Davidsons Give New Meaning to Sabbath At Upper Columbia Academy After a year of planning, Upper Columbia Academy was delighted to be able to host Richard and Jo Ann Davidson, professors from the Adventist Theological Seminary at Andrews University, as guest speakers for the first weekend of the school year. During their three presentations, students and faculty alike couldn’t help but be drawn into the warmth and personal enthusiasm the Davidsons obviously have for God’s gift of Shabot (Sabbath). Living in Israel for several months gave the Davidsons a rich opportunity to experience Sabbath as the Jews celebrate it. In Israel, businesses close down at noon on Friday, and they frequently saw the husbands and fathers rushing home with Sabbath bread under one arm and carrying fresh flowers for their wives in the other. They were invited into the homes of their Jewish friends and were able to experience first hand their Sabbath customs. They both fell in love with Sabbath and have continued to incorporate many of those Jewish customs into their own family, particularly those of welcoming and ending the Sabbath. For example, in welcoming the Sabbath, the husband and wife bless each other. During Friday night vespers, Jo Ann read a special scripture to her husband, thanking him for all he does for her and for their family. He did the same for her. Then they invited the students to come up and break off a piece of the challa bread and take a cup of grape juice back to their seats. They blessed the students as parents would bless their children. As they all raised their glasses, Richard toasted the Sabbath in Hebrew, and everyone said to their neighbors, “Shabot Shalom!” The special series concluded at sundown Saturday evening when Richard looked at how Jesus spent Sabbath. He pointed out that most of the healings Jesus performed were on Sabbath and most of them involved people who could have been healed just as well on the day before Sabbath or on the day after. He believes Jesus wanted to illustrate that the Sabbath is about healing us—healing us from our stress, our anxieties, our sin, the frantic pace at which we try to earn our own salvation when He is offering it to us for free. The Davidsons presented Sabbath as a huge, joyful celebration to prepare for, look forward to and delight in—an opportunity to spend time with God, nature and family. Many students had never been exposed to these concepts before and are very excited about the new meaning this gives their Sabbath experience.
Davidsons Give New Meaning to Sabbath
At Upper Columbia Academy
After a year of planning, Upper Columbia Academy was delighted to be able to host Richard and Jo Ann Davidson, professors from the Adventist Theological Seminary at Andrews University, as guest speakers for the first weekend of the school year. During their three presentations, students and faculty alike couldn’t help but be drawn into the warmth and personal enthusiasm the Davidsons obviously have for God’s gift of Shabot (Sabbath).
Living in Israel for several months gave the Davidsons a rich opportunity to experience Sabbath as the Jews celebrate it. In Israel, businesses close down at noon on Friday, and they frequently saw the husbands and fathers rushing home with Sabbath bread under one arm and carrying fresh flowers for their wives in the other. They were invited into the homes of their Jewish friends and were able to experience first hand their Sabbath customs. They both fell in love with Sabbath and have continued to incorporate many of those Jewish customs into their own family, particularly those of welcoming and ending the Sabbath.
For example, in welcoming the Sabbath, the husband and wife bless each other. During Friday night vespers, Jo Ann read a special scripture to her husband, thanking him for all he does for her and for their family. He did the same for her. Then they invited the students to come up and break off a piece of the challa bread and take a cup of grape juice back to their seats. They blessed the students as parents would bless their children. As they all raised their glasses, Richard toasted the Sabbath in Hebrew, and everyone said to their neighbors, “Shabot Shalom!”
The special series concluded at sundown Saturday evening when Richard looked at how Jesus spent Sabbath. He pointed out that most of the healings Jesus performed were on Sabbath and most of them involved people who could have been healed just as well on the day before Sabbath or on the day after. He believes Jesus wanted to illustrate that the Sabbath is about healing us—healing us from our stress, our anxieties, our sin, the frantic pace at which we try to earn our own salvation when He is offering it to us for free.
The Davidsons presented Sabbath as a huge, joyful celebration to prepare for, look forward to and delight in—an opportunity to spend time with God, nature and family. Many students had never been exposed to these concepts before and are very excited about the new meaning this gives their Sabbath experience.
Student Dustin Kelley blows one of the Davidsons shofar horns, a reenactment of a Jewish custom for welcoming the Sabbath.
One of the UCA Sabbath customs begun last year and continuing this year is the use of tablecloths and special decorations for Sabbath dinner in the cafeteria. Heidi White is one of the students who helps with these special decorations.
