May 1, 2020 / 7 Iyar, 5780 / Day 22 of the Omer / ParshiotAchrei Mot - Kedoshim (click on the links to glean highlights about this week's Torah readings)
THIS WEEK WITH THE JEWISH COLLABORATIVE OF ORANGE COUNTY: Join us for these star-studded Shabbat and weekly gatherings May 1 – 7
Shabbat Shalom at Home, Friday, May 1st at 6:30pm. ALIYAH members Maya, Anna and Sheindl will be leading the servce. Click HERE to join us through Facebook Live. A clopy of the Siddur we will be using is available here.
Twelve Steps and TorahSaturday, May 2nd at 2pm.Rabbi Ilan Glaser, author of “And God Created Recovery,” will be our teacher. Click HEREto join us on Zoom, or call 949-402-8004 for more information.
Havdalah, May 2nd at 8:30pm. We will be guests of Temple Beth Shalom of Long Beach led by Cantor Judy Sofer, her son Leeav Sofer (founder of Urban Voices Project), and Rabbi David Cantor. Zoom information is available HERE.
Today marks 7 full weeks since Friday, March 13 – the day on which the important mandate to shelter in place for an indefinite amount of time in order to curtail the rampant spread of a potentially fatal virus turned from speculation into reality.
In Judaism, 7 weeks of 7 days is a symbolic period of time that suggests a journey may be required to turn a new state of being into something profoundly life-changing. The word “hiddush” (hiddushim in plural) can be loosly translated as “new idea” or “realization.” It is related to the word hadesh – the Hebrew word for “new.”
In the Torah, we are told to count 49 days (7x7) from the day after the first day of Passover until the holiday of Shavuot, Hag Habikkurim – the holiday of first fruits. The early rabbis understood that, for Shavuot to remain relevant to non-farmers and Jews living outside Eretz Yisrael, these 7 weeks of 7 days had to represent more than an agricultural abacus. They determined that 49 days was the amount of time between our first, bold, scary steps toward Freedom from physical and mental slavery in Egypt to our arrival at the foot of Mt. Sinai and the beginning of Revelation, where Judaism as a system of laws and ethics began to take shape.
Like most of my friends and family, over these past seven weeks I have had many unexpected hiddushim, learning a great deal about myself, my family, my work and my hopes for the future. Working and playing in the virtual world has opened my eyes to potential and possibility for connection to others that I could never before have imagined. Revelation #1: It is likely that I have been present at dinner with my children and husband more times in the last 7 weeks than in the last 7 years collectively, not for lack of want but becuase I was working so hard. That is a heartbreaking truth when I consider all the implications.
I would appreciate knowing some of the things you have learned on this bizarre journey of inwardness and introspection. What are some of the hiddushim that you will carry going forward? Feel free to share your reflections with me through email, and we can begin a conversation.
The Jewish Collaborative of Orange County innovates, supports and collaborates on community programming that enriches the landscape of OC Jewish life and encourages individuals, couples and families to connect their passions and purpose with Judaism.
Jewish Collaborative of Orange County 2200 San Joaquin Hills Rd Newport Beach, CA 92660
