During the holiday of Passover, we celebrate the miracle when the Holy One redeemed us from slavery in Egypt. This is meant to be a deeply personal experience. Eating matzah and tasting the bitter herbs help us to feel as if we really crossed through the Red Sea and entered freedom.
Following Passover, we begin counting the days to Shavuot. These forty-nine days are called the Omer, and represent our journey from redemption to revelation, where we receive the gift of Torah.
These days are seen as a time of spiritual preparation, reflection, and anticipation, symbolizing the journey from physical freedom to spiritual enlightenment. There is a tradition to count the Omer, where we literally count our steps from the Red Sea to Sinai.
Each day is an opportunity for introspection and reflection, helping us aspire to reach a new understanding of ourselves.
This year, we invite you to participate in this spiritual practice with us using the Psalms.
Psalms are a book of 150 poems in the Bible. Collectively, they express every emotion that we experience, teaching us what it means to go through the journey of life. I love the psalms because they capture the full range of the human experience, while still giving us room for reflection and interpretation. Many turn to psalms when looking for sacred words of comfort.
Each week of the Omer, you will receive an email with a theme. Included in the email will be several ways to interpret the theme. Using excerpts from the Psalms and from Rabbi Debra Robbins’ book, New Each Day, we invite you to choose any of the exercises to help you on your personal journey from Sea to Sinai, from redemption to revelation.
Rabbi Elana Rabishaw
