Counting the Omer – 5/4/24

Saturday, May 4, (after dark, the 12th day of the Omer)

Counting the Omer
Each Saturday (after sundown) for seven weeks, before we receive the Torah on Shavu’ot, we’ll email you the text of the blessing one says while counting the Omer. Along with it, a meditation written by clergy or fellow congregants.

The Prayer

Baruch atah, Adonai Eloheinu, Melech haolam, asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tzivanu al s’firat haomer.

Praised be You, Adonai our God, who rules the universe, instilling within us the holiness of mitzvot by commanding us to count the Omer.

Today is the _______ day of the Omer.

G’VURAH – Strength
By Debra Malki

Exploring the literature on G’vurah (strength) was just one of the translations. It’s also described as “rigor,” “discipline,” or “the setting of boundaries.” Others equate strength with courage. Where to begin?

What immediately came to mind were the words of Rav Nachman of Breslav in the song we so often sing:

Kol ha’olam kulo gesher tsar m’od, v’haikar lo l’fached klal:
(The whole world is a narrow bridge, but the essence is not to be afraid.)

That one sentence reminds us that, indeed, life can be frightening and difficult, but if we conquer our fear, we can manage it.

There is a conception of strength as an individual trait, somehow developed by toughening up our hearts and souls as one might lift weights to build muscle. While these aspects of g’vurah – rigor, discipline, boundary setting – have their place, they do not suffice on their own.

So where do we find our strength?

Jewish ritual and customs lead straight to community, our kehilah kedusha. In the morning blessings, among the “obligations without measure,” we are commanded to “attend the house of study daily” i.e., make sure there’s a minyan, “rejoice with bride and groom, visit the sick, console the bereaved.”  All these are acts of belonging, reaffirming our interconnectedness. In celebration or in mourning, we need each other, a covenantal community of mutual care and support. Not for nothing is “strength in numbers” a truism.

As we count through this second week of the Omer, let us think of the rigor or discipline we need to show up for each other to strengthen ourselves and our community. We can cross that narrow bridge together with the strength, the g’vurah, to overcome our fears.

–Debra Malki