Page 28 - Jewish News _August 2021_

28A August 2021 JEWISH INTEREST

K’zohar Ha-Ivrit Aging Jewishly – What our traditions teach us about growing old

Shemesh – Sun Reclaiming Shabbat

By Dr. Rachel Zohar Dulin By Rabbi Barbara Aiello
SUPPORT
Friendship at Home ummer is here. When we think redundancy of events in the universe
Financial Stability of summer, we associate the sea- and the futility of it all, he used shemesh
In-home Support Sson with fun under the sun. After to express these thoughts using the
Home Delivered Meals the harsh year we all experienced due well-known adage ein cha-dash ta-
Educational Programs
to Covid, it is even more refreshing chat ha-shemesh, there is nothing new
CAREGIVING to experience activities outside, never under the sun. (Ecc1:9) Nevertheless,
Caregiver Resource Centers forgetting that the sun’s energy allows being a pragmatist, he realized that this
Adult Day Care Programs us to enjoy and to heal. is the way of the world, ve-za-rach ha-
Support Groups
Educational Programs In Hebrew, there are two words for shemesh u-vah ha-shemesh, or, the sun
sun: chamah and rises and the sun sets. (Ecc 1:5) This is
HEALTH & WELLNESS shemesh. The bib- the reality as time goes on.
Senior Centers lical writers pre- Another word for shemesh in
Friendship Cafés ferred the word Hebrew is chamah. Although men-
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Balance Movement shemesh, which tioned six times in the Bible, chamah
Lifelong Learning appears 135 times is found mainly in the Mishnah. It is
in the Text. It is derived from the verb ch.m.m meaning
friendshipcenters.org | 941.955.2122 probably derived warm or hot. Chamah is at the center
from the verb of expressions like yemot ha-chamah,
SARASOTA VENICE sh.m.sh meaning days of sun, a poetic name for sum-
1888 Brother Geenen Way 2350 Scenic Drive Dr. Rachel Dulin serve, busy, in- mer (Pe-ah 2:1); dim-du-may chamah,
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dustrious and quick. Most likely the glimmers of sun, referring to the dim
word points to the quick movement of sunlight of early dawn or evening twi-
the shemesh across the heavens and its light (Yerushalmi P’sachim 31:3); and
sh’-ki-at ha-chamah, or sunset, the
effect on the environment. In the Bible,
REPORT unlike its pagan surroundings, shemesh time that marks the entrance of Shab-
bat. (Shabbat 34)
is not a deity, but rather a celestial body
Examples of other expressions in
created by God on the fourth day of
IT! creation. In the story of creation, the Hebrew centered on the shemesh are
ma-a-re-khet ha-she-mesh, referring
shemesh was called Ha-ma-or Ha-ga-
dol, the great luminary, and its function
was “to shine upon the earth,” “to dom- to the entire interplanetary system, all
the stars, moons, planets, etc., of the
i
a
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h
o
u
i
c
s be
s
u s
e
o
I If you see suspicious behavior inate the day … and to separate light heavens (ma-a-re-khet means system);
f y
e s
u
o
r
i
or
i
t
t
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iv
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c
or activities, report it: : from darkness.” (Gen 1:17-18) leh-eh-nay ha-shemesh, literally, at the
or
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t
r
e
p
,
i
e
s
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It is interesting to look at the place sun’s eyes, meaning in broad daylight
JFEDSRQ.org/SRQSafe of shemesh in the wisdom literature of (II Sam 12:11); and, last but not least,
the Bible, particularly in the Book of the expression ba-rur ka-shemesh, or
Ecclesiastes. Here, shemesh appears 31 clear as the sun, another way to say
times, 20 of which are used in the ex- without a doubt. (Sanhedrin 72)
pression ta-chat ha-shemesh, namely, I wish to end our short survey
under the sun, as the writer emphasized around the shemesh with the poignant
the reality of the world, the way he un- observation of the Israeli poetess
derstood it. So, for example, ein yitron Leah Goldberg. For her, unlike Ec-
ta-chat ha-shemesh means that there is clesiastes, kol yom cha-dash ta-chat
no real value under the sun, expressing ha-shemesh, every day is a new day
the futility of the pursuit of riches. (Ecc under the sun, every day is fresh and
2:11) fulfilling. May we all be blessed with
Moreover, Ecclesiastes observed the ability to enjoy every day under the
that the reality is that yesh ra-a asher shemesh.
A N A ra-i-ti ta-chat ha-shemesh, there is an Dr. Rachel Zohar Dulin is a professor
H T O evil I observed under the sun, describ- of biblical literature at Spertus Col-
S may this V ing the grievous ill of working hard and lege in Chicago, and a retired adjunct
'
L A succeeding, yet later being robbed by professor of Hebrew and Bible at New
year be filled with strangers. (Ecc 6:1-3) And even more College in Sarasota.
so when Ecclesiastes bemoaned the
love, peace, happiness and
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