How To: Keep Shabbat in a non-shomer Shabbat environment

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1 How To: Keep Shabbat in a non-shomer Shabbat environment Created by Emily Mostow USY Religion/Education IGB fun things to do on Shabbat 1. Catch up with your friends over a Shabbos walk. 2. Look through old photo albums. 3. Take a nap. 4. Play Top Chef. Go through your kitchen and make marvelous combinations of cold foods to discover a new snack! 5. Read a book that you wouldn t have time to read during the school week. 6. Do yoga. If you don t know how, print out instructions before Shabbat instead of using a video. 7. Look through old mementos. Shabbat-o- Grams are always entertaining! 8. Read a magazine. Find one with a quiz! 9. Learn about something Jewish. 10. Play Bananagrams. Also try playing with a theme, such as making all the words USY-related! 11. Play tennis. 12. Read the comics. 13. Play British Rock Band: sing your favorite rock songs in a British accent. 14. Shoot hoops. 15. Sing zemirot, songs for 16. Look at old yearbooks. Check out your parents, too! 17. Play Set. 18. Hang out with USYers! Most of these can be done alone, with friends, or with family! Shabbat is a gift. It s an entire day of the week that s set aside just for rest, reflection, and joy. It s a time to forget about all of the complexities of the week, and let life be simple. But when you live in an environment that is not shomer Shabbat, sometimes, keeping Shabbat seems anything but simple. Regardless, even outside of a shomer Shabbat community, Shabbat can be the best day of the week! This guide is here to help you get the most out of your Shabbat experience while balancing laws with sensitivity to your surroundings. Flip through the headers to see which ones apply to your Shabbat experience. The purpose of this guide is NOT to convince you to take on new observances. However, if you are interested in observing Shabbat or already do so, and find yourself struggling to do so in your environment, this guide will help! What s Inside? Walking Tips whether you walk to shul or you re just taking a stroll, tips for any weather or time of day If you don t have an eruv if you don t carry outside of one, these tips will help! Haven t heard of an eruv? Turn the page for an explanation! Chapter Events for Shabbat looking for someone to share your Shabbat experience with? Share it with your chapter! Tips on hanging out with friends on Shabbat Lights if you don t turn them on/off on Shabbat, here are some helpful strategies for you and your family to consider! Food don t eat food that was cooked on Shabbat? Tips to make it easier! Family great ways to include your family in your Shabbat experience!

2 If you re walking on a hot day Walking Tips If you re walking on a cold day If you re walking at night The earlier you start walking, the cooler it will be outside. Try to walk on streets with shade. Hint: Wear shoes that are both sturdy for walking and nice for shul. You ll avoid both blisters and having to switch shoes. Naot are great! Wear layers. You might get hot while walking. Girls: Wear tights under skirts/dresses. On very cold days, wear sweatpants and take them off at shul. Wear hat, gloves, scarf, and warm socks. Your fingers, toes, and ears will get the coldest. Wear a reflective vest. Walk on the left side of the road so you can see oncoming traffic. Try to stick to streets with more people. If you don t use electricity, use a glow-stick instead of a flashlight. What s an Eruv? According to Jewish law, carrying outside of a private domain is prohibited on Therefore, many Jewish communities put up an eruv, a string or wire that marks an enclosure around a community and designates it as private domain so that Jews may carry inside of it on If you don t have an Eruv: If you don t carry outside of an eruv on Shabbat and you aren t inside one, it can be tricky to avoid carrying. If this applies to you, here are some tips that can help! Wear your house key on a chain around your neck. If you re at a USY convention and you have programs, a folder, etc., leave them at the synagogue overnight. Drop off your nice shoes at shul before Shabbat starts. Wear comfortable shoes to walk, and change when you get there. If you have a tallit that you do not wear during the week and your shul doesn t mind, store it at shul for

