Recording 390A, “Our Sabbatical Periods,” is from the 1961 Maui Work. This recording is the basis for Chapter 31, “There Remaineth a Rest,” in A Parenthesis in Eternity
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Recording 390A is the basis for Chapter 31, “There Remaineth a Rest,” in A Parenthesis in Eternity. The chapter provides a good review and companion reading.
Engage in Sabbatical Periods
On May 9, 2026, we completed a very comprehensive study program on spiritual healing. For our sessions during these next two weeks, we chose to focus on what Joel calls “our sabbatical periods” before beginning our next study program.
When we water a plant, we must allow time for the water to be absorbed. If we continue watering without pause, the water overflows before it can be absorbed. In much the same way, after an intensive period of spiritual study and practice, it can be valuable to allow time for assimilation.
There will not be a group session on May 30, which is the fifth Saturday of the month. In addition, we will be taking the first two weeks of June as vacation and sabbatical time, so there will be no sessions on June 6 or June 13. Our regular sessions will resume on June 20.
Since we ourselves will be taking a brief sabbatical period, we invite you to consider whether some form of Sabbath or spiritual renewal might naturally fit into your own life during this time.
Joel reminds us that a Sabbath, or a spiritual sabbatical, can be for as little as a few minutes or as long as a year. It is a period of spiritual refreshment and renewal—a temporary laying aside of personal burdens, worldly concerns, and mental striving in order to rest consciously in the presence of God.
During these weeks, you may wish to experiment with different forms of sabbatical periods, such as:
Joel emphasizes that these Sabbath periods are not a withdrawal from life, but a renewal that enriches our return to daily living. He explains that when we emerge from these periods of stillness and communion, we often find ourselves refreshed, strengthened, and better able to fulfill whatever responsibilities are before us. He offers this further counsel regarding Sabbath periods:
“A Sabbath is only truly a Sabbath if you do not permit the human world to come into that period of Sabbath. You must be absent from the body and present with the Lord. You must not take your problems, your family’s problems, your neighbor’s problems, this world’s problems into those periods of your Sabbath.
“You must go into a Sabbath for one purpose alone: Seek ye the kingdom of God and his righteousness; seek ye the realization of His presence and His power and His grace, and then when you come out of it, you’ll find ‘all these things are added unto you.’ Whatever knowledge you need to carry on your business, whatever physical strength you need, whatever moral support you need, whatever it is that you need to carry on your obligations is provided for you in those periods of Sabbath.”
Additional Recordings on Sabbath
Joel gave several other classes on the theme of Sabbath and sabbatical periods. Each one addresses the topic from a different perspective. Two especially valuable recordings are posted on the same page as Recording 390A:
We trust this interlude will be a period of quiet renewal and spiritual refreshment for all of us.