Day 2 ~ Calendar~Another Shin

Life in Israel revolves around G-d in one fashion or another. Seen and unseen. Known and unknown. Acknowledged and ignored. There are daily practices that have their roots in the Torah (Bible) and have become 'just the way we do things'. One of these is our weekly calendar.

In the West, the names of the days of the week ~ Sunday thru Saturday~ are all named after pagan gods. These names have lost their meaning over time and use. Never-the-less, knowing the root, every time we say these names we are in essence giving these gods credence and acknowledgment of  'their' day. This naming of our days after false gods is one of the many byproducts of our assimilation into a Hellenistic culture.

 In Hebrew, the names of the days of the week follow the example in Genesis (בְּרֵאשִׁית). When G-d created the world, it is documented that the days were numbered~ First Day, Second Day, Third Day, Fourth Day, Fifth Day, Sixth Day. The Hebrew calendar is a counting calendar. Counting up to what?  Counting off the days to the reason all the other days exist.  The only day of the week with a proper name. Shabbat! 

In Hebrew, each letter is also a number.   aleph = 1. bet = 2 gimel =3 dalet =4 hay=5 vav=6   When the calendar is abbreviated it looks like this: (remember: Hebrew is read from right-to-left)

א ב ג ד ה ו ש

The seventh letter in this list is representing the first letter in the word Shabbat (ש ב ת)  
The shin.  Once again there is a counting up to Shabbat.  And the wonderful reminder to those who have eyes to see it~ the abbreviation for Shabbat is that lovely shin~ the letter of G-d's Name. In this way we have a reminder that G-d has placed His name on this Day of all Days. The epicenter of our weekly lives. The focus of our labors and efforts. The Shabbat.

Reminders abound in the Land of G-d's great love for His people and His desire to be involved in every aspect of our daily lives.... even to the shin on our calendar.