Rabbi Aaron Gaber Ahad Ha'am, the ardent Zionist, once wrote, "More than Israel has kept the Sabbath, the Sabbath has kept Israel." He saw the Sabbath as a core element of the Jewish community. The Torah quite clearly spells out to us that God made the heavens and the earth in six days and on the seventh God ceased from work and rested. More so, God presented the Jewish people with the gift of the seventh day. One in seven days, we cease from work and rest. It shall be set aside as a day of holiness.

For some this means a day spent in prayer and reflection, for others it is finding a means to rest from the previous week and renew oneself for the week to come. Shabbat is a unique and spiritual moment during our week. Its purpose is to raise our spirits and renew ourselves physically, spiritually, intellectually and emotionally. It is an opportunity for us to focus on our internal needs and not worry about the external world.

The South Jersey Board of Rabbis and Cantors holds the Shabbat as a cornerstone of the Jewish faith and as such should be viewed as an inviolable element of Judaism and the Jewish community. We also understand that the Jewish community contains as many points of views as there are letters in the Torah itself and each is necessary for the whole to be effective,

successful and to have meaning. If but one letter is missing from a Torah scroll, it is pasul, it is not to be used. The same is to be said about the Jewish Community, each agency, synagogue and individual has a place in our community, to push one aside or to denigrate another is to bring all of us down as a community. The Board of the Milton and Betty Katz Jewish Community Center recently decided to extend its

hours on Shabbat and to open at 7 a.m. instead of 1 p.m. We commend the JCC for recognizing the sensitivities in this issue and will be glad to partner with them in helping to bring a stronger Jewish ambience to the JCC and in particular work with them to create the necessary elements to make Shabbat a different and more spiritual day at the Jewish Community Center. Jack Fox recently wrote, "The JCC serves the entire community, but it is fundamentally a Jewish institution." While our opinions may differ on their hours of operation, we strongly agree with their desire to see the JCC as a strongly identified Jewish institution. As the clergy of this community, we are ready to partner with the staff and leadership of the JCC and work with them to create a stronger Jewish look and feel to the JCC as a whole.

Rabbi Aaron Gaber is the spiritual leader of Congregation Beth Judah in Ventnor.