Shalom, I am Rabbi Jonathan Ginsburg of Jewish corrugation, Skokie. This video is an attempt to offer a brief explanation about the period between pass over and Shavalote(ph) which Christians call Pentecost. The Torah commands us to count everyday between this period, 49 days and count them day by day.
So every night between the second of the Passover until the day before Shavalote(ph), we count day one, day two, and day three of the period called the Omer, now what is the Omer? The Omer was a barley width measure. What happen was that the year for harvesting the Omer begun at Passover time, that was called the Harvest of the Omer, the barley. And so when the ancestors cut it down, so I had to get where that the sour dough you believe, that time of the year which gave rice to the tradition about getting with the hameds(ph).
So we count everyday in this period called the Omer that leads up to the day of Shavalote(ph), now what does it mean? The Passover is the preempted symbol of redemption from Slavery for freedom, it is can message for freedom. Shavalote(ph) according to a Rabbis is the time of the anniversary the giving of the 10 commandments. It so what you have here is link the idea freedom but not freedom for its own sake, freedom to be yoked to God, to follow God is will, to follow God’s commandments and so that is the tradition.
Now, this period suavely is observed as some of that morning period, and the reason varies depending of the age of the Jewish people. In the beginning in the Talmud there is resource it says that during this period, in the rebellion against Rome in the year 132 to 135 Rabbi Akiba, who was that leading Rabbi at the time, the disciples died. We are not sure exactly how many or why they died but I did die according to the tradition. Now, there is no mention that we do not have weddings during this period in that source.
But of course today many Orthodox Jews will not have any weddings during this period, many will not cut their hair to observe those kind of morning rituals except on the new moon, where on a special day the 33rd for day of the 49 which is called Lag BaOmer. The reason why it is called lag BaOmer is in Hebrew letters 30 is Lamed, and three is Gimo, the third letter of the alphabet, together that is spelled lag, the 33rd day of the Omer.
Now, if you move to that middle ages and the crusades the Christian inspired attacks on the incident Muslims to recapture Jerusalem but on the way they killed many Jews. There was so much murder and destruction by the Christians against the Jews in the three crusades and tha one of the Rabbi said that we should observe morning periods during this spring time because of the crusades, because of that sadness.
Then we move on later in history, the 1648, the head Kasset in the Ukraine, rampage through the you Ukraine lowering Jews, destroying towns and villages until suffering. And a Rabbi at that time said the reason that we should observe the morning of the Omer in this 49 day period is because of the destruction of the Kassets, the programs. Rabbi Go-Lincoln is one of the leading Rabbis, a conserve that Rabbi in Israel suggest that perhaps we should be interpreted now because the holocaust just as other radius interpreted to more during this period because of their sadness, our sadness today primarily was the holocaust which ended 60 years ago, he believes we should observe it now.
The Rabbi assembly which is the conserve it Rabbi has said that those who wish to not observe all of the restrictions against weddings during this long season should definitely observe of the period immediately after Passover in memory of the Holocaust. And many conserve of Rabbis vary in this tradition, of course all of us observe the restrictionings of wedding why after Passover because of the Holocaust, others observe various elements of the period.
And so anyway, that is the basic explanation of the Omer, the Braha(ph), the blessing of the myth of counting is Barok Ata Adoni Alohating Malahalam Ashirkit Shano(ph) the needs with Toblets Juano out Serat(ph) to Omer. To demonstrate you, “Oh God, ruler of the Universe, who sanctifies us by your commandments and commanded us upon counting of the Omer.”
There was a verse on book of Psalms it says, “Teach me the count my days, teach us the count our days.” We do not count our days very often, and so another purpose of this commandments would simply be to count our days, to take each day seriously. To say, what did I do good this day? What refer of the universe so that I affect this day?
So, every night before you go to sleep, take the opportunity to do this, say the blessing of the Braha and count, keep track each day of the day of the Omer. And then of course it is culminates in the great celebration of the birthday of the Torah with Shavarole(ph), the feast of weeks. That Shavarole, actually means weeks and hands the name of the festival, Shalom.
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