Sabbath as Resistance: Saying No to the Culture of Now

Part homage to Rabbi Heschel's book on Sabbath.. Brueggeman discusses Sabbath through both the Hebrew Bible and our own cultural moment. As always, he is insightful and forceful. I ponder this, for example: "God rested on the seventh day. God did not show u to do more. God absented God's self from the office. God did not come and check on creation in anxiety to be sure it was all working." And neither should we.

This was the book we were reading for Advent at my church, but I left for winter break and had to finish on my own, so obviously it got pushed back in favor of holiday romance short stories and new Christmas presents. But now I kinda wish I had finished it before.

The first couple of chapters seemed to be fairly repetitive, but maybe I needed that for the message to sink in. Sabbath is not for cramming stuff in. Sabbath is not for productivity. Sabbath is not for all the stuff we think we need to get done because everyone else is getting it done. It’s for resisting the ambient culture and making room for rest and God.

I am as guilty as any 20-something of checking my phone and the internet almost more than I check my physical life. show more Brueggemann makes it quite clear that multitasking is not helpful during the Sabbath. Be completely present in the community you are in. This is the way we will turn the modern rat race (analogous to the Egyptian slavery of the Israelites) into a welcoming and nurturing society.

While I think that real life community can be created entirely over the internet, I do get that the way we try to always accomplish and achieve and Check-in and Instagram can make us feel like we are always running, never resting. Instead of rushing to the next thing, I’m going to take the time to notice where I am. To pay attention to the people around me, even if they are only a username and a few pixels of text. show less

Discussions about the Sabbath often center around moralistic laws and arguments over whether a person should be able to play cards or purchase liquor on Sundays. In this volume, popular author Walter Brueggemann writes that the Sabbath is not simply about keeping rules but rather about becoming a whole person and restoring a whole society. Importantly, Brueggemann speaks to a 24/7 society of consumption, a society in which we live to achieve, accomplish, perform, and possess. We want more, own more, use more, eat more, and drink more. Keeping the Sabbath allows us to break this restless cycle and focus on what is truly important: God, other people, all life. Brueggemann offers a transformative vision of the wholeness God intends, giving show more world-weary Christians a glimpse of a more fulfilling and simpler life through Sabbath observance. show less

This is a wonderful book that I highly recommend. It offers a very helpful way of thinking about Sabbath and its meaning for our relationship with God and our lives today. It fits very well with Brueggemann's Prophetic Imagination and has a study section if you wish to use it for a religious education course.

Offering world-weary Christians a glimpse of a more fulfilling and simpler life through Sabbath observance.

See my review on my YouTube channel "I'll Read It...Eventually"

https://youtu.be/3qY-ZiRiwdo