By Daniel Kieval Shabbat, the seventh day, the day of rest, is a strange concept to so many today. The long lists of prohibited actions seem to run counter to popular notions of individual choice and freedom, and the idea of temporarily disengaging from the continual "status updates" of society is viewed with a mix of astonishment and terror. We live in a world of activity. Industrialized humans spend just about all of their time either producing something or consuming something, whether it be products, information, or energy. Time and space are voids to be filled, rather than dimensions to inhabit. It would not be unreasonable to change our name from "human beings" to "human doings." Meanwhile, all of this "doing" is taking its toll—on our bodies, on our societies, and on our planet. The truth is, we...

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