Avoiding Activities on Shabbat

October 22, 1953 — Heshvan 13, 5714

The Cincinnati Board of Rabbis, cognizant of frequent acts of violation of the Sabbath by organized Jewish groups in this city, asks your earnest consideration for the following appeal:

We urgently call upon all Jewish groups: fraternal, social, cultural and philanthropic, to refrain from scheduling any meetings, socials, banquets, dances or any other secular activities on Friday evenings or on Saturday.

WE APPEAL ESPECIALLY TO OUR TEENAGERS AND YOUNG ADULTS TO AVOID SCHEDULING FRATERNITY AND SORORITY DANCES OR PARTIES ON FRIDAY EVENINGS, AND TO REFUSE TO ATTEND SUCH EVENTS, IF SCHEDULED ON THE SABBATH. [Capitalization original to publication.]

The Sabbath is the most precious heritage of our people. Its observance, as a day of rest and holiness, is enjoined upon us in the Ten Commandments. Throughout history it has been Israel’s mark of distinction and its greatest contribution to Western civilization. Truly has it been said, “More than Israel has kept the Sabbath, it was the Sabbath that kept Israel.”

In obedience to God’s command and in adherence to our age-old tradition, in consideration of our own survival as a religious community and in defense of the prestige and honor of the American Jew in the eyes of our non-Jewish neighbors, we reiterate the Divine dictum: “Remember the Sabbath to keep it holy.” We urge our people, young and old, to make Friday evening and Saturday the weekly occasion for family worship in their Synagogs and Temples and for family reunions in their homes to the end that we may restore the atmosphere of holiness into our lives, and add the true spirit of the joy of the Sabbath.