Poor Shavuot
Poor Shavuot! Year after year, it remains the least-known and the least-observed Jewish holiday on the calendar. Why is that? After all, it is the day that we celebrate the life-changing event of the national revelation at Mt. Sinai, where we became a nation.
To make matters even worse, Shavuot also has no formal ritual or symbol associated with it. No matzah, sukkah, menorah, shofar... how can that be? Why wouldn't the divine Author of the Torah cook up something experiential to help us tangibly connect with the essence of the day?
The answer is that on other holidays we celebrate a specific concept. Matzah symbolizes freedom; the sukkah, protection; the shofar, prayer. But on Shavout, in spite of the fact that it is the day that we received the Torah, we are not celebrating one specific idea. We are celebrating ourselves. We are celebrating our potential to change our character, and we are celebrating our ability and our responsibility to become a light unto the nations!
The word "Torah" is connected with the word "orah," which means light. What is light? It is not an element or a compound. It is difficult to define or to quantify, but it remains the primary source or energy, warmth and illumination. When the sun shines, it brings joy to people's hearts. It's hard to explain why, but it's a reality.
When we received the Torah we were granted the means for fulfillment, for getting in touch with our true inner selves. To revolutionize the world. Winston Churchill said, "We owe to the Jews... a system of ethics, which is... the most precious possession of mankind." That is the essence of the Torah.
Like light, the Torah is all-encompassing. On Shavuot we become charged with the mission to shine that light inwards, within ourselves, as well as outwards, to the rest of the world!
Happy Shavuot and Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Koval
