Rabbi's Corner

This Shabbat is known as “Shabbat Nachamu,” “The Sabbath of Comforting,” the name coming from the first word of this week’s Haftarah. From this week’s parashah, Parashat Va-Et’Channan, we read the following: “And you shall remember that you were a slave in the Land of Egypt, and HaShem, your G-d, took you out from there, with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm; therefore, Hashem, your G-d, has commanded you to make the Day of Shabbat.” (Devarim 5:15) In the days of the Holy Temple, may it be rebuilt speedily in our day, the head of the Beit Din (Rabbinical Court) had the power to declare when the months and the holidays would fall according to the deliberations of the members of the Beit Din. Notwithstanding this unique power they possessed given to them by Hashem, Shabbat remained Shabbat, forever being on the seventh day of the week (Saturday). With this in mind, we must ask how could Hashem command B’Nei Yisrael (the Children of Israel) to “make” Shabbat? Only HaShem could “make” Shabbat and he already had done so prior to Creation. To answer this, the following parable is offered for your consideration:

A great King ruled over 127 lands. After conquering his enemies, he decided to build the most magnificent palace the world had ever seen. The palace was erected on a hill and built of white marble and gold. It glittered in the sun from miles away. The palace’s exquisite interior was decorated with the finest silk tapestries from the Far East as well as solid mahogany furnishings from the Philippines. The King spared no expense in making the royal residence one of the great wonders of the world.

More than anything, the King loved his tropical gardens. He planned an intricate and magnificent series of miniature paradises, having the continent’s foremost landscape architects and zoological and botanical experts implement his plans. Over the period of 6 years, they designed and built a royal haven that was beyond the wildest dreams of any seeker of natural beauty.

The gardens were organized into a successive series of individual microclimates, each one representing a different area of the kingdom. One garden had thick leafy tropical plants with exotic fruit. A second garden had a flowing mountain-type stream filled with rainbow trout. A third garden resembled an African jungle while a fourth garden consisted of a series of ponds filled with exotic fish and covered in lily pads. As one proceeded into the fifth garden, he found deer, gazelles, and angora rabbits roaming the grounds without fear. The sixth garden contained literally thousands of specimens of the world’s rarest flowers in all their splendor. But it was the seventh garden, the one that contained tropical birds, that was the King’s favorite. He invited the world’s leading aviculturists to send him rare species, and he was willing to pay any price for these rare birds that he loved.

After 6 years of hard work, the King – escorted by the members of the royal staff who were charged with maintaining the gardens – devoted an entire day of inspecting his “Haven of Heaven” on earth. He found everything perfect. As he inspected the seventh garden, he came upon the rarest of birds, a grandiose long-tailed peacock from China which cost him a million gold pieces. He then spotted a rare blue-and-red cockatoo from Ceylon which cost twice that much. However, in spite of the fact that this seventh garden was truly magnificent, something inexplicable was missing. The King turned to the royal aviculturist and said: “My heart tells me that a certain species is missing from this aviary. I find everything to be lovely, a delight to my eyes. But I do not feel the joy I should be feeling from this, my favorite garden. What could be lacking?” The royal aviculturist replied; “It is true, your Majesty, something is missing. I wanted to purchase a pair of extremely rare nightingales from the Vale of Sharon, but they cost 5 million gold pieces, more than double that of the Ceylonese cockatoo.” The King asked: “Why so expensive? Aren’t nightingales half as beautiful as the cockatoo or the peacock?” The royal aviculturist answered: “They are known to have the sweetest song imaginable, your Majesty. Nothing can imitate them.” “Are they worth the price?’ the King inquired. “In my humble opinion, your Majesty,” answered the royal aviculturist, “most certainly they are worth the price. Your Majesty will feel as though the Archangels will have descended into the garden when you hear them sing.” “The money is yours!” exclaimed the King. “Bring them immediately no matter what the expense!”

After the nightingales were purchased and placed in the King’s favorite garden, the King began spending all of his time among the birds. The delight of the nightingales’ sweet harmonies was greater than anything the King had ever heard before. Because in their songs they canted the King’s praise, a completely new dimension was created in the King’s entire array of gardens. With the singing of the nightingales, the King’s gardens were finally complete.

Our tradition teaches that HaShem takes indescribable pleasure in the zemirot (songs) that B’nei Yisrael sing at the Shabbat table. Because our singing of Hashem’s praises on Shabbat is what “makes” Shabbat, we truly do have the power to fulfill the mitzvah (command) given to us from Hashem that is found in the verse I quoted.

Especially on this Shabbat, Shabbat Nachamu, may our Shabbat zemirot be filled with praises of Hashem as well as comfort for H-s people.