Greeting the Sabbath at Home

Yesterday evening for the first time since May, I was not in synagogue to greet the Sabbath with my unofficially adopted summer congregation, Central Reform Congregation. I missed being with them, and, so, welcomed Shabbat on my own while thinking of my CRC family.

I lighted candles, gathered the light to myself, covered my eyes and sang the blessing:

ברוך אתה ה' אלוהינו מלך העולם,
אשר קדשנו במצותיו וצונו להדליק נר של שבת.‏

Baruch atah Adonai
Eloheinu, Melech haolam, 
asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav,
v’tzivanu l’hadlik ner shel Shabbat.

I sang it in the form composed by my friend Leslie Caplan, a cantor at CRC, but I missed the tone and timbre of her voice. The candle light was warm and lovely.

Now here's a bit of interfaith recycling at work: the candles were left over from last December's Advent wreath. One purple, one pink. To borrow from the Christians, purple (violet) is the liturgical color of repentance/ tashuvah while pink (rose) is the color of rejoicing/ simchah. I like the pairing of the two. Not unlike the drinking of sweet wine and the breaking of a glass in Jewish weddings - the pairing of joy and sorrow, bane and blessing, pain and pleasure. Besides, the pink and purple candles are just pretty together.

I don't have candlesticks - several chanukiot, yes, a silver candelabrum, a single Romanian-crystal candlestick, and a Kosta Boda tealight, but not a set for just two candles - so I used champagne flutes with enough kosher salt to hold the candles upright.

I kept hearing the V'Shamru running through my head, its text taken from Exodus 31:16-17, a reiteration of the everlasting covenant of the Sabbath. I especially kept hearing Leslie's voice singing the "Beini u’vein b’nei Yisrael" part.

Pancakes instead of challah...