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is so central to the kabbalistic view of
the Sabbath as uniting "the Shekhinah
with the masculine aspects of God to
create harmony in the world."
In an interview, she emphasizes it's
the women who have ushered in the
Sabbath in their homes and have cre-
ated its special atmosphere.
writes about the many meanings
of the number seven in a chapter titled
"Sacred Sevens/Sacred Signs."
Siam - " In other
sections, she describes the rituals and
ceremonies done at home and in syna-
a b ue and how the laws and their
b oa
exceptions lead toward compassion
toward other people. Klagsbrun also
speaks of the Kabbalists' belief that
individuals expand in consciousness on
Shabbat, gaining an extra soul that
descends from heaven. And, she writes
of transcendence, and how the Sabbath
is a taste of the world to come.
As she writes: "On Shabbat, I feel the
ordinary space of my home mysterious-
ly altered into something that surpasses
ordinariness. I know I had a part in •
making it that way, with Sabbath
preparation and rituals, and I can't
speak with certainty about God's pres-
ence in it, but it is altered, and I feel
the day's peace and spirit
envelop me, as if they
existed independent of me.
"Other holidays bring
gladness and sensations of
their own. Shabbat brings
holiness into my life every
seventh day, and because
it does I am aware of the
holiness in the universe
the other six."

Lion to Shabbat. Her great-grand-
mother was known for her Shabbat
hospitality on a farm in Europe.
In part, Klagsbrun was inspired to
investigate the power and influence of
the Sabbath after the death of her par-
ents. She was - thinking a lot about how
she had lived her life as their daughter,
and how the Sabbath remained so
much a part of the rhythm of her life,
even as she moved with ease in both
the secular and Jewish worlds.
Looking at her experience of the
Sabbath became a "prism for looking
at the entire tradition."
Klagsbrun grew up in the Borough
Park neighborhood of Brooklyn, "then
a very different neighborhood," and
attended an Orthodox school and syn-
agogue.
"Even though my parents were
observant, my father always had a
skeptical side, a very intellectual
aspect. In his outlook he was a
Conservative Jew," she says.
In her teenage years, the family
moved to the Belle Harbor area of
Queens, where they became very
involved in a Conservative synagogue.
While -attending public high school,.
she attended afternoon
school at the Jewish
Theological Seminary,
which was the beginning of
a long and ongoing rela-
tionship with the institu-
tion. She continued study-
ing at JTS while she was a
student at Brooklyn
College, enrolling in a joint
degree program.
Would she have become
a rabbi then, if opportuni-
A Personal Perspective
ties were open to women?
A prominent Conservative Francine Klagsbrun:
"I don't know," she says.
"Shabbat brings
Jew, Klagsbrun is a self-
"I loved the study."
holiness into my life
described Litvak, using
Later on, Klagsbrun was a
the term that connotes the every seventh day, and member of the Commission
because it does I am
geographic region of
for the Study of Women in
aware of the holiness
Lithuania and implies a
the rabbinate, and was a
in the universe
rationalist view of the
very active proponent of
the other six."
world. She was surprised
having women ordained.
by her own fascination
Did she then think of
with the mystical aspects of the
returning to school? "I didn't feel the
Sabbath, and notes that the word
need to do it," she says.
"Kabbalah" is much exploited and
Klagsbrun, who holds an honorary
overused in popular culture.
doctorate from JTS, is founding chair
'A lot of it is very hard to under-
of the board of overseers of its library,
stand," she says. "You have to know a lot
a trustee of the Jewish Museum and
of normative tradition before you can
serves on other boards. Frequently, she
really understand mystical traditions."
is invited to synagogues around the
She poses the question, "Will I go
country as a scholar in residence.
further with it? I think it's interesting
About this book, she says, "My hope
and important, but not my basic
is that people will see in it why [the
approach."
Sabbath] is meaningful for life today.
With love, Klagsbrun writes of her
It's not about some ancient time only
parents, grandparents and their devo-
— it's for the 21st century."

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