10-06-2016, 02:43 PM
B"H
Nevertheless, the recitation of a Kiddush prayer and a Havdalah prayer were instituted by decree of the ruling Sages (going back in some form all the way to Moses) upon the Jewish people as the actual ritual means by which a Jew is to fulfill his/her Scriptural commandment to "remember the Sabbath Day to make it holy/separated."
There is no logical reason, benefit or spiritual obligation for a Gentile to make a Kiddush or Havdalah prayer for the Seventh Day - it would only be done with a purely spiritual intention in mind, and therefore it is in the category of making a purely spiritual mitzvah for oneself, which in fact G-d did not command or obligate a Gentile to do.
Hence it encroaches upon the Noahide Code's prohibition against making a new religion or adding a commandment. To explain:
By actually verbally welcoming the Jewish Sabbath, and verbally bidding farewell to the Jewish Sabbath, the Gentile is making a ritual declaration that the sanctified spirit of the Jewish Sabbath has, within his mind, come to rest in his personal sphere. And that ritual declaration is the actual essence of the fulfillment of the Jewish spiritual (supra-logical Divine) commandment, which is not one of the 7 Divine Noahide Commandments. By analogy, you would not logically make a declaration welcoming Mr. John Doe, or bidding him farewell, if no such person ever came into your presence. You would only verbally do it (with sincere intent) as a declaration that he was actually there with you.
A little bit of thinking shows that there ARE ways that Noahides CAN permissibly verbally recognize and honor the Jewish Sabbath day. The recommendation are:
- if you want to verbally acknowledge that G-d has given the seventh day to Israel as a heritage, and that HE sanctifies it and considers it holy, you can do that during a seventh-day meal, or at any other time during the day, by having a discussion/conversation about it with your family or friends (which you could do on any day);
- and/or you can make a permissible type of Torah-study session about this subject (which you could do on any day, either with others or even all by yourself).
Also, you mentioned "the prayers for welcoming Shabbat." The traditional Jewish liturgy (Siddur) for the prayers for welcoming Shabbat include several chapters of Psalms as part of the service for Friday evening. It is no problem if you choose to recite those specific chapters of Psalms, because you can recite any Psalms of your choosing as prayers on any day of your choosing, and (for Noahides) at any time of day. These include Psalm 92, which begins: "A Psalm, a song for the seventh day..."
To recap these 3 recommendations for permissible verbal remembrance and honor of the seventh day by Noahides:
- discussion / conversation about this subject
- permissible Torah study about this subject, privately or with others
- recitation of the Jewish liturgy Psalms, including Psalm 92
Nevertheless, the recitation of a Kiddush prayer and a Havdalah prayer were instituted by decree of the ruling Sages (going back in some form all the way to Moses) upon the Jewish people as the actual ritual means by which a Jew is to fulfill his/her Scriptural commandment to "remember the Sabbath Day to make it holy/separated."
There is no logical reason, benefit or spiritual obligation for a Gentile to make a Kiddush or Havdalah prayer for the Seventh Day - it would only be done with a purely spiritual intention in mind, and therefore it is in the category of making a purely spiritual mitzvah for oneself, which in fact G-d did not command or obligate a Gentile to do.
Hence it encroaches upon the Noahide Code's prohibition against making a new religion or adding a commandment. To explain:
By actually verbally welcoming the Jewish Sabbath, and verbally bidding farewell to the Jewish Sabbath, the Gentile is making a ritual declaration that the sanctified spirit of the Jewish Sabbath has, within his mind, come to rest in his personal sphere. And that ritual declaration is the actual essence of the fulfillment of the Jewish spiritual (supra-logical Divine) commandment, which is not one of the 7 Divine Noahide Commandments. By analogy, you would not logically make a declaration welcoming Mr. John Doe, or bidding him farewell, if no such person ever came into your presence. You would only verbally do it (with sincere intent) as a declaration that he was actually there with you.
A little bit of thinking shows that there ARE ways that Noahides CAN permissibly verbally recognize and honor the Jewish Sabbath day. The recommendation are:
- if you want to verbally acknowledge that G-d has given the seventh day to Israel as a heritage, and that HE sanctifies it and considers it holy, you can do that during a seventh-day meal, or at any other time during the day, by having a discussion/conversation about it with your family or friends (which you could do on any day);
- and/or you can make a permissible type of Torah-study session about this subject (which you could do on any day, either with others or even all by yourself).
Also, you mentioned "the prayers for welcoming Shabbat." The traditional Jewish liturgy (Siddur) for the prayers for welcoming Shabbat include several chapters of Psalms as part of the service for Friday evening. It is no problem if you choose to recite those specific chapters of Psalms, because you can recite any Psalms of your choosing as prayers on any day of your choosing, and (for Noahides) at any time of day. These include Psalm 92, which begins: "A Psalm, a song for the seventh day..."
To recap these 3 recommendations for permissible verbal remembrance and honor of the seventh day by Noahides:
- discussion / conversation about this subject
- permissible Torah study about this subject, privately or with others
- recitation of the Jewish liturgy Psalms, including Psalm 92