3 Chapter Events on Shabbat A great way to make Shabbat a more social experience is to encourage your chapter to have programs on Both you and your chapter will have a better Shabbat experience. Here are some ideas for chapter events on Shabbat: Open Lounge: If you have a youth lounge at your synagogue, open it after services for your chapter to schmooze. Friday Night Dinner: This classic Jewish pastime is a great way for your chapter to relax and reconnect after a hectic week. Start out with Kabbalat Shabbat and Maariv, and follow up with ruach after dessert! Board Game Tournaments: Whether in your youth lounge or at someone s house, board game tournaments on Shabbat afternoon are relaxing and fun. Frisbee League: Have a Frisbee League for your chapter that plays on Shabbat afternoon. Most of these events are easy to organize, lowbudget, and work with any number of people! Make any of them a regular event. USY Services: Entice your USY friends to come to shul with a USY service made just for them. Seudah Shlishit and Slow Ruach: Have it at a house in walking distance. Have seudah shlishit, sing slow ruach songs, and stay until Havdalah. (These events are especially handy when Shabbat ends late.) Jews Around the World: Put a spin on traditional Shabbat dinner by having a theme of a different country. Eat food from the country and learn about Jewish communities that live/d there. Lunch and Learn: After services, have lunch with a rabbi or scholar and learn about a Jewish topic. Follow up with open lounge!

4 Fun tips for hanging out with friends on Shabbat 1. Invite a friend to sleep over. If you walk to shul, you ll have company the next day. You ll also have someone to hang out with Friday night, especially on weeks when Shabbat starts early. 2. Remind your friends of any lights that you intend to keep on for all of Shabbat (if you don t use lights.) 3. Plan ahead. 4. If you did not make plans before Shabbat, invite friends at synagogue to hang out afterwards. 5. Walk over to your friend s house and ask them to hang out. You ll get a nice walk and possibly company out of it. 6. If you have plans with a friend, set a Shabbat clock before Shabbat just in case you decide to take a nap. If you don t turn on/off lights on Shabbat: Tips to help you make sure you have the lights you need for Many Conservative Jews use electricity on Shabbat, and many do not. Both are valid opinions of the Conservative movement. If you do not feel comfortable using electricity on Shabbat, here are some tips to make it easier! Leave on your closet light. Open it to get ready for shul, close it to take a nap. Use nightlights! Whether in hallways, bathrooms, stairwells, or anywhere you need just enough light to see, nightlights take a lot less energy than main lights! Remember! These tips are only tips. Do what works best for you and your family. Observe and Conserve! Timers are a great way to save energy instead of leaving a light on all of Plus, it makes it easier to have the light you need when you need it! Host Home How-To Communicate with your family! The lights you leave on affect them, too! Also, if they use lights, it ll help them remember to leave the lights that you need on. Don't forget to leave a light on in the bathroom! If you do turn on/off lights on Shabbat: That s fine, too! In the Conservative Movement, we have Tshuvot, or Responsa, about different issues like using lights on Oftentimes, the Rabbinical Assembly has voted more than one opinion valid. Talk to your Rabbi about this issue and explore your opinion on it! Before Shabbat begins, ask your hosts which lights are okay to leave on. Remember that it may not be their custom not to turn on/off lights on Shabbat, so please be understanding and considerate.

5 Benefitting from food that is cooked on Shabbat The traditional laws of Shabbat are based on 39 Avot Melacha, original jobs that were done while building the Tabernacle. Two of them are cooking and baking. The Rabbis determined laws surrounding these original ones from the Torah. Regarding cooking and baking, they determined that Jews may not benefit from food that is cooked on If you do not feel comfortable eating food that was cooked on Shabbat, here are some tips to help you avoid it! If your parents do not keep Shabbat, this can be hard to follow. Keep in mind the mitzvah of kibud av v em, respect your father and mother. Respecting your parents while not eating food that was cooked on Shabbat can be a challenge, but you can do your best to respect your parents by openly and honestly discussing how your observation of this mitzvah can realistically be carried out in your household. Below are some helpful strategies that might make your observance easier for your family to accommodate. REMEMBER: These tips are only tips! Do what works best for you and your family. Cook Shabbat dinner. Your parents will be thrilled, and you can make sure dinner is cooked before Eat cold. Find recipes for really great cold meals, and plan your meals ahead. Plan to start dinner before Shabbat officially starts. It s fine to bring in Shabbat early, and that way even if not everything is ready when you arrive, you can wait to bring in Shabbat until it is. Make cholent. This traditional Jewish stew stays warm in a crock pot all of Eat lunch at synagogue. If your shul has a Kiddush luncheon, take advantage of it! Use a hot plate. It can be kept on low heat all of Shabbat for warming food. How To: Involve your family in your Shabbat experience Note: These are just ideas! The whole point is for your family to feel comfortable, NOT to impose on them. Make a special recipe for Help clean the house for Have Friday night dinner together. Go to synagogue together. If you walk, invite them to walk with you! Play a game together. Sing zemirot, Shabbat songs, together. If your family doesn t know the songs, teach them! Have a good Shabbos! Invite your family to join you for Havdalah.