Yeshiva
Beit Midrash
- Shabbat and Holidays
- Sefirat Haomer
- The Meaning Sefirat Ha'omer
As it is written (Leviticus 23, 15-16):
"And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the day of rest, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the waving; seven weeks shall there be complete;
even unto the morrow after the seventh week shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall present a new meal-offering unto the LORD."
Shavuot has no definitive date in the Torah. Only the counting of the Omer enables us to determine the exact time. Why is there no date for Shavuot? The Chizkuni explains that if there was a set date, we may not be so careful with the counting, but rather simply depend on the date of the holiday. Since the actual counting is so important and "great things depend on its counting", the Torah made certain that the counting be observed meticulously.
Why is it so important to count the Omer? The Ramban explains that the purpose of counting is to connect Pesach and Shavuot and to create one continuous holiday over 49 days. Pesach is the first day of Yom Tov, Shavuot is the last day of Yom Tov and the interim days are like Chol Hamoed.
Why is it so important to connect Pesach and Shavuot?
However, the Torah does not explicitly mention this spiritual viewpoint. It mentions only the agricultural aspect. The counting of the Omer is presented as a process that begins with bringing the sheaves of barley on Pesach, and culminates with bringing the two loaves of wheat on Shavuot. In other words, this is a process related to various crops. In addition, there is a progression from barley – animal feed – to wheat suited for human consumption. In any case, this process reflects the material side of counting the Omer and the expression of gratitude – not the transition from the exodus to the giving of the Torah.
This is a statement of great importance. The Torah does not merely discuss the material, agricultural side per se, but rather the crops of Eretz Yisrael in general. In the Land of Israel, there is spiritual meaning even to agriculture and farming. Agriculture in Israel emanates from a wellspring of holiness. It is related in its very essence to the role and place of Am Yisrael. The celebration of the new harvest is a celebration for the entire people (and therefore overrides Shabbat.)
This joyous period, therefore, connects the physical exodus to receiving the Torah on Shavuot. It connects our gratitude for the agriculture Hashem gave us in our Land with the understanding that the agriculture in our Land emanates from a wellspring of holiness. It symbolizes our transition from an aggregate of individuals to the building of a nation – a status which endows us with the privilege of receiving the Torah.
Counting the Omer is not simply an external act. We also progress each day through the process we have described. B’ezrat Hashem, may we merit to move forward through these days of counting, in particular, and during the course of the year, in general – stage after stage. May we merit to build our spiritual world, our world of positive "midot" (traits), and the world of Torah and Halacha.
Rabbis in Midrash
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Hosha'ana Rabba FLYDUBAI & HOSHANA RABBA- ANI VAHU HOSHIA NA- I & HIM SAVE US
"Ani vaHu Hoshia Na", "I and Him, Save Us". We don't just pray to Him, but we also pray to and for ourselves that we should emulate and educate our children to have that instinctive altruism with which He created the world. President Trump seemed amused about Yaniv Hayon, our PLUMBER who confidently worked with G-d like Superman (he learned from a pilot on a TV show!) to save 174 lives on the Dubai hijacking, but we in Israel are totally accustomed already 78 years to our plumbers, teachers, garbage-men, rabbis, farmers & doctors being Hashem's shlichim! This is what Zionism is about.
Moreshet Shaul Hashem Is your Shadow – part I
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 420 – an address from 1941
P'ninat Mishpat A Non-Contractor in Changing Times – part I
(based on ruling 85128 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
Moreshet Shaul Our King on Rosh Hashana, Our Father on Yom Kippur.
Based on Aroch Siach, p. 221 (Rav Shaul Yisraeli)
