As the ten plagues culminate and
the exodus is immanent, Bnai Yisrael are commanded to institute a uniquely
Jewish calendar. It is the first Mitzvah given to the Jewish People. And this
mitzvah is dependent on the moon. On the words “Hachodesh Hazeh” the Medrash
writes that Hashem showed Moshe exactly what the moon looks like at the
beginning of the month. Why does the moon occupy such a prominent role?
The
Sefer Hachinuch describes the challenges that exist within this Mitzvah. the
Jewish calendar must exist within two systems. On the one hand, a month is
defined by the amount of time it takes the moon to orbit the Earth once. On the
other hand, Jewish holidays such as Pesach, Shavuot and Succot commemorate
agricultural milestones. The Agricultural cycle is tied to the seasons, and
seasons are dependent on the sun. The Sefer Hachinuch reminds us that a lunar
year is 354 days while a solar year has 365 days. In order to keep holidays in
their seasons, an extra month must sometimes be added. This is done in order to
synchronize the solar and lunar cycles.
In Chasidic thought, the sun and
the moon represent the ideal and the reality. The sun represents the ideal. It
is the source of light, but it is distant and unapproachable. We cannot look
directly at the sun without hurting our eyes. Similarly, the ideal should be
viewed as a goal towards which we strive, yet never actually attained. The moon
represents reality. The moon reflects light from the sun. The moon’s light
resembles the sun’s rays; however the light is not as bright. We are
comfortable with the moon; we can stare at it. Our reality is like the moon: it
is a reflection of the ideal. Real life will never exactly match with what we
hope it to be. Yet we must try to make the reflection in reality as close as
possible to the ideal.
The sun
is always full. It remains constant. We experience the moon in a completely
different manner. The moon waxes and wanes, varying from our perspective from
completely full to barely visible. The moon mirrors our religious experience,
not as we might ideally want it to be but rather how it exists in reality.
There are times during which we feel inspired, when all the dots in our life
seem to connect. Our faith and religious conviction at those times are strong,
and can illuminate our lives like a full moon.
Whether we focus on their lives of
horrific subjugation, their slave mentality, or their position on the 49th and
worst level of spiritual impurity- the plight of B’nai Yisrael could only get
better. The Jewish People had been promised a brighter future, which they were
anxiously anticipating. Perhaps some
Jews at that time contemplated the possibility that their struggles and
difficulties would be over for good. Perhaps the rest of history from this
point forward would just keep getting better. At precisely that moment Hashem
points to the moon. He reminds us that there will continue to be momentary
lapses and reversals of fortune, in addition to the triumphs and achievements.
In an
ideal world, we would constantly be on an upward trajectory of spiritual
growth. However, in reality we know that is not the case. There is no assurance
that any of us will become better people tomorrow than we are today. It is not
inevitable. Growth must be sought out and pursued. We must be on the look-out
for avenues of inspiration. Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch explains that the new
moon is a phenomenon which provides us with encouragement. He writes: “The
Jewish consecration of the new moon is an institution for the periodic fresh
spiritual and moral rejuvenation of Israel by finding itself again in
conjunction with G-d.”
No comments:
Post a Comment