Confessions of a Jewish Women

So, I have a confession to make. But I’ll get to that in a minute. First, I have to explain why my confession is relevant.

Ahem. Tonight at exactly 4:54pm the sun will set and Shabbat begins.  Shabbat is the Jewish Sabbath, our Holy day, our Day of Rest. If you’re still not following, Shabbat is to the Jewish people what Sunday is to most observant Christians. It begins at sundown on Friday evening and ends the following sundown on Saturday.  This is how we measure our days- from sunset to sunset.  Yes, this is confusing. But hey, I didn’t make the rules. 

A lot of stuff happens on Shabbat. A lot of stuff is also not happening on Shabbat. But that’s for a future post. This post is about the lighting of the Shabbat candles.  Which is, to be honest, my favorite part of Shabbat. (That’s not my confession by the way). 

The Shabbat candles are most commonly associated with the image of a woman, hair covered, waving her hands over said candles, then covering her face and reciting a blessing in Hebrew. Observe.

Thank you bje.org.au for the pic.

If you are thinking to yourself, “what the crap”, it’s cool.  Just keep reading.

The candles are traditionally lit at least 18 minutes before sundown.  This is to make sure that we aren’t breaking the prohibition in Torah (the first five books of the Bible) of lighting an open flame on Shabbat. It’s one of those, "thou-shalt-not- commandments." We cover our hair for a variety of different reasons.  For me, it keeps me humble. It’s a respect thing.  We wave our hands inwards, typically 3 times, over the candles to usher in the presence of the Shabbat. Some believe it’s carried in by the Sabbath Queen, for others, angels carry in the joy of Shabbat on their wings.  I just know that in those moments, as I’m waving my hands over the candles, I’m definitely bringing something into my home that is absent the rest of the week.  

On the third wave, we bring our hands up to our face, cover our eyes and recite the blessing:

“Barukh atah Adonai Eloheinu melekh ha'olam asher kid'shanu b'mitzvotav v'tzivanu l'hadlik ner shel shabbat."

Which translates to:
Blessed are You, Lord our G-d, Ruler of the Universe, who has sanctified us with commandments, and commanded us to light Shabbat candles. 

Then Shabbat Shalom’s all around. We feast, talk, sing, drink, and hold one hell of a Torah study.

Now, we get to my confession. Brace yourself….I don’t actually say this blessing.  Don’t panic. I know the blessing, I can say the blessing. Buuut, I don’t.

What I do say is this:
"Barukh atah Adonai Eloheinu melekh ha'olam asher kid'shanu b'mitzvotav v'tzivanu shamor v’zachor et yom haShabbat."

Or if you prefer:
Blessed are You, Lord our G-d, Ruler of the Universe, who has sanctified us with commandments, and commanded us to keep and remember the Shabbat.

You see there isn’t actually a commandment written in Torah that tells us we have to light the Shabbat candles. It’s a tradition, with a hundred different explanations each more beautiful than the last. However, it is written quite specifically that we are to “keep” and “remember” Shabbat (Exodus 20:8; Deuteronomy 5:12). I’m just a stickler for things like that.  Regardless, the candles are an expression of abstract and vague commands done in a physical way that speaks to our human nature. At least I think so. 

Lighting the Shabbos candles connects me to the divine, and connects me to thousands of other Jewish women around the world who are lighting their own candles, in their own way, at the same time.  It’s beautiful.

(Cue the somber music so you know I’m getting ready to say something profound).

Maybe tonight try lighting your own candles and usher in something wondrous of your own however you experience the divine.  Wave your hands at your own expense though. Burns hurt.