Bo
Exodus 10:1-13:16
Précis: God sends the 8th and 9th plagues, locusts and darkness and warns Moses that the 10th and final plague will follow. God instructs Moses on the institution of the Passover. Then, the final plague, the death of all of the first born, is wrecked on Egypt. The Israelites, accompanied by the “mixed multitudes,” leave Egypt, carrying with them the “spoils of Egypt” given to them by the Egyptians. The parasha ends with a repetition of the laws regarding Passover.
Ex. 12:2 “This month shall be for you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you.”
This week's message was inspired by Rabbi Shlomo Ressler, in his weekly emailed d'var Torah which can be found at weeklydvar@list.weeklydvar.
Last Shabbat, we greeted the new month of Shevat, which provides a connection to the verse I’m focusing on this week.
What is so important about a new month (Rosh Chodesh) observance that its celebration is the first commandment given to the Jewish nation as a newly freed people, even before the 10 Commandments? Further, when the text describes this as the “first month,” we are not provided its name. This seems odd, since the Torah often (usually) provides a plethora of “name” details” (it takes great pains to name all of the stops along the way in the 40 years of wandering through the desert. Also of interest, although the subject of another d’var Torah, is why we have so many “First Months” in our calendar, including the one we celebrate on Rosh Hashanah, and the New Year for the Trees, and others identified by the sages as well.)
Nachmanides explains that here the Torah numbers the months starting with our establishment as a People, thereby emphasizing the critical moment when we became a nation. (Americans, if we followed this tradition, would claim that July was the first month of the year!)
Another suggestion is that human beings are being provided with a measure of control over time itself. We are to name the months and we are to determine their order. This first commandment to the Jewish Nation empowers us, as did God empowering Adam by giving him the right to name all of the creatures at the time of Creation. Adam’s naming authority gave him a special power over the animals and the earth. As Adam metaphorically becomes a partner with God in Creation, here the Jewish People become partners with God in time.
While we are commanded to observe festivals and holidays, it is up to us to identify when and how those times are observed. When we celebrate Rosh Chodesh, we’re reminded that our tradition makes us partners with God in time itself. It teaches us of the importance to manage and use our time well, with the proper intent (kavanah) and in recognition of this special gift from God.
