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THE LAND SABBATH IN MODERN ISRAEL
by Doug Ward, PH D.
Rest can be hard to come by in twenty-first century
Western societies. With so much to do, it is all too easy
for us to become enslaved to our busy schedules.
The Bible gives indications that our Creator did not
intend for us to live such restless and hurried lives. In
Genesis 2:1-3 we read that God rested on the seventh day
of the creation week, setting an example for mankind.
Later, in proclaiming the Decalogue from Mt. Sinai, God
reminded the children of Israel of that example (Exod.
20:8-11).
The weekly Sabbath is one of the foundations of the
Torah, God's wise and loving instruction for his people.
The Torah also makes provision for the land of Israel to
"rest" every seven years (see Exod. 23:10-11;
Lev. 25:1-7). In a sabbatical year (known in Jewish
tradition as a "shemittah year," from a Hebrew
word in Exod. 23:11 that means "let drop"),
farmers are not to plant seed, prune their trees, or
harvest crops. For that year the land becomes public
property, and people may take what grows by itself
according to their needs. The seventh year is also a time
for cancellation of debts (Deut. 15:1-2) and release of
indentured servants (Deut. 15:12-18).
The sabbatical commandments of the Torah are designed to
maintain and strengthen the relationship between God and
his people. They provide time for fellowship with God.
They teach the lesson that God is the source of all
blessings and can be relied upon to provide human needs.
They promote compassion for the poor and responsible
stewardship of the land.
Can the application of these ancient principles bring
rest to today's stressed-out world? One man who hopes so
is Dr. Don Stanley, a Christian who holds a Ph. D. in
Jewish Studies from the University of Melbourne. With the
help of a grant from an Australian Jewish organization,
Dr. Stanley spent five months in Israel (July-November
2004) investigating the experiences of Israeli farmers
who have observed the shemitta year. On the Sabbath of
April 2, 2005, Stanley reported on the results of his
research at a worship service of the Church of the
Messiah in Dayton, Ohio.
Land Sabbaths Ancient and Modern
By way of introduction, Dr. Stanley summarized the
history of the land sabbath. The shemittah year was
kept during both the First and Second Temple periods,
though not always consistently. In fact, even before the
Israelites reached the Promised Land, Moses prophesied
that neglect of the land sabbath would be a factor in
Israel's eventual exile (Lev. 26:34-35). 2 Chron. 36:21
indicates that Moses' prophecy was fulfilled in the
Babylonian captivity of the sixth century B.C.
One example of land sabbath observance in the Second
Temple period is recorded in the book of 1 Maccabees. 1
Macc. 6:48-54 reports that in about 162 B.C., the Jews
faced a disadvantage in their war with the Seleucid
empire because of a famine resulting from the sabbatical
year. They were soon blessed for their obedience,
however. Power struggles among the Seleucid leaders
caused the enemy general to depart, giving the Jews a
welcome reprieve (1 Macc. 6:55-63).
After the destruction of the Second Temple and the
failure of the two Jewish revolts, observance of the land
sabbath became a moot point; there were very few Jewish
farmers left in the land of Israel. During the Talmudic
period, the shemittah year had only a theoretical
existence as a topic for rabbinic discussion.
Things changed in the late nineteenth century when there
began to be enough Jewish farmers in Israel to make the
land sabbath a real issue again. But because these Jewish
farmers were very poor, rabbinic authorities feared that
they could not survive a sabbatical year. Therefore it
was decided that in each shemittah year, the agricultural
land in Israel would be temporarily deeded to a
trustworthy Gentile, allowing the poor farmers to
continue working their land without technically being in
violation of the commandment.
This practice continues today in the modern state of
Israel. In the last sabbatical year, which began on Rosh
Hashanah in A.D. 2000, the temporary owner of Israel's
land was Hussein Ismael Jabar. Jabar, who also owns all
the leavening in Israel each year during the Passover
celebration, is a resident of Abu Ghosh, a town about
eight miles west of Jerusalem. In trusting Jabar with
this responsibility, Israel remembers the fact that Abu
Ghosh did not oppose the Jewish cause during Israel's
struggle for independence in 1948.
Dr. Stanley's Findings
When Dr. Stanley arrived in Israel in July 2004, he found
that Israelis have some creative ways of circumventing
the spirit of the land sabbath commandment. For example,
since trees housed indoors are exempt from the sabbatical
prohibition on pruning, one nursery has a portable canopy
that it places over a tree as it is being tended during a
shemittah year. The tree technically counts as being
indoors while it is under the canopy.
On the other hand, since 1972 there has been a growing
trend in actual sabbatical observance among Israeli
farmers. Some farmers simply let their land go untended.
Others harvest a crop but donate it to a central
storehouse that sells the food to the poor at reduced
prices. Participating farmers are reimbursed for their
labor but not for their produce.
During his visit to Israel, Dr. Stanley interviewed a
number of shemittah-observing farmers to learn something
about their experiences. A number of farmers spoke of the
sacrifices they willingly made in keeping the land
sabbath. A wheat farmer mentioned that wheat is planted
in the late autumn during an ordinary year, shortly
before anticipated winter rains. But since the shemittah
year begins at Rosh Hoshanah, farmers plant the wheat a
couple of months early in those years and hope for the
best. This farmer, who participates in the food
storehouse program, estimated that his farm loses about
2-2.5 million shekels ($450,000 to $570,000[US]) by
observing the sabbatical year.
Some of the interviewed farmers spoke of miracles and
blessings that occurred during a shemittah year. A fruit
grower recalled that in one sabbatical year, an unusually
warm March had been followed by a late freeze in April,
causing damage to that year's fruit crop. Farmers who had
pruned their trees had very little fruit that year, while
those who had left their trees unpruned had a nearly
normal crop. In another shemittah year, heavy winds had
caused damage to the fruit crop, but again those who had
left their trees unpruned sustained far less damage.
Other farmers mentioned the value of the extra time
available for family activities and Torah study during a
shemittah year. For these farmers, the sabbatical year
had been a life-changing experience, strengthening
relationships with God and family.
The next shemittah year will begin at Rosh Hoshanah in
2007. Stanley noted that there is already much discussion
of this upcoming event in the Israeli press.
In Jewish tradition (based on Deut. 11:8-11), the land
Sabbath is only applicable in the land of Israel.
According to this tradition, God has a special
relationship with the Promised Land. However, one rabbi
told Dr. Stanley that such a relationship might extend to
the entire world during the time of the Messianic
Kingdom. Stanley wonders if communities of Christian
farmers might also benefit from the adoption of some form
of sabbatical observance. Sabbatical principles should be
of benefit to all followers of the God of Israel by
allowing them to periodically rest from their labors and
find rest in their Creator.
Doug is a Ph. D. and professor of mathematics at Miami
University in Ohio. He and his wife have four children.
He is a student of the Hebrew roots of Christianity and
publishes a quarterly journal, Grace & Knowledge
which he sends free of charge (write him at 307 N. Elm
St., Oxford, OH 45056; e-mail: wardde@muohio.edu).
Doug is an independent Sabbatarian who fellowships with
various groups.
TSS
May
- June 2005 The Sabbath Sentinel
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