussion Aug. 14 Young Adults and Jerusalem Peace Builders

Please Bring School Supplies Sunday July 17

During Summer Place on July 17, please help support our church-sponsored refugee family by bringing a donation of school supplies for their elementary aged children who are starting school this fall. Please see suggested items from the list at: www.christchurchcathedral.org/suggestedsupplies

MEDICAL DEBT, from page 2