Guri Alfi becomes more religious after 23 years: "Yes, I observe Shabbat"
The actor and comedian shared that the decision not to work on Shabbat came with the birth of his eldest daughter. According to him, the desire to spend time with his family led him to dedicate this day to his loved ones and refuse productions.
Actor and comedian Guri Alfi, known to many from the iconic duo "Assi and Guri," continues to cement his status in Israeli culture.
In an interview for the 'Shabbat Mikal HaSibot' project, initiated by Sharon Adam and Rabbanit Rachel Bezek, he spoke about the lifestyle he has adopted in recent years. According to him, a little over two decades ago, with the birth of his first daughter, Emma, in 2003, he chose to make Shabbat a family day.
"I stopped working on Shabbat. I calculated that I would take the child for walks, that it would be our time together and I want this time, I chose this," he said.
According to Alfi, the decision was difficult because he is a sought-after actor. Many of the major productions he was offered took place on Shabbat, and he was forced to turn them down: "I told them: 'I will not do it. I chose for Shabbat to be something I do with my family'." He added that it took time for his environment to accept this fact: "Every time more people understood, and sometimes I just told them: 'Yes, I observe Shabbat'."
The fact that he decided not to work on Shabbat but still travel and spend time with his family raised a lot of criticism over the years. "People asked: 'But what about performances?', and then they said: 'Wait, but you travel on Shabbat'. And when I said yes, they asked: 'So why do you travel and not work?'" he recounted regarding the conflict.
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A joint post by Shabbat Mikal HaSibot (@shabbat.reasons)
As a reminder, he recently celebrated a huge achievement when the drama series "Totzeret Bayit," which he directed, became one of the most-watched this year and was even renewed for another season.
