Vayikra 23:15-16 And from the day on which you bring the sheaf of elevation offering鈥攖he day after the sabbath鈥攜ou shall count off seven weeks. They must be complete: You must count until the day after the seventh week鈥攆ifty days; then you shall bring an offering of new grain to Adonai.
Shalom Noach Berezovsky/"The Netivot Shalom" (20th century commentator): The Torah mentions the exodus from Mitzrayim fifty times, hinting that there are fifty steps or gates to coming out of the mindset of slavery. Indeed, the Torah teaches that the Israelites went up out of Egypt humashim (Exodus 13:18), which literally means 鈥渁rmed鈥 but many also suggest, 鈥渙ne fiftieth鈥 (connect to the number hamesh). Thus, on the first day of Pesach, we may be said to have walked through the first of fifty gates toward genuine freedom. To complete the Exodus, we must journey through another 49 gates. This is why we have 49 days that we carefully and intentionally count from Pesach to Shavuot.
This teaching asks us to think about the spiritual journey that we take between Pesach and Shavuot. It鈥檚 a journey that asks us to prepare for receiving Torah in a way that releases whatever might be holding us back and keeping us from embracing Torah in the fullest way possible. In understanding Torah broadly, this time is a valuable聽one for us to think about what kind of growth we need to do personally in order to gain new wisdom and new insights.
The kabbalists offer us a framework on how we move through that journey, and what the attributes are that we need to think about in order to make ourselves available and open to receive Torah. They teach us that each week of the Omer has a spiritual focus; this focus can prepare each of us for Revelation.
Throughout the next seven weeks, for each week of the Omer, you will be receiving kavannot (intentions) written by different Beth Sholom congregants that will offer one perspective, based on the attribute of that week. It is such a treasure, as we gear up towards Revelation, to gain wisdom from within our Beth Sholom community. And this weekend, when we sit down at our seder tables, may we use our new-found freedom to inch, one-fiftieth at a time closer to Torah.
Shabbat Shalom, and wishing you all a聽Zissen Pesach,聽a sweet Pesach,聽 Rabbi Sarit
