For 49 days we repeatוספרתם לכם ממחרת השבת (אמור כג:טו) "and you shall count from the day after Shabbat ..." (Emor 23:15 ) emphasizing the difference ,since creation , between the Highlight of the week and that of a regular day.
In modern a perspective, a few years back, an attempt was made to portray the damage and effect of an atomic bomb on a city. The name of the movie "The Day After" was meant to shock the audience with the intention to emphasize the responsibility of our actions. What happens the day after …?
The day after as a concept is used again in this weeks Parasha relating to the Moadim: Pesach, Sfirat Haomer , Shavuot ,Rosh Hashanna ,Yom Kippur and Sukkot .
The passuk right after the bringing of the Bikkurim (the name Shavuot is not used) and before Rosh Hashanna is sensed out of place:
וּבְקֻצְרְכֶם אֶת-קְצִיר אַרְצְכֶם, לֹא-תְכַלֶּה פְּאַת שָׂדְךָ בְּקֻצְרֶךָ, וְלֶקֶט קְצִירְךָ, לֹא תְלַקֵּט; לֶעָנִי וְלַגֵּר
תַּעֲזֹב אֹתָם, אֲנִי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם. ( שם כג:כב )
"And when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap all the way to the edges of your field, or gather the gleanings of your harvest; you shall leave them for the poor and the stranger: I the Lord am your G-d." (23:22)
Rav Yakov Ariel asks why all of a sudden is this passuk mentioned again and even more so why in this context? Just a week ago, in parshat Kedoshim we learnt about the exact same Mitzvah (refer to Kedoshim 19:9-10)
The importance of this repetition is what is it all about …we left the slavery of Egypt and slowly went up the ladder of Kedusha , from all near extinction to the level of receiving the Torah ,all of Israel united. We are blessed with times of celebration and festivals. And then what …the day after we must not forget when out in the field, on a regular mundane day, don't forget the poor or the strangers …don't forget the unique society, based on tzeddaka and chessed , we strive for.
It is quite usual that Parshat Emor falls out before Yom Haatzmaut – after 2000 years of Galut , we have our own Day of Independence , a day of a Thanksgiving , rejoicing and prayer...we are home and forever this time !
It is not by chance that we have to stop and think, amidst all the celebrations, what is this Independence all about?
Being blessed with a country of our own, a Jewish State, we should always remind ourselves of what type of society do we want, when we awaken the day after Independence Day ,what do we expect to find ?
It is the same answer as above: we shall not forget the poor or the strangers, nor forget the unique society, based on tzeddaka and chessed , the Torah ve Avodah way of life we strive for.
Emor is 'to say', or alternatively, we definitely do have a say about what we want to happen the day after!
Chag Ha'atzmaut Sameach, Happy Holiday,