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Shayna Goldberg

A sliver of hope

Photo by Rob Wicks on Unsplash

Returning was like having a birthday, like being born again, and I really hope that all the hostages in Gaza will experience that same rebirth as I did.” – Almog Meir Jan, ex-hostage

“After a long time of not being able to breathe, we are finally able to fill our chests with a deep breath. A lot was taken from us that we are making up for now – conversations, hugs. It is as if a new daughter has been born. It is a real rebirth.” – Eitan Gonen, father of ex-hostage Romi Gonen

After 482 days in captivity, today we have been privileged to see eight more hostages be given a new life.

Watching each hostage be delivered into the hands of his or her parents and families you can feel the entire country take a breath.  They are here. They are alive. They have survived the most painful, excruciating and dangerous part of this ordeal.

Though there is a long process that awaits them and the entire country, and though not everyone is home yet or returning alive, this moment is one where we can pause and focus on the enormous latent potential for the future. The hostages and their families can now finally begin to imagine the opportunities that lay ahead.

Today is Rosh Chodesh. The first day of the new month of Shevat

This morning Jews all over the world recited the prayer of Hallel. Hallel is typically recited on significant days as a way of commemorating and acknowledging our miraculous deliverance from suffering and calamity. We say Hallel on holidays such as Passover when we were liberated from Egypt and on Chanukah when a small group of courageous Jewish fighters overcame the mighty Greek army.

The recitation of Hallel on Rosh Chodesh, however, does not mark any particular miracle. Hallel on Rosh Chodesh is not a commemoration but a demonstration of the way we choose to approach and begin each new month – with both thanks and prayer.

In Parshat Bo, the portion of the Torah that will be read this upcoming Shabbat, we find the very first commandment that the Jews were given. A commandment they were introduced to in Egypt even before they were redeemed and received the rest of the Torah at Mount Sinai.

Moses and Aaron are told in Exodus 12:2 that “this month shall be for you the beginning of all months.” We are taught that God took them outside to show them the new moon and to inform them that every time the moon renews itself the Jewish nation is to sanctify it and thereby elevate time and the Jewish calendar.

The first mitzvah chosen for the Jewish people reflects a special way of conceptualizing time, based on a lunar monthly schedule and not just a solar year. Jews actively mark each month and celebrate the renewal of the moon as a sign of hope, of opportunity, of optimism, of aspirations, of new beginnings, of prayer and of belief in brighter days to come.

After days of darkness, when the sky is absent of any sign of light, a new tiny sliver of a moon appears reminding us to never despair. Even when we experience awful times of tragedy, we continue to believe that we will merit to again see light.

It is the end of January and here in Israel the weather has been unseasonably warm. A balmy 