Welcome to Daily Bitachon, our special Erev Shabbat series. Today, we are exploring the depth behind Retzei , the addition to Birkat Hamazon so vital that if we forget it on Friday night or Shabbat day (excluding Seuda Shlishit ), we must repeat the entire Grace After Meals. Let's walk through it word by word: The Essence of Rest Retzei Vehachalitzenu: "May it please You, Hashem our God, and strengthen us through Your commandments, specifically the commandment of the seventh day." HaShabbat HaGadol VeHaKadosh HaZeh: "This great and holy Shabbat." Keep those two words— Great ( Gadol ) and Holy ( Kadosh ) —in mind, as they are the recurring theme of this prayer. Ki Yom Zeh Gadol VeKadosh Lefanecha: "For this day is great and holy before You." We ask God for three things: Nishbot Bo: Let us rest. Nanuach Bo: Let us be content. Venit'aneg Bo: Let us find joy. How do we achieve this? Not through physical hobbies like tennis or lounging by the pool, but Kemitzvat Chukei Retzonecha —as ordained by Your will. God defines true Menucha (rest) through the observance of the thirty-nine Melachot . The Ultimate Consolation We then transition to a heartfelt request: Ve'al Tehi Tzara VeYagon... "May there be no distress or grief on our day of rest." Suddenly, we pivot to Jerusalem: VeHareinu BeNechamat Tziyon... "Show us the consolation of Zion speedily in our days." Why the shift to the Beit Hamikdash ? Because God is the Ba'al Nechamot , the Master of Consolation. The ultimate comfort is seeing the Temple rebuilt. We say: Vegam She'achalnu Veshatinu... "Even though we have eaten and drunk, we have not forgotten the destruction of Your Great and Holy house ( Beit'cha HaGadol VeHaKadosh )." The Four Dimensions of Greatness and Holiness Notice the pattern. We have now seen "Great and Holy" applied to: Shabbat (Holy Time) The Beit Hamikdash (Holy Place) Then we plead: "Do not forget us forever... for You are a Great and Holy King ( El Melech Gadol VeKadosh )." 3. God (The Source of Holiness) 4. The Jewish People (The Holy Nation) Finally, on holidays or Rosh Chodesh that falls on Shabbat, we add: V'shimcha HaGadol VeHaKadosh Aleinu Karata —"Your Great and Holy Name is called upon us." The Sanctuary in Time Shabbat and the Beit Hamikdash are intrinsically linked; Shabbat is effectively a "Temple in time." We see this in Lecha Dodi , where we pivot from greeting the Shabbat Queen to praying for Jerusalem ( Mikdash Melech Ir Melucha ). We do the same in Hashkivenu on Friday night. The parallels are everywhere: The Candles mirror the Menorah. The Two Loaves mirror the Lechem Hapanim (Showbread). The Wine mirrors the libations. The Zemirot mirror the songs of the Levites. Activating the Connection Holiness ( Kedusha ) means separation and uplifting. On Shabbat, we are no longer tied to the mundane. As the Iyun Tefillah explains, while "the holy ones" who praise God " וקדושים בכל יום יהללוך סלה "are often cited as angels, Abudarham explains they are also the Jewish people who separate themselves from worldly matters. When you embrace this holiness, you achieve greatness ( Gedulah ). Every Shabbat is an opportunity to enter this "sanctuary in time" and elevate ourselves. And as the Pele Yoetz says, bad enough that we don't think about the Beis HaMikdash while we eat. When we're saying the words even though we're eating, we didn't forget about the Beis HaMikdash . At least when you're saying that line, think about the Beis HaMikdash . And the truth is, Retzei is put in between the requests about Rachem and Boneh Yerushalayim . We're sticking this Shabbat prayer in the middle of building Jerusalem, because that's what you're supposed to be thinking about on Shabbat . And when we remember God, God remembers us. We tell God, we didn't forget about You. Don't forget about us. You want your name to be remembered by people of power. When I was looking for my house that I currently live in, I asked a real estate agent and she put my name down and I didn't get a call from her. Obviously, I wasn't on the top of the list. I was walking into an event and she was walking out and she says, "Oh, I think I have an idea for you." I wasn't on her mind and then when I was, she took care of me. You're walking out of shul and you meet the Shadhan . "Oh, I have a good idea for your daughter." You weren't on their mind. Of course God knows everything, but there's a concept of Zichronot . יעלה ויבא ויגיע ויפקד ויזכר זכרוננו . On Rosh Hashanah we talk about Zichronot . In order to activate God, that's called Zichronot . We have to activate our connection to Him. And that's what's supposed to be happening every Shabbat . The time of connection, the time that we activate our feelings for the Beis HaMikdash and we plead with God. We're not forgetting about You and Your house. You're not sitting at Your table surrounded by Your family. I'm sitting at my table surrounded by my family. I think of God that's, so to say, all alone. Like the Gemara in Berachot 3a says that God says, "Woe to a father that his children have been exiled from his table." God is all alone. He's a father without His children around His table. And that's what we think about on Shabbat .