Once upon a time, in a land far different to where we live
today, people didn't go shopping on Sundays. None of the shops were open. They
didn't go on the internet. The internet didn't exist. Instead they ate dinner
or lunch around something called a dining room table and participated in the
strange custom of enjoying each other's company. And this didn't involve
Facebook or Twitter or text messages or Skype. Instead, they enjoyed each
other's company face-to-face.
While we may laugh at these strange customs of people long
ago and far different to ourselves, they actually had a reason for this Sunday
behaviour. They found that reason in the bible, more specifically in the Ten
Commandments. They actually took the fourth commandment, to remember the
Sabbath day and keep it holy, seriously.
Of course we realise now how silly that was. Because who
wants to obey one of God's commandments when you can shop?
But would our lives really be any worse if we got back to
the fourth commandment? I suggest they would be much better. The Ten
Commandments aren't there just because God felt like making a few rules up.
They are for our own good. And that includes the fourth commandment, arguably
the most neglected commandment of the lot.
Our lives are filled with so much 'doing'. The Sabbath gives
us permission to simply 'be', to enjoy each moment as it comes instead of
racing off to check the next item off the to-do list. You are more present for
the people around you, rather than seeing them as a distraction or an obstacle.
You are also more present to what's around you. You are free to enjoy the trees
and the birds and the sun and the flowers when they're more than just scenery
on the way to your next appointment. These moments of just 'being' are
important for our souls.
Keeping a Sabbath day also gives us time to reconnect with
the family and those that are important to us. Today more than ever, many of us
spend most of our time away from other members of the household. We work in
different places. We fill up our leisure time with various activities. A family
needs more than just blood ties and a common roof. It needs time of connection
and communication. It needs time to just 'be' in each other's presence.
Furthermore, ignoring the Sabbath is bad for the earth. One
more day where we can shop is one more day where we're likely to buy things
that we don't need. Is there anything that important that it can't wait until
Monday before we purchase it? Is the world really going to fall apart if
there's one day when we can't shop? I would love to see all shops close again
on Sundays. It seems ridiculous, when we know the ecological damage our
lifestyles cause, to stick to this idea of having the shops open as long and as
often as possible. If we went back to no Sunday trading, not only would it
enable a lot of people to spend time at home with their family instead of at
work, but it would cut down 'boredom-spending'. I'm sure that most of the
things that are bought on Sundays are only purchased because people want
something to 'do'. They've lost the ability to simply 'be'.
It's interesting that the fourth commandment tells us not
only to rest ourselves on the Sabbath, but that all of our family, all of our
workers, the stranger within our gates and even the cattle are to rest. The
commandment is not just for us. It's for everyone - including the animals. I
would suggest that the Sabbath is also for the earth.
The earth needs a chance to just 'be' as well. And when we
let the earth just 'be' and let ourselves just 'be' in the earth, we gain
something that can never be gained by 'doing' things and by 'using' the earth.
The bible is full of verses that tell us that the earth
shows us something of God. Just one instance of this is Romans 1:20, where Paul tells us that men have
no excuse for not knowing God, for he can be seen in the things he has made.
And yet I think we miss out on a lot of that. Creation may be telling us about
God. But we're not hearing it because we're too busy to pay attention. Just
'being' in nature gives us the space and the opportunity to really listen to
what it has to say.
We make such huge demands on the earth's resources all the
time. Imagine if we used the Sabbath to actually give the earth a break. Switch
off the mobile phone and the computer. Use as least electricity as possible.
Don't drive and don't shop. If everybody did this for just one day a week, it
would reduce our impact on the earth.
And it would actually improve our lives in the process.
Without technology and the malls demanding our attention, we would be free to
give our attention to what really matters - our God, our family, our earth and
our souls.
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