Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis

Do Your Pets keep Shabbat?

Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis

Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth President, Mizrachi UK

Ifind it remarkable how many people insist that their pets do, on some level, genuinely understand when it is Shabbat. In fact, our Sages, in the Psikta Rabbah, tell us that Rabbi Yochanan once sold his ox to a nonJewish farmer and after a while, the farmer returned with a complaint: “The ox which you sold me, it refuses to work on Saturdays!” The Torah makes it clear that Shabbat goes well beyond the realm of human endeavour. In Parashat Mishpatim, when setting out the mitzvah to keep Shabbat, we are told (Shemot 23:12): “Uvayom hashvii tishbot,” – “And on the seventh day you must have a sabbath,” – “Lema’an yanuach shorcha vechamorecha,” – “in order that your ox and your donkey should rest.”

This verse is an unusual formulation. Surely the Torah should simply have said, “every seventh day you, your ox and your donkey should rest”? Why is it presented in this fashion?

The Rebbe of Gur offers a most beautiful explanation, which highlights for us the deep impact of our Shabbat observance. He said, ‘uvayom hashvii tishbot’ should be understood to mean that every seventh day we should have an authentic Shabbat experience, which does not only include keeping the letter of the law. In addition, our Shabbat must embody the spirit of the day. If we achieve this, we will have a transformative impact on our surroundings. If our day is filled with spiritually uplifting experiences, even our animals will know that this is a special day!

If our Shabbat observance can potentially have a powerful impact on our animals, how much more so can it impact positively on our children and our wider group of family and friends.

This teaching is of enormous contemporary significance, particularly at a time when there is so much in the modern world competing for our attention. If on Shabbat we turn away from ‘vochadik’ or weekday activities, and focus instead on ‘Shabbosdik’ activities, it can have a deep impact on our own lives and the lives of all those around us. As the prophet Isaiah (58:13) declared, “Vekarata l’Shabbat oneg” – “You will discover that the Sabbath is a day of true delight.” If our Shabbat observance can potentially have a powerful impact on our animals, how much more so can it impact positively on our children and our wider group of family and friends. Dedicating twenty five hours of our week to our family, our community and to spirituality, we send a message to all those around us about what is truly important in our lives. This is the essence of ShabbatUK, and in a broader sense, it is also the purpose of Mizrachi UK’s Weekend of Inspiration. This is why it is such a blessing that this year, these two events are being combined for maximum impact. I would like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to Rabbi Andrew Shaw and his team for all their outstanding endeavours and for their commitment to the sacred task of demonstrating why we describe Shabbat in our zemirot as “me’ein olam haba” – a taste of Heaven on earth.

I wish you all a very special ShabbatUK Shalom!