Watching the Honor of Shabbat
A man once came to me with acrimony in his voice. “Honored Rav,” he asked, “why do I never see blessing in my work? Why do I never succeed, no matter what I do?”
“Do you observe Shabbat?” I asked.
“Definitely!” he replied.
“Do you watch television on Shabbat?” I pressed.
“Yes, I do.” Then he justified himself with the statement, “But I watch only by means of a Shabbat clock, which causes the TV to go on and off by itself.”
I could not keep quiet in the face of his perverted reasoning. “You should know,” I began, “that even if you are not actively violating a Shabbat prohibition, merely watching television on Shabbat injects an atmosphere of profanity into your home. The purity and holiness of this day is thereby violated.”
I added that Shabbat is the source of all blessing (Zohar II, 88a). If one wishes to see success in his endeavors, he has to first halt this ignoble practice. Protecting the sanctity of Shabbat would provide him with Hashem’s help in seeing achievement in his handiwork.
