The Torah portion of Re’eh is a smorgasbord of themes and topics, ranging from laws of kashrut to shmitta to false prophets. Towards the end of the section is another one of these distinct topics, a return to some of the laws concerning the festivals. The Torah actually describes the three festivals in three different sections – Emor, Pinchas, and finally in this week’s portion (there is a brief introductory mention of them in Mishpatim). Right at the outset, we see a different tone expressed in this repetition of the obligation of the festivals (16:1):
“Keep the month of spring, and make the Passover offering to the Lord, your God, for in the month of spring, the Lord, your God, brought you out of Egypt at night”
What does it mean to “keep the month of spring”? Spring would appear to be a season, an inevitable outcome of weather patterns and such.
The verses continue, some appear to be reviewing, others highlighting. The one emphasis placed in this version of the festivals can be seen in the following verse (11):
“And you shall rejoice before the Lord, your God, -you, and your son, and your daughter, and your manservant, and your maidservant, and the Levite who is within your cities, and the stranger, and the orphan, and the widow, who are among you, in the place which the Lord, your God, will choose to establish His Name therein”
That is quite a lot of rejoicing! In fact, this theme of happiness can be found in other verses here as well, unique to this particular section concerning the festivals. Why is this the focus here?
The idea of a warning to “keep the month of spring” is discussed in a Midrash. As we know, prior to the destruction of the Temples, the Jewish lunar calendar was determined through the Sanhedrin court, along with witnesses. While the days of the holidays themselves were fixed (Pesach must always fall on the 15th of Nisan), the particular lunar month was the product of this testimony. However, the lunar calendar is not directly synchronous with the solar calendar. Therefore, it would be easily possible for Pesach to fall on the fifteenth of Nisan but not be celebrated in spring. The Jewish people are being tasked with the responsibility of insuring the holidays come out during the correct time of the solar calendar (in general, this issue is solved through the addition of an “extra” Adar month).
One must then ask: why is this such an important warning, meriting a separate place in the Torah, to remind the Jews of this? We know that there are many agricultural commandments tied to the festivals, and these would not be able to be fulfilled if there was a serious deviation in the schedule. Is this the main reason why this is being repeated?
If one would briefly analyze the festivals, it would become abundantly clear that each one is “built” around a specific theme of the Divine relationship with the Jewish people. There is the exodus from Egypt, the giving of the Torah at Sinai, and the protection offered throughout the time living in the desert (Sukkot). The unique nature of this relationship is on full display. However, to solely focus on this would create a problem, a possible distorted view of God. While it is critical to appreciate God’s relationship with the Jewish people, He must always be viewed as well through the prism of Creator.
This could be part of the reason why so many commandments concerning the holidays have no direct correlation with the various themes of said holidays. For example, the bringing of the first fruits at the time of Shavuot is not in any clear way tied to the giving of the Torah. But when one brings the first fruits, he sees the greatness of God through the natural world. Together with the celebration of the receiving of the Torah, a more “complete” view of God emerges. We can now appreciate on a deeper level the seriousness of the festivals falling out in the proper seasons. The fusion of God as Creator with God’s relationship to the Jewish people is critical in bringing about the full appreciation of the festival.
Ramban, in his commentary on the above verse, notes the centrality of happiness in these verses. He goes as far to say that this is the exact reason for the Torah’s review of the festivals. The various themes and prohibitions were discussed in a previous section. As well, the specific sacrifices for each festival had their moment. The Torah spent the previous verses discussing some of the agricultural based commandments. Now, according to Ramban, the importance of celebrating the festivals at the Temple, a festivity suffused with happiness, takes center stage.
What Ramban is adding here is another critical idea to the foundation of the festivals. Prior to these verses, one could make the simple deduction that the celebration of the festivals was a largely technical affair. Each festival contains a litany of commandments and prohibitions. Furthermore, each sacrifice of each festival required a meticulous and careful process. The festival becomes not one of celebration, but of adherence to laws.
While of course those are critical, the festival cannot be one without the idea of happiness. The happiness here is not referring to emotional glee. Instead, it is a happiness that emerges from the reflection on the ideas of God as Creator and His relationship with the Jewish people, referenced above. When a person is at the Temple, a central repository of some of the most important concepts concerning God, he is now in a state of mind of true happiness. Thus, according to Ramban, we should not view happiness as a secondary aspect of the festival; rather, the obligation of happiness stands on equal footing as the other aspects of the day. Without this happiness, the festival becomes relegated to rote performances.