Thursday, January 19, 2023

The Collapse LXXXVIII: The Sabbath

20 April 20XX +1

My Dear Lucilius:

Another Sunday has come and gone. Yes, I went to church yet again (once again, the pews were full). Yes, I may or may not have had another brunch with Young Xerxes and Statiera and her mother (whom, apparently, I rather had come up with her own name, it appears). After that, the day was spent with what would have been formerly called “puttering”, but now probably goes more by the moniker “surviving” – tasks at hand in the greenhouse and in The Cabin proper to get ready for what I am hopeful will finally turn over into a useful Spring.

The fine thing about such small level tasks is that it allows the mind to work while the body is performing useful tasks. With nothing but time (and small tasks) on my mind, I found myself how I was spending my time on this Sunday, specifically on the concept of a Sabbath.

One of the great discussion we had once was on the Sabbath. I wonder if you recall it now: it was early Summer when the heat had still not arrived. We had both had our cider – perhaps a little more than we should have! - and were discussing our understanding of Sunday worship. You were ardently arguing your side and your practice, I was ardently arguing mine. What we came to an agreement on was that 1) Worship should always be part of the Sabbath; and 2) Rest should be some part of the Sabbath. We quibbled on what else fell into the “do/not do” category: I tried to abstain from electronics which you thought was no different from listening to the radio while driving to or from worship, you abstained from significant outside efforts, which I viewed as the opportunity to “get things done”.

I recalled that discussion as I went about my tasks in the cool wind (oh, but Spring is coming Lucilius. I know it), looking back towards the small town I have called home now for some years with the drifting smoke and sounds of children playing outside and dogs barking and the muffled sounds of work. What, I wondered, is the place of the Sabbath in this new world we find ourselves in?

One can argue that we face a similar situation as the Israelites (anciently) or sub-populations like the Mennonites (more recently) in that we are rapidly finding ourselves in an agricultural/survival environment. If no-one paid attention to St. Paul’s admonition “He who does not work, let him not eat” before, I doubt there are any disbelievers now. The amount of effort to do the things needed for survival is now a never ending, 7 day a week sort of job where daylight means the opportunity to get more done or in place.

What place, then, has the Sabbath?

For three weeks running now I have attended church (something I have not done regularly in years) and attended a meal with others. By the time we were done it was perhaps 1 PM. At this time of year, I easily still have 6-7 hours of useful daylight left. What part of that should be used as the other days of the week, and what other part in rest and refreshment?

I suspect it is a sliding scale of course: some times there is much to be done (and that can be done), sometimes there is little. But what occurs to me is that every Sabbath, it is valuable to take at least some time – 30 minutes, an hour – and simply “rest”. Rest, of course, to me is reading or writing; to you it was sitting and listening to your beloved radio programs. It is probably different for everyone. But I think the kernel of the practice, even in these times, is to set aside some period where we are to turn away – however briefly – from the vicissitudes of the world and seek some quiet and inner enjoyment.

We were such a busy society before, always spending every minute of the day doing things. Our relaxation often became just another task we had to accomplish. I wonder, Lucilius, how our view of that has changed now.

Your Obedient Servant,

Seneca

15 comments:

  1. Nylon126:33 AM

    Find my blood pressure rising some when I started rereading this thread from the start, not complaining mind you but realizing how that path could so easily be set up by the powers that be. Watching podcasts are today's equivalent of sitting down to listen to the radio decades ago. Might as well read, the snow won't stop until later today.....(sigh)

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    1. Nylon12, the fact that in some odd way I seem to have had a moment of prescience about the future gives me no joy. On the bright side, glad I could fill your day!

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  2. Reading is my choice on the Sabbath. I sometimes get some writing in if the computer is not being used by my kids.

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    1. That is part of my routine as well Ed. My biggest challenge seems to be less computer time (but not necessarily writing on the computer time).

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  3. Anonymous12:38 PM

    Happy to see Lucilius and Seneca back again.

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    1. From amount Seneca seems to have to say to me, I think he is glad to be back as well.

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  4. It is perhaps only coincidence that a recent sermon at my wife's church was a deep dive analysis of the Gospel passage where Jesus healed a blind man on the Sabbath, and the authorities were giving him a bad time for it.
    Seneca's meditation on the subject is well worth pondering. I have often puzzled over the ancient practice of a seven day week with a Sabbath to mark each week. When I retired and all my time is mine, I did want to mark a Sabbath time by something not done during the labors of the week however I spend my time. Even if it's only a period of quiet time to meditate and contemplate. Thank you for addressing the ideas.

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    1. Greg - In my experience my coincidences have been anything but random.

      The sermon you relate is an important point: God says not "do nothing" on the Sabbath, but turn aside from your regularly scheduled programming (and by all means, do good if possible). In a 100% pre-modern agricultural society it would have looked very much like spending time with family and perhaps friends in contemplation (one reads of many children in the 1800's who recall growing up "just sitting" on the Sabbath) and enjoyment. I think the big point is that we are to mark it somehow as separate from our normal activities.

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  5. Blaise Pascal: “All of man’s misfortune comes from one thing, which is not knowing how to sit quietly in a room”

    I think that's from the Pensees. If you haven't read it, you should.

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    1. Forgot to put my Wilder face on.

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    2. John - I have read Pensees, but it has been years and years. It is on the list for re-reads. And it amazes me how many people cannot do that simple act of sitting quietly alone in a room - in fact, I would argue our modern technological busy society has made it worse.

      If helpful, I often misplace my face. Makes it a bit awkward at the checkout counter...

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  6. Good to see an update, TB. Are you and Seneca working out when you need to be preparing?
    Thank you, TB.
    You all be safe and God bless.

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    1. Linda, the amount of conversation I have with Seneca might cause some to question my sanity. Certainly he has been an excellent advisor when I am not willing to answer the questions myself.

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  7. Seneca and Lucilius have an unbidden gift of time that I suspect changes ones perception of "rest" on the Sabbath. With a hands-on lifestyle, a day to rest one's physical being becomes more obvious. I'm not sure that the modern concept of church busy-ness has anything to do with rest, because it seems to focus on activity rather than contemplation (as discussed in your "Lectio Divina: Meditatio and Comtempatio" post!). On the other hand, getting the mental busy-ness to stop is another matter!

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    1. Leigh, if I reach back into my childhood memories, I remember we went to church and often had lunch together, but then the afternoon was ours. Earlier we would entertain ourselves, later we would spend the day doing homework. My father would most do things that enjoyed - which meant working around the house or up at The Ranch.

      Shutting my mind down is a tough thing to do also.

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