It is customary to cease normal activities mid-afternoon and prepare one's heart and mind spiritually for the arrival of the Sabbath in the reading of Psalms and other forms of devotional meditation and worship. The shofar is blown to herald the arrival of the Sabbath and traditionally the candles are lit 20 mins. before nightfall.

FOR THE INAUGURATION OF THE SABBATH

Reading of the six Psalms 95 - 99 & Psalm 29 is suggested, also Psalm 92 (the special Psalm and Song for the Sabbath day) and Psalm 93.

LIGHTING OF THE SABBATH CANDLES

"Remember the Sabbath, to keep it Set Apart. Six days shall you labor, and do all your work. But the seventh day is the Sabbath of Yahweh, your God, in it you shall not work. For in six days Yahweh made the heaven and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day, therefore Yahweh blessed the seventh day and hallowed it. "Speak also unto the children of Israel saying, Truly My Sabbaths you shall keep, for it is a sign between Me and You throughout your generations, that you may know that I am Yahweh who sanctifies you." Exodus 20:8-11, 31:13

Leader: We open the Sabbath with the lighting of candles to separate this Shabbat day as holy unto Yahweh God, a day set apart from the secular activities of the week.

Blessed are You Yahweh, we honour and praise Your holy Name and thank You for gift of the Sabbath.

We exalt You as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, the Lord of Hosts is His Name - the Eternal God, the ever-living One who reigns for evermore. You are the beginning and the End, the First and the Last, beside You there is no other. Blessed be Yahweh from this time forth and forever more!

Creator and Lord over all, at Your command the evening darkens to herald the arrival this holy day.

We thank You for Your commandments and instructions which are life to us and which set us apart as a special people unto Yourself and according to Your Word by the testimony of these Sabbath lights we separate ourselves from the things of this world and come into the sanctuary of Your Shabbat. (Female Leader lights Sabbath candles)

Reader: Blessed and praised are you, Yahweh our God, King of the Universe, who has sanctified us by Your commandments and has taken pleasure in us. In Your love and favour You have given us Your Holy Shabbat as an inheritance, as a memorial of creation, and a foretaste of the world to come. Blessed are You, O Yahweh, who sanctifies the Sabbath Amein

OPENING PRAYER

(at nightfall)

Leader: We come in submission before You this Shabbat and we Bless You, Yahweh God and exult in Your Presence, Your Name is elevated above all praise and blessing that we can offer in this world. Supreme King of Kings, Holy One; Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory and we bless, praise and exalt Your glorious Name. We extol the glory of Your kingdom for ever and ever and we thank You for giving Y'shua your Son to us as our Messiah, our Redeemer and our Saviour.

With ever-enduring love You have loved Your people, the House of Israel. Laws and commandments statutes and judgements You have given us. Therefore when we lie down and when we arise we will speak of Your statutes and rejoice in the words of Your Law, and in Your commandments forever. For they are our life and the length of our days; and upon them we will meditate day and night.

RECITATION OF THE SHEMA

(Deuteronomy 6:4-9; 11:13-21; )

Leader: "Shema Israel: Yahweh our God is God alone! You shall love Yahweh your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.

And these words which I command you this day shall be in your heart." "If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love" (Deuteronomy 6:4-6; John 15:10a)

Singing of Shema

SCRIPTURE READING

"And the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel forever, for in six days Yahweh made heaven and earth and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed." Exodus 31:16-17 Blessed are You, Yahweh, our God and the God of our fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Jacob, the great and mighty God, the Most High God, who bestows gracious favours; possessor of all, who remembers the pious deeds of the patriarchs and promised a Redeemer to their posterity in love. King, Helper, Saviour and Shield! Blessed are You, Yahweh, the Shield of Abraham. You are all-powerful to save, great and mighty God.

WATER LIBATION CEREMONY

Psalm 24:3-5

Leader: The Hand washing is a ceremonial cleansing using the water as a type of the washing of the water of the Word as an ordinance established for cleansing by the Spirit from the defilement that contact with this world brings. As you are washed by the Water, the Spirit will apply the atoning/cleansing of the Blood to your life (Water-Spirit-Blood witness 1 John 5:6-8) (Leader can pour the water over each person or it can be done individually. Hand towels will be needed)

BREAD AND WINE

Leader: We partake of the bread and the wine in remembrance of the covenant which our Great High Priest after the order of Melchizedek established first with Abraham, and later confirmed with His disciples at the Last Supper before His offering of Himself, to be kept as a memorial for us until His return.

BLESSING OF THE BREAD

Y'shua said that He was the Living Bread that came down to give life to the world. He said - He who eats My flesh shall never hunger and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. John 6:35, 39

Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink His blood you have no life in you, For my flesh is food indeed and My blood is drink indeed. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood, abides in Me and I in him. John 6:54-56 (Leader uncovers bread and lifts the loaves to give thanks)

Prayer: Blessed and praised are You, Yahweh our Eternal, King of the Universe, who brings forth bread from the earth. Hebrew: Baruch atah Yahweh, Eloheinu Melech ha'olam, hamotzi lechem min ha-aretz

After Y'shua had given thanks He said, "Take, eat, this is My body which is given for you, do this in remembrance of Me" Luke 22:19; Mark 14:22 (Bread is shared)

Blessed are You Yahweh for the Word which has gone forth out of Your mouth to live in our hearts and bring forth the fruit unto everlasting life. (Isaiah 55:10-12) Sanctify us Your Body as the Bread of Your Presence.

BLESSING OF THE WINE

"For the vineyard of the Lord of Hosts is the House of Israel" (Isaiah 5:7a) Y'shua said, "I am the Vine and you are the branches, he who abides in Me and I in Him, bears much fruit" (John 15:5, 8) (Leader lifts cup to give thanks)

Prayer: Blessed and praised are You, Yahweh our Eternal, Ruler of the Universe, creator of the fruit of the vine. Hebrew: Baruch Atah Yahweh, Eloheinu Melech ha'olam, boray pri hagafen.

After Y'shua had taken the cup and given thanks, He said, "This is My blood of the new covenant which is shed for many" (Mark 14:24) (The cup is shared)

Bless You Yahweh, for pouring out Your Spirit into our lives and giving us an inheritance in the age to come. Keep us in the unity of the Spirit and in the bond of peace in Y'shua's Name.

Who is like unto You among the mighty, O Yahweh! Who is like unto You! Resplendent in holiness, sublime in deeds of praise, ever working wonders. You have displayed Your sovereign power to Your people of old through Your mighty works. You redeemed Jacob and delivered him from the hand of one who was stronger than he. You are the deliverer of Your people Israel.

HOUSEHOLD BLESSING

Prayer is made for each member of the family. The Husband traditionally prays Proverbs 31:10-31 over his wife. The wife can pray Psalm 112 over her husband. A blessing and a prayer is made over each child for their spiritual growth and well-being. (In a communal gathering prayer can be made for each person by dividing into small groups)

THE COMMUNAL MEAL

The Shabbat Meal, a time to relax, take time to sit together for fellowship, for sharing and edifying one another. Enjoy one another's presence and especially the Unseen Presence of the One we honour on this day.

PRAYER AFTER THE MEAL

We thank You for Your provision and all the many blessings we enjoy. Blessed and praised are You, O Yahweh, for the land and for the food. Thankyou for the fellowship and the blessing upon our time here tonight in Your Spirit and with one another. May Your Holy Spirit continue to rest upon us and bless our time throughout this Shabbat.

Have mercy upon all the House of Israel, we pray, and bring the two sticks into unity as the rod of Your inheritance. Open the blinded eyes of the House of Judah that they may look upon Him whom they pierced. Open the eyes of the House of Ephraim to see her Hebraic roots. Blessed and praised are You. Yahweh our Eternal; Our Lord, our Father, our King, who is compassionate and merciful with all Your people. We thank You for Your mercy in dealing kindly with us. We bless and praise You, Amein.

==TORAH READING==learning the sabbath and my other traditional tradition to be Yah!

WORSHIP AND FELLOWSHIP

CLOSING PRAYER

Cause us to lie down, O Yahweh in peace, and cause us to rise up unto life. Spread over us the tabernacle of Your peace and shelter us under the shadow of Your wings. Guide us with Your good counsel, we pray and help us for Your Name's sake. Protect us and remove from us all enemies of our souls, all sickness and pestilence, the sword, famine and sorrow. Remove all hindrances from before us, we pray, for You are our Preserver and Deliverer.

You are the Almighty King, our Gracious and Compassionate God and we trust in Your power to keep us. Guard our going out and our coming in we pray for life and peace, henceforth and forevermore. Amein

AARONIC BLESSING

(the Birkhat HaBanim ) Numbers 6:25