לזכר נשמות לאה שושנה בת אהרן ריעדער מורינו ר׳ צבי הערש בן ר׳ ניסן חיים מורינו ר׳ ישעי בן ר׳ משה ר׳ יעקב בן ר׳ שמואל יוסף מ׳ חוה רבקה בת ר׳ שמעון ריעדער

Based on Nefesh Shimshon by Rav Shimshon Pincus, zt”l

Shabbos kodesh links the physical of our world to the world of Kedushah in heaven. It is our lifeline, our connection with Hashem. Through it, comes all blessings. Anyone severed from Shabbos is severed from Hashem.

Regarding the creation of the Earth, it is written: “And the Earth was astonishingly void and darkness was upon the face of the deep waters.”

This description tells us the nature of the world — on its own, it is a dark place, an abyss that a person can always fall into. But then we have Shabbos and the Beis Hamikdash to create connections to the bright world of kedushah.

That’s why someone who publicly desecrates Shabbos is compared to a non-Jew — he has ensured that he only has this dark world. He’s broken the link.

This explains as well why Shabbos is treated so stringently: It is our main artery, as previously mentioned. As long as a person keeps Shabbos intact, he is alive.

All the mitzvos we do — tzitzis, tefillin, etc. — are done in Olam Hazeh, in this world.

But Shabbos possesses aspects of Olam Haba.

When a person entered the Beis Hamikdash, he was enveloped in kedushah. When he ate, he was eating from Hashem’s table. All his actions were forms of avodah.

On Shabbos, it is the same way.

It is more than other mitzvos — those we’ll get rewarded for in Olam Haba. Shabbos is connected to Olam Haba directly.

So when we examine the details of the Beis Hamikdash and of Shabbos, we see amazing similarities. We find that all the beauty and all the expressions of kedushah that were in the Beis Hamikdash can be found in Shabbos, too.

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Let’s Reflect:

How can we bring this newfound knowledge — that Shabbos is a direct connection to Olam Haba — into our weekly Shabbos? In other words, how can we elevate our mundane, transform it?

Food? Speech? Rest? Meaningful interactions? For each home, it might be different.

But each one that keeps Shabbos is directly connected to Olam Haba!

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