Shabbat starts on Friday, 31JAN2021 at 4:20pm.
It ends at 5:25pm on 1JAN2022 on Saturday.
Delaying from 12:00 noon until 5:30 p.m. or 6:00 p.m. I don’t consider a big deal. If it was a day (24 hours), then you’d have an argument. Having it after dark while the Christmas lights are still up will make it even more special.
“...and people may die.”
People die every day. You can’t stop them from dying whether it’s from a virus (the flu or pneumonia), a car accident, or from suicide. How many people die on an average Saturday in NYC? How many extra people do you think will die in six hours? Do you think death will stop immediately once the new guy is in office?
I think the felon just released on miniscule bail might think twice before whipping out his shiv and stabbing another passerby to death for the thrill of it, now that there’s a new regime in town.
You make dark and it is night.
Wherein all the beasts of the forest creep forth.
The lions roar after their prey.
And seek their meat from God
When the sun rises, they retire and couch in their dens.
And man goes forth to his work. And to his labor until the evening..
How manifold are your Works!
The bible readers at that ceremony should take heed that the animals not in cages in NYC can get you at anytime.
But night is when it’s their time..
Paraphrased from Psalm 104