Shavuot: Torah and Middot Linked Together: Rabbi Zev Reichman

Shavuot: Torah and
Middot Linked
Together
Rabbi Zev Reichman
Director, Mechina Program, Yeshiva University
The Unique Holiday of Shavuot

A careful reading of the section of holidays in Parshat Emor reveals that Shavuot is unique
among all holidays of the Jewish calendar. While other moadim are determined according to a
date on the calendar, such as Pesach being on the fifteenth of the first month, and Sukkot being
on the fifteenth of the seventh month, Shavuot is not on a set date. The Torah does not say, "On
the sixth day of the third month celebrate a holiday." Instead, we are told to bring the Omer
offering on Pesach, then to count seven weeks, and then at the end of seven weeks to offer the
two loaves and celebrate the day as a holiday. This raises a question: Why is Shavuot different?
Why did the Torah not establish Shavuot on a set day as it did for the other holidays?
Rav Yosef Dov Soloveichik z”l taught that this scriptural anomaly highlights an innate difference
between Shavuot and other holidays. The other moadim are bound to a date on the calendar,
regardless of the actions of man. For example, when Shabbat arrives the world is filled with a
special kedushat hayom, sanctity of the day, which then creates obligations. So too, when the
fifteenth of Nissan arrives the holiness of Pesach fills the world and as a result there are special
Mitzvot to be performed such as eating matzah, refraining from work, and avoiding chametz. So
it is with Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot. The arrival of the date causes the sanctity to
appear and the unique celebrations for each holiday are the ways in which the holiness of the
time should be expressed.
Shavuot is different. The counting of the Omer creates the holiness of Shavuot. Were there to be
no counting of the Omer, then theoretically there should be no Shavuot. The counting of the
Omer is what enables Shavuot. Once the seven weeks have been counted and the fiftieth day
arrives, the holiness of Shavuot enters the world. The date is not set on the calendar, but rather is
dependent on the nation of Israel counting the Omer. In theory Shavuot can be on the fifth, sixth,
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YESHIVA UNIVERSITY • SHAVUOT TO-GO • SIVAN 5768
or seventh of Sivan. It is not dependent on a date at all. After Jews count the Omer the holiday
arrives regardless of the date. Shavuot needs the Jews to count Omer to make it happen. 43
This observation can reveal to us a new understanding of the counting of the Omer. One might
have thought that the counting of the Omer is a mitzvah linked to Pesach. Indeed, in the Code
of Jewish Law, the laws of counting the Omer are in the sections that deal with the laws of
Pesach. However, according to the Rav, the counting of the Omer is also an intrinsic part of
Shavuot. Counting the Omer is what creates the kedushat hayom for the holiday of receiving
the Torah.
Counting Down, Counting Up

Perhaps this can be understood based on the lesson of the Sefer Hachinuch. The Sefer
Hachinuch teaches that our exit from Egypt was an incomplete redemption. When we left Egypt
we were physically free yet spiritually shackled. We therefore looked forward eagerly to zman
matan torateinu, the Torah-giving time, to receiving the Torah at Sinai. Once we would be
bound by the strictures of Torah, then we would be truly free. We count Omer to relive those
excited yearnings for Torah guidance. Each day we count brings us one step closer to reliving
the acceptance of Torah, which is when we arrived at real freedom.
One might ask, if the point of counting is to express our anticipation for Torah as the
culmination of the exodus, why do we count in an ascending order? Why do we say on the first
day, "Today is the first day of the Omer" and on the second "Today is the second day of the
Omer?" We should count in a descending order. On the first day we should say, "There are
forty nine days to go before we will receive the Torah," and on the second we should say, "There
are forty eight days to go before we receive the Torah."
Perhaps our counting style teaches us a lesson. We must climb to receive the Torah. If we
would count in descending order, then on each day, the previous day would be lost. One who
hears the count on the third day, "Today we count forty seven days to Sinai" would be unaware
of the days that preceded it. By counting in an ascending order we are reminded each day of the
days that passed. The process is thus preserved. Each day is lasting. When we work to change
ourselves, each step in that effort is eternal and valuable. Each day is important for what we
achieved on that day. On the first day of the Omer we are to fix one aspect of our nature, on the
second day another, until finally after climbing a ladder of 49 days we have created the vessel for
Torah. This creative work is what brings the holiness of Shavuot into the world.
The Link Between Omer and Shavuot

The Shem Mishmuel in his Pesach haggada raises a problem with the view of the Sefer
Hachinuch. According to the Sefer Hachinuch, that the theme of the count is to prepare for
receiving the Torah, then we should have called it the count of Shavuot, the countdown to Sinai,
43
See the extensive analysis of this thought in Mo'adei Harav, by Rav Shlomo H. Pick, pages 159-167.
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or the count of the two loaves, (the offering brought on Shavuot). Why do we link the count
with the Omer and Pesach, and call it Sefirat Haomer?
Perhaps the answer is based on the idea we have been developing. The counting of the Omer is
more than a mere recording of time as it passes. It is a chance to change ourselves. It is a
mandate to make each day count. In it we are to prepare ourselves for the Torah by changing
our middot and feelings. Only when we have transformed our personality, one day at a time, will
the holiness of Shavuot enter this world. Forty nine days of personal growth creates the holiday
of Shavuot.
This is the significance of the name Sefirat Haomer. The Omer was an offering of barley, animal
feed. The word Sefira means to count but it also brings to mind the word, Sapir, a glowing clear
panel. These are forty nine days to transform the animal part of man. To turn the opaque earthy
spirit into a glowing source of Divine illumination. This transformation is what creates the
holiness of Shavuot.
As we celebrate Shavuot these thoughts might serve as an inspiration. On Shavuot we received
the Torah. The Torah contains ideas and guidance for our minds. Yet to receive the Torah we
need forty nine days of fixing our middot. We need to transform our personalities into vessels
fitting to hold the light of Torah. This is why we learn Pirkei Avot during this season. Ethics of
the Fathers teach us how to refine ourselves. This process of character development creates the
holiness of Shavuot. Torah and middot share a link. Forty nine days of fixing our character
create the sanctity of this holiday. Now it is up to us. Let us struggle with the beast within
ourselves and thereby create the special kedusha of zman matan torateinu.
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Shavuot: Torah and

The Unique Holiday of Shavuot

Counting Down, Counting Up

The Link Between Omer and Shavuot

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