The Veil

To ensure that the Shabbos is hermetically sealed off from the rest of the week, the woman who lights the Shabbos candles hides behind a veil of sorts. This, in turn, preserves the peaceful aura of Shabbos. Since peace is the greatest receptacle for all of G-d’s blessings, the veil is appropriately the medium for the blessing of a good living.

A Sign of Modesty

It is almost a universal custom for a bride to wear a veil. The source of this practice appears to derive from the narrative of Rebecca in this week’s parsha.

Eliezer, Abraham’s servant, has returned from Abraham’s birthplace with Rebecca, to be Isaac’s bride. When they reach their destination and she notices a man walking in their direction, she asks Eliezer, “Who is that man?” Eliezer’s reply, that it was his master Isaac, prompts an immediate reaction from Rebecca: “She took a veil and covered herself.”

On the surface, the reason for covering her face with a veil was a sign of modesty. But there is also a deeper reason that may be suggested.

Keeping Out Distractions

When we recite the Shema we also cover our eyes. When a woman lights the Shabbos candles, it is customary for her to cover her face. There is a common thread that runs through these three examples of covering of the face.

One reason for the covering of the face during the recitation of the Shema is to keep out all distractions, so that we can focus on the message of G-d’s unity.

Acknowledging Exclusivity

Yet, on a deeper level, the covering of the face—that blocks out everything else—is actually our way of expressing through our actions that there is indeed no other influence in our lives; G-d is absolutely one.

Similarly, when a woman lights the Shabbos candles and ushers in the holy radiance of Shabbos, she covers her face as a way of blocking out any trace of darkness that might have been left over from the travail of the past week.

When a man marries a woman, she covers her face as her way of blocking out any other loyalties and connections she might have. Her loyalty to her husband is absolute.

Channel for G-d’s Blessings

There is a tradition that the Hebrew word for veil-tza’if is an acronym for four Hebrew words that translate as “Your nation Israel needs sustenance.”

The import of this seemingly farfetched reference is that when a woman covers her face at her wedding ceremony, and then when she lights the Shabbos candles each and every week, it is the spiritual mechanism to channel G-d’s blessings for sustenance.

The Spirit of Peace

The rationale for this is that G-d’s blessings of sustenance in a home—along with all of the other blessings we want—depend on the spirit of peace and tranquility that pervades the home. Lighting of the Shabbos candles is one medium that creates an atmosphere of peace and serenity. But when is the spirit of peace at its peak?

The answer is when all of the weekday influences exit the home at the onset of the Shabbos. Weekday activities that involve ambition and competition often invite strife and discord in a community and family.

Shabbos is the greatest antidote to that strife when we desist from all of our weekday activities. We do not answer the phone, drive the car or discuss business. We do not allow the television to smuggle in the strife ridden outside atmosphere into our homes on the one day of rest. During Shabbos we are no longer a slave to technology or even to our pursuit of a living. And when we experience one day of unadulterated peace and fulfillment it also has an effect on the forthcoming week. It provides the otherwise stressful week with a measure of the Shabbos serenity.

To ensure that the Shabbos is hermetically sealed off from the rest of the week, the woman who lights the Shabbos candles hides behind a veil of sorts. This, in turn, preserves the peaceful aura of Shabbos. And since peace is the greatest receptacle for all of G-d’s blessings, the veil is appropriately the medium for the blessing of a good living.

Lighting the Lights of the Future Shabbos

In a historical context we are presently ready to light the candles to usher in the ultimate Sabbath of Redemption. All of our efforts must be directed to once and for all leave the painful exile that we have endured for thousands of years.

As we light the candles of Redemption by illuminating our souls with the light and warmth of Judaism, it behooves us to cover our faces with the veil that blocks out the exile mentality that is punctuated with discord and division. We must use all of our energy to focus entirely on the internalization of the Shabbos.

After all these years we have done everything that we needed to do to usher in the Messianic Age. Now is the time to greet the Sabbath of history by blocking out the past exile mentality, and then by opening our eyes to behold the beautiful and holy light of the ultimate Shabbos that will lead the entire world to everlasting peace and fulfillment.

From the book Light from the Future: Parshas Chayei Sarah by Rabbi Heschel Greenberg, published by the Jewish Discovery Center.