Mark
2:27
King James Version (KJV)
27 And he said unto them,
The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath
My family stood on the Piazza dei
Miracoli (the Square of Miracles) in Pisa, Italy. This Sabbath day was indeed a
miracle with some white fleecy clouds in a deep blue sky. It had rained for
days, and now it seemed that God smiled on us. We had visited the Cattedrale di
Pisa, a magnificent church with an expensive marble façade. I love the great
cathedrals of the world. I love their splendor, but even more I love the
reverent silence gracing the old stone structures.
As we walked into this cathedral,
our voices had automatically hushed to awed whispers. I touched my finger to
the holy water and made the sign of the cross, not that I believed it had any
redemptive effect. I was too far gone for that. But it seemed to be the thing
to do. My family watched in silence with skeptical smiles on their faces. They
made no attempt to do likewise.
Outside again we entered the
famous Campanile and climbed up to the bells. The tower leans precariously away
from the church, and climbing its stairs is almost like climbing a ladder of a
ship in a storm. This tower was made famous when Galileo simultaneously dropped
two spheres of the same diameter but different masses. The experiment
demonstrated to the watching crowd that Aristotle’s claim that heavier objects
fall faster than lighter ones, was false.
Dad owned the only camera in our
family. I suggested he take a picture of the beauty of the church and bell
tower. He adamantly declined to do so by saying, “It’s Sabbath, son.”
“But Dad, it’s the only time we’re
ever going to see it!”
“Yes, but a picture of this tower
is found in every physics textbook.” Dad had taught physics for years and had a
masters degree in physics, although at this juncture he was actually the
president of a university.
Dad had taken pictures before on
Sabbath. He took pictures on Sabbaths afterwards. Sabbath was wonderful day of
family togetherness. We walked beaches, climbed mountains, explored gardens and
other places of beauty. However, to Dad the physicist, this tower represented
work, and as such he distanced himself from it to the point that he wouldn’t
even take a picture of it on Sabbath. Otherwise, Dad worked hard all the time,
night and day. His good health lasted him past his hundredth birthday, and I
attribute it at least partially to his celebrating every Sabbath by not working
on it.
Thank You Lord for the Sabbath rest You made for us!
#California,
#IE, #SABBATH, #PISA, #LEANINGTOWER, #GALILEO, #PHYSICIST, #WORK,
#TENCOMMANDMENTS, #CATHEDRAL, #ITALY, #GRAVITY, #HOLYWATER, #FACADE,
#PHOTOGRAPHY, #CENTENARIAN
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