Moving Forward

Shavuah Tov! Wishing you a very good week.

I am sending my rabbi’s message a little later than normal, so to talk about Havdalah, the beautiful tradition of ending Shabbat or a holiday with a short ceremony featuring a braided candle, spices and wine or grape juice. The particulars of the ceremony, although lovely, and the details of how it is celebrated concern me less than Havdalah’s overall function and purpose.

Havdalah means “separation.” The ceremony gives an implicit message: Time and experiences are not just one long continuum, but rather can be broken into units and given purpose and meaning. To me, Havdalah means intentional living. It means sometimes saying good-bye to the past and moving onto the future. It means that negative patterns and experiences can have an end point, that we can learn and grow and move beyond the past to a better tomorrow.

Each symbol of Havdalah is imbued with meaning. For example, the spices used during Havdalah symbolize us bringing the sweetness of Shabbat into the week. The spices remind us that we choose the best from the past and bring it forward, hopefully leaving the negative behind. A second example - The braided candle reminds us of our human connections. Like the candles hugging and supporting each other, we live in community, in family, in friendship to support one another.

This Shabbat’s Torah portion is called Lech Lechi – go forth. In the portion, Abraham and Sarah leave their home and go out in the world, dreaming of a better future. Havdalah is similar – it is about leaving the familiar and moving into the unknown with hope.

I wish you a very good week. A week of peace, health, contentment and new beginnings.

Rabbi Cohen