Psalms That Hallow the Sabbath

This collection of poems honors the Sabbath, a sacred time of rest decreed by God. The Sabbath is a legacy from my parents, and theirs was a bequest from their ancestors. I pass on my inheritance to friends and family of now and those yet to be. The verses reach deep into the depths of ourselves and awaken reverent feelings we stockpile during the week. Not only do these variations on a theme delve into the deep crevices of our souls, but they uplift, dignify, enhance, and ennoble us. The Sabbath is a sparkling gem in the history of time--its facets are many, and its sheen glosses our lives. The poems presented here reflect the singular, endless, and diverse aspects of the Sabbath.


""Norman Chansky possesses the soul of the psalmist. His musical compositions are as suffused with the sacred as are these psalms. Their richness and variety provide the seeker with the opportunity to select the appropriate psalm reflecting the seeker's need with a particular Sabbath context. He continues to touch my soul.""
Mayer Selekman, Temple Sholom in Broomall


Norman M. Chansky is a graduate of the Boston's Prozdor Hebrew High School, 1949. He received his PhD from Columbia University in 1958. Chansky is professor emeritus at Temple University, and had been appointed visiting professor at Tel Aviv University from 1973-1974. His writings include Essence of the Psalms: Poems Inspired by the Sacred Text (Wipf & Stock, 2007), a collection of more than 150 poems inspired by the canonical book of the Psalms, and Old Testament Lore: A Mosaic Tapestry (Wipf & Stock, 2011). His poems have appeared in several collections, including ""A Converso Lament"" in Karen Primack's Under One Canopy: Readings in Jewish Diversity (2002) and ""A Tribute to Anton Schmid,"" set to music by Pete Seeger in Jerry Silverman's The Undying Flame: Ballads and Songs of the Holocaust (2002).