A gentile asked Rabbi Akiva, saying to him: Why do you establish appointed times? Does not The Holy One, Blessed Be He, say to you: "Your new moons and your appointed times fill Me with loathing!?" (Isaiah 1:14). Said Rabbi Akiva: If He had said: "My new moons and my appointed times" I would say so [that you have a case]; but He said, "Your new moons and your appointed times" – referring to those appointed times established by Jeroboam, as is written "And Jeroboam established a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month; in imitation of the festival in Judah, he established on at Bethel, and he ascended the altar [there]. . . .he had contrived of his own mind to establish a festival for the Israelites . . ." (II Kings 12:32,33). But these appointed times will never be abolished, nor the New-Moons. Why? Because they were established by The Holy One, Blessed Be He, as is written "These are the appointed times of God" (Vayikra 23:4). And it is also written "So Moshe declared the appointed times of God to the children of Israel." (Ibid. ibid. 44) therefore they will never be abolished. And regarding them is it said: "Well-founded for all eternity, wrought of truth and equity."

(Tanhuma, Pinchas, 17)

"These are the appointed times of God, which you are to proclaim . . ." – Whether they occur in their proper time or not, I have no appointed times other than these. Said The Holy One, Blessed Be He, to Israel: "In the past they were in my hands, as is written (Tehillim 104:19), 'He created the moon for the appointed times,' but from here on, they are in your hands, in your authority; if you say 'yes' -- then yes; if you say 'no' – then no. In any case, the [determination of] the month is yours. Yet more, should you desire to intercalate the year, I will acquiesce, there for is it written: 'Let this New-moon be for you the beginning of New-moons.' (Shemot Rabba 15)

The parasha of the appointed times [the festivals] appears in four more places in the Torah. Only in Parashat Emor, however, is there emphasis upon the proclaiming of the appointed times. As against the commandments "Observe the Festival of the Matzot" or "Observe the month of the aviv" which appear in Parashat Mishpatim, Ki Tissa, and Re'eh, "proclaim-proclamation" appears in our parasha four times:

True, the term "proclamation of holiness" does appear in Parashat Pinhas, but the command to proclaim appears only here, in Emor.

According to our Sages, one of the meanings of 'proclaiming the appointed-times' is the kiddush hahodesh -- sanctification of the New-moon -- which serves as the basis for determining when the festivals occur.

According to Rav Papa's interpretation, the phrase "which you are to proclaim them [otam]" which appears three times in the parasha, refers not to the festivals, but to the Children of Israel [atem – you]. The word otam/atem is not the object of the sentence, but its subject. Therefore, according to the midrash, the vowels of the of the word aleph-tav-mem, are not holem-patah, but patah-segol. The obligation of proclaiming the appointed-times is upon you.

Proclamation of the appointed times, i.e., determination of the date of the festival, is the obligation of the entire community. Therefore, the parashat ha'moadot, the chapter of festivals, begins with:

It is the Children of Israel who are addressed here, not the priests to whom the parasha's preceding commands were directed. The Ramban noticed this:

Our Sages record that the day on which festivals were to fall was determined by the bet Din, acting as representatives of the community. They saw the Bet Din having almost absolute authority to determine the festival. In the famous polemic between Rabban Gamliel and Rabbi Yehoshua on the Sanctification of the New-Moon, Rabbi Akiva attempts to convince Rabbi Yehoshua to accept Rabban Gamliel's authority, saying:

Rabbi Akiva's argument can be understood on a number of levels. First of all, on the practical level. There can be no preservation of national unity if there are differences of opinion regarding the calendar. Almost all sects which broke away from the Jewish nation adopted a new calendar. That Bet Shamai and Bet Hillel succeeded in sustaining unity among themselves despite different opinions on critical issues, can be attributed in large part to their acceptance of a common calendar.

Secondly, one can discern here a modern conception of time. Time is not absolute; time is relative. According to the Theory of Relativity, for example, different observers are able to measure different times for a single process. Surprisingly, we find here a similar perception. The clock which measures time, the month or the year, is not absolute, but is dependent upon the observer, who is able to influence the time which he is measuring.

On a deeper level, the power of the Bet Din to decide festival dates expresses an understanding of Israel's standing before God.

In contrast to the appointed times, determination of the Shabbat is not within the jurisdiction of the Sages. The weekly cycle, with the Shabbat at its center, continues to revolve independently of any decision by Bet Din.

In qualified contradiction to the above, the chapter of appointed-times in our parasha opens with the Shabbat:

Many have discussed this matter. Our Sages sthe problem. Regarding the final passage in the festival chapter -- which tells us that: "So Moshe declared the appointed-times of God to the Children of Israel" – our Sages offer a daring explication, saying:

This is to say that even though the Shabbat was included in the festival chapter, its determination was not given over by Moshe to the jurisdiction of Israel.

Another explanation, almost Hassidic in nature, was offered by the Gaon of Vilna. The Shabbat mentioned in our parasha is not Shabbat Bereishit – Shabbat of Creation -- but Yom Kippur. According to this understanding, the passage "For six days may work be done, but on the seventh day is Shabbat, Shabbat-Ceasing" does not refer to the days of the week, but rather sums up the festival days which are the subject of the parasha – first and last days of Pesach, Shavuot, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, first day of Sukkot, and Shmini Atzeret. On six of these seven days, some work -- preparation of food -- is permitted; only on one – Yom Kippur – is work totally forbidden.

Elaborating upon the difference between Shabbat and festival, Rabbi Meir Shimha of Dvinsk wrote in his "Meshekh Hokhma":

The unification of the nation, in the terminology of the Meshekh Hokhma, is accomplished by preservation of the collective memory of those events which are the foundation of the national consciousness. It is one of the main functions of the festivals.

The natural world in which we live is cyclic; it is ordered by cycles of sunrise and sunset, sowing and reaping, flowering and wilting, birth and death. Everything is erased and forgotten, only to be created anew. "The earlier ones are not remembered" – concluded Kohellet in his pessimistic vein. The festivals, markers on a time spectrum, are weapons in the battle against forgetfulness and for identity. They preserve the national memory within the nature cycle, giving our lives meaning, purpose, and hope.

Because of the centrality of the festival to national consciousness and experience, it is proper that Israel and its representatives be the agency for determining the time of their observance. But the festivals, as molders and preservers of the national identity, do not include the Shabbat. Those ideas represented by the Shabbat contain a cosmic and universal dimension, coming down to us from Creation – ". . . and He rested on the seventh day from all the work . . ." -- which extends beyond the narrow national dimension. Shabbat predated those events which formed our national identity by many generations, and is therefore not determined by Israel. On festivals which occur on Shabbat, we recite "Who sanctifies the Shabbat and Israel and the festivals". First of all, the Shabbat, after that Israel, and -- only at the end -- the festivals.

And, finally, it is important to remember that national identity is expressed not only via the collective memory, but also by shared responsibility. In the festival chapter, the Torah commands us:

The poor and the stranger are part of you. The festival cannot be perfect if there is no concern for the weaker sectors of society. Therefore, the Rambam rules:

The Appointed-time is a normal day which the consciousness of the Jewish people transmutes into a festival day. This is the simple meaning of mikra kodesh – 'a proclamation of holiness' – a day which is transformed into holiness by public proclamation. The festival is not created without partnership, and, mainly, without public responsibility. If this not be the case, how will the individual components of the nation be connected and bound to each other?

"And God seeks the pursued" (Kohellet 3:15) – Rav Huna said in the name of Rav Yosef: "Forever 'God seeks the pursued'. The wicked pursues the righteous, "And God seeks the pursued"; the wicked pursues the wicked, "And God seeks the pursued"; and even when the righteous pursues the wicked, "And God seeks the pursued". In every case, "And God seeks the pursued".

Said Rabbi Yehudah ben Rabbi Simon in the name of Rabbi Yehudah ben Rabbi Nehorai: "God always demands the blood of the pursued from the pursuers. Know that this is so, for Hevel was pursued by Cain, and The Holy One, Blessed Be He, chose Hevel, as is written "God had regard for Hevel and his gifts". Noah was pursued by his generation, and The Holy One, Blessed Be He, chose Noah, as is written: "For you I have seen as righteous before me in this generation." Avraham was pursued by Nimrod, and The Holy One, Blessed Be He, chose Avraham, as is written, "You are the Lord God who chose Avraham". Yitzhak was pursued by the Philistines, and The Holy One, Blessed Be He, chose Yitzhak, as is written, "For I have observed that God is with you." Yaakov was pursued by Esav, and The Holy One, Blessed Be He, chose Yaakov, as is written, "For God chose Yaakov for himself." Yosef was pursued by his brothers, and God chose Yosef, as is written, "He imposed it as a decree upon Yosef." Moshe was pursued by Pharaoh, and The Holy One, Blessed Be He, chose Moshe, as is written ". . . had not Moshe, his chosen one." David was pursued by Shaul, and The Holy One, Blessed Be He, chose David, as is written "And he chose David, his servant." Shaul was pursued by Philistines, and The Holy One, Blessed Be He, chose Shaul, as is written, "Have you seen him whom God has chosen." Israel is pursued by the nations, and The Holy One, Blessed Be He, chose Israel, as is written, "For you are a people holy to the Lord your God, your God has chosen to be for him a specially-treasured people."

Rabbi Eliezer ben Rabbi Yossi ben Zimra said: "It is so also with offerings. Said The Holy One, Blessed Be He: 'The ox is pursued by the lion, the goat is pursued by the leopard, the sheep by the wolf; dnot bring me offerings from the pursuers, but from the pursued, as is written: "An ox ora sheep or a goat, when it is born." (Vayikra Rabba, Chap. 27)

Not only was man commanded by the Torah to have pity and compassion upon man, but also upon beast and fowl. On the one hand, this is for the good of the animals themselves, for His mercy is upon all his creations. On the other hand, it is for the benefit of man himself, in order that he instill in himself the quality of mercy, and avoid the trait of cruelty. (From, The Foundations of the Torah, Rabbi Shmuel David Luzzato, quoted in Shabbat B'Shabbato, by Dr. Avraham Stahl z"l, p.447).

The story is told of Rebbi David of Lalov, who came on Rosh Hashanah to pay respect to his rabbi, the "Seer" of Lublin. Before the [shofar] blasts, his fellow Hassidim noticed that Rebbi David was not present. They went to his inn to seek him out. Upon arrival, they discovered Rebbi David standing in the stable, feeding hay to the horses. The stablekeeper, engaged in prayer and the shofar sounding, had lingered at the synagogue, and had forgotten to give the horses fodder and drink. Arose Rebbi David and claimed the mitzva for himself. (Ibib, p.454)

Editorial Board: Pinchas Leiser (Editor), Miriam Fine (Coordinator), Itzhak Frankenthal and Dr. Menachem Klein

Translation: Kadish Goldberg

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