We are commanded to remember Shavath; but remembering means much more than merely not forgetting to observe Shavath. It also means to remember the significance of Shavath, both as a commemoration of creation and as a commemoration of our freedom from slavery in Egypt. In Exodus 20:11, after Fourth Commandment is first instituted, G-d explains, "because for six days, the L-rd made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and on the seventh day, he rested; therefore, the L-rd blessed the Shavath day and sanctified it." By resting on the seventh day and sanctifying it, we remember and acknowledge that G-d is the creator of heaven and earth and all living things. We also emulate the divine example, by refraining from work on the seventh day, as G-d did. If G-d's work can be set aside for a day of rest, how can we believe that our own work is too important to set aside temporarily? In Deuteronomy 5:15, while Moses reiterates the Ten Commandments, he notes the second thing that we must remember on Shavath: "remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the L-rd, your G-d brought you forth from there with a might hand and with an outstretched arm; therefore the L-rd your G-d commanded you to observe the Shavath day." What does the Exodus have to do with resting on the seventh day? It's all about freedom. As I said before, in ancient times, leisure was confined to certain classes; slaves did not get days off. Thus, by resting on Shavath, we are reminded that we are free. But in a more general sense, Shavath frees us from our weekday concerns, from our deadlines and schedules and commitments. During the week, we are slaves to our jobs, to our creditors, to our need to provide for ourselves; on Shavath, we are freed from these concerns, much as our ancestors were freed from slavery in Egypt. We remember these two meanings of Shavath when we recite kiddush (the prayer over wine sanctifying Shavath or a holiday). Friday night kiddush refers to Shavath as both zikkaron l'ma'aseh bereishith (a memorial of the work in the beginning) and zeicher litzi'ath mitzrayim (a remembrance of the exodus from Egypt).

Of course, no discussion of Shavath would be complete without a discussion of the work that is forbidden on Shavath. This is another aspect of Shavath that is grossly misunderstood by people who do not observe it. One thing must be understood. The Thorah does not prohibit "work" in the 20th century English sense of the word. The Thorah prohibits "melachah" (Mem-Lamed-Alef-Kaf-Heh), which is usually translated as "work," but does not mean precisely the same thing as the English word. Melachah generally refers to the kind of work that is creative, or that exercises control or dominion over your environment. The quintessential example of melachah is the work of creating the universe, which G-d ceased from on the seventh day. Note that G-d's work did not require a great physical effort: he spoke, and it was done. The word melachah is rarely used in scripture outside of the context of Shavath and holiday restrictions. The only other repeated use of the word is in the discussion of the building of the sanctuary and its vessels in the wilderness. Exodus Ch. 31, 35-38. Notably, the Shavath restrictions are reiterated during this discussion (Ex. 31:13), thus we can infer that the work of creating the sanctuary had to be stopped for Shavath. The Reveim found 39 categories of forbidden acts which were outlines as forbidden in the construction of the Sanctuary. Sowing Plowing Reaping Binding sheaves Threshing Winnowing Selecting Grinding Sifting Kneading Baking Shearing wool Washing wool Beating wool Dyeing wool Spinning Weaving Making two loops Weaving two threads Separating two threads Tying Untying Sewing two stitches Tearing Trapping Slaughtering Flaying Salting meat Curing hide Scraping hide Cutting hide up Writing two letters Erasing two letters Building Tearing a building down Extinguishing a fire Kindling a fire Hitting with a hammer Taking an object from the private domain to the public, or transporting an object in the public domain. (Mishnah Shavath, 7:2) All of these tasks are prohibited, as well as any task that operates by the same principle or has the same purpose. In addition, the ravim have prohibited coming into contact with any implement that could be used for one of the above purposes (for example, you may not touch a hammer or a pencil), travel, buying and selling, and other weekday tasks that would interfere with the spirit of Shabbat. The use of electricity is prohibited because it serves the same function as fire or some of the other prohibitions, or because it is technically considered to be "fire." One great issue of great discourse is the use of an automobile on Shavath. The automobile is powered by an internal combustion engine, which operates by burning gasoline and oil, a clear violation of the Thorah prohibition against kindling a fire. In addition, the movement of the car would constitute transporting an object in the public domain, another violation of a Thorah prohibition, and in all likelihood the car would be used to travel a distance greater than that permitted by ravinical prohibitions. For all these reasons, and many more, the use of an automobile on Shavath is clearly not permitted. As with almost all of the commandments, all of these Shavath restrictions can be violated if necessary to save a life.

The Hebrew and Ladino languages use a different alphabet than English. The picture below illustrates the Hebrew alphabet, in Hebrew alphabetical order. Note that Hebrew is written from right to left, rather than left to right as in English, so Alef is the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet and Thaw is the last. The Hebrew alphabet is often called the "AlefVeth," because of its first two letters. If you are familiar with Greek, you will no doubt notice substantial similarities in letter names and in the order of the alphabet. The "Kh" and the "Ch" are pronounced as in German or Scottish, a throat clearing noise, not as the "ch" in "chair." Note that there are two versions of some letters. Kaf, Mem, Nun, Pe and Tzade all are written differently when they appear at the end of a word than when they appear in the beginning or middle of the word. The version used at the end of a word is referred to as Final Kaf, Final Mem, etc. The version of the letter on the left is the final version. In all cases except Final Mem, the final version has a long tail. LETTERS OF THE ALEF VETH: