Keeping a sabbath is important enough that it’s one of the Ten Commandments. According to God’s directive, “Six days you shall labor and do all you work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work.” (Exodus 20:9-10)
Taken literally, as some sects of orthodox Judaism do, that means no work. At all. As in not turning on lights, watching TV, spending money, or traveling. Though Christians are not bound by Old Testament laws, it is widely understood the we should obey the Ten Commandments. It’s hard to argue with the wisdom of not killing people, stealing, or bearing false witness. But what about the commandments that seem less consequential? Like keeping the sabbath? Does it really matter if we fail to do this?
I confess that I do not regularly “keep sabbath” in the traditional manner that many Christians understand it (in other words, ceasing paid labor or onerous tasks). This has always been true for me. When I first became a believer back in college, friends of mine religiously took Sundays off by never opening their books or doing any chores. I had a work study job and played on athletic teams. Taking 24 hours off to rest and have fun was a nice idea but simply not possible. Shortly after graduating, I worked with a news agency, primarily photographing sports. Though many people watch sporting events on their sabbath, professional athletes and members of the media that provide footage work on game days.
Between raising three children, working bi-vocationally, and volunteering, I have continued to routinely break the letter of this law. Another contributing factor is that I don’t like idleness so the idea of ceasing all activity for 24 hours feels, well, like work. (I do not defend my behavior or suggest that others follow my example.)
I’m not the only Sabbath breaker. I have friends who pastor churches on Sunday and then hold regular jobs during the week. I’m friends with a few farmers and ranchers. They can’t ever totally opt out of work. Pigs need to be fed, calves need to be birthed, chickens need to be protected from roving foxes. Other friends are the sole caretakers for infirm or elderly family members. Though some of them are able to hire part-time workers to cover a few hours, they are mostly on. This is also true for anyone raising young or special needs children or who has to work multiple jobs to provide for themselves or their families. So do we get a bye? Can we ignore the fourth commandment?
Maybe the more salient question is what was God’s intent in including the directive to honor the sabbath alongside some of the other more obviously consequential directives?
To some extent, each of the commandments are subversive in that they called God’s people to differentiate from the surrounding cultures. People of that time worshipped many gods, had concubines (IOW, men coveted women), and practiced an eye for an eye. By setting these ten laws before his people, God was offering them a clear pathway to fruitful lives without exploiting other people or creation.
First and foremost, I believe that God is calling us to rest our bodies and our minds as a means to resist the empire and honor the Creator and the creation. A sabbath day of rest serves to remind us that we are no longer bound by the empire’s rules. God dictated these commands to Moses after the Israelites had finally been freed from captivity. Before this, they had no say in how or if they got time off. They were slaves doing Pharaoh’s bidding. Theologian Walter Brueggmann points out that “The word ‘exodus’ means to exit or depart from a system. Sabbath is an act and it’s a sign of departing from the values of that system.”
Though slavery is illegal in the U.S., our empire also imposes crushing rules on us. We’re encouraged to accumulate and throw away, to bow to our economy, and to keep climbing the ladders. I once had a boss whose favorite t-shirt read, “He who has the most toys wins.” I innocently asked, Wins what, exactly? (My question was not well received.) The greedy, exploitive nature of capitalism is always seducing us with its empty promises. Texts and slacks beckon us back to work when we should be sleeping. Deadlines loom. Opportunities disappear if not grabbed. (This is particularly true for people like me who work in competitive fields. If I don’t respond to an email request for a job within a few hours, it’s given to someone else.) The pressure is exhausting and yet it takes tremendous effort to opt out.
There’s such grace and beauty in the ancient Hebrew practice of allowing the land, animals, and servants to rest in the seventh year. Though some church denominations and colleges encourage pastors and professors to take a sabbatical every seven years, this is not nearly as widespread as it should be. Imagine what life could be like if everyone had the opportunity to get twelve months off every seven years! (On a rotating basis.)
Honoring the sabbath reminds us of the reality that we are more than what we produce and we cannot live independently. I think part of why God mandates a Sabbath is that he understands our tendency to overwork and exploit. God understands how quickly fear creeps in if our hands are not clutching the proverbial plow. And because he created us, he also gets our proclivity toward independence and self-sufficiency. Taking a sabbath cuts across all of this. In Plundered, David Swanson talks about sabbath as a day to “savor sacred unproductivity” by intentionally resisting any form of exploitation.
In our fast-paced, highly driven culture, it’s easy for us to forget that we are limited people. That our bodies need rest is indisputable. If we don’t sleep, we quickly deteriorate. But according to recent studies, few of us get enough sleep. We routinely push ourselves beyond our capacity. In AJ Swaboda’s book Subversive Sabbath, he writes, “We Sabbath … because God built it into the DNA of creation, and it is therefore something creation needs in order to flourish.” Our minds crave empty space to ponder, process, and reflect. Our muscles need to repair. If we refuse to rest, we deny this reality.
Finally, as rest replenishes our bodies and our spirits, it enables us to fulfill our callings, which include loving God and our neighbors. Pastor and writer Emily McGowin refers to sabbath as one of the ways that “Christian life gains vitality.” In her forthcoming book Households of Faith, she offers that “Sabbath rest is the indispensable bridge that joins honoring God as Creator and honoring our fellow humans as God’s creations.” Without rest, it’s all grim drivenness and protecting our piece of the pie. Taking a sabbath helps us to see our brothers and sisters and become aware of their wants, needs, and hurts.
So if God is calling us to rest our bodies and our minds as a means to resist the empire and honor both creation and our finitude, what exactly does that look like? I’ll address that in my next post. Stay tuned.
Thanks for reading and for your patience between posts. I handed in the first draft of my next book on misogyny, Love the Women, last week. and yes, I feel both relieved and exhausted.
I am keeping my posts free but should any of you feel generous I would welcome your financial support. You can do that under the subscribe option.
Header image by Charles Jacque, 1849, via public domain.
I’m from the Deep South where there are many, many Chik-Fil-As that are closed on Sundays. How bout that for sabbath? Leaving the crazy system of money and fast food for one whole day - and being successful anyway. Sounds like God to me.
There are many good reasons to rest, but I'm thankful that I am no longer under the law. "There remains then a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for anyone who enters God's rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his." Hebrews 4:9-10