Counting The Omer: Today Is The First Day Of Forty-Nine!

Above: Antique Counting The Omer calendars made in the Netherlands in the 1800's for use in a Portugese Jewish synagogue, these are from a community in Suriname, and are now in Israel Museum, Jerusalem. The top row is the day, the middle row is the week, and the bottom row is the number of days that have elapsed in that week.

Here in Israel, as opposed to everywhere else in the world, today, Friday is not one of the Yom Tovim days of Passover, so I am able to spend a little time on my blog to compose this post about Counting the Omer. (And since the house is sparkling clean and I already did most of the cooking before Passover, I am free to relax, no crafting allowed but composing a post is fine, phew!) This year with everyone at home, and families having more "family time" than ever, counting the Omer can become a true family activity. And since counting the Omer is all about refining our character traits, before receiving the Torah in 49 days on the Jewish holiday of Shavuot, I'd say this kind of work is particularly relevant now, right?

Kids in school generally make Omer counting calenders, and after Passover that is going to be the first craft I'm going to do, as it has been awhile since we've made one. The Omer is traditionally counted at night, and with a blessing, but if one misses even one day, one may not count with a blessing for the rest of the days. Those who pray in a synagogue are reminded by a calendar or board of some kind, (and by the rest of the group) like the antique ones above, but since we are all home now, it would be a great idea to have a calendar at home, now more than ever!

One of the other interesting things about the Omer is that it is a period in which we are all freely mentioning Kabbalah, as each day has a special meaning and a special aspect having to do with the sefirot of Kabbalah. I won't go into this, as there are many places on line where you can read about this in depth. But let me tell you, it is quite deep and interesting!

The period referred to as The Omer, is also a period of mourning, (starting right after Passover) meaning no music, no haircuts, no weddings and no parties, until the 33rd day, in which we celebrate the holiday of L'Ag B'Omer, which in our area here in Northern Israel is the largest party in the world i believe, lasting more than 24 hours and involving up 600,000 visitors, who convene (over that 24 hour period, not all at once) at the grave site of the great sage Rebbi Shimon Bar Yochai. After the 33rd day, Sepharedi Jews do not observe any aspects of mourning, while Ashkenazi Jews do, until around the 47th or 48th day. This year I am guessing there will be either no access to the grave site, or very limited access, so we will have to think of ways to celebrate at home, sigh. We do have a lovely view of the Meron mountain range and the general area of the gravesite, so we will at the very least focus our prayers in that direction, certainly.

Above: A beautiful counting the Omer scroll, created in Italy in 1804, and from The Jewish Museum London. The top row is the day, the middle row is the week, and the bottom row is the day of the week.

This year I have taken out an omer counting calendar that I haven't used in years that has great insights and exercises, and while my teens are very sceptical, and the English sounds a bit way out there to them, I am reading it with them and taking advantage of all this family time! Yippee!

Whether or not you will be counting the Omer, this is a special time in the world and a call to all of us to become the very best versions of ourselves that we can, and that is the most important work of all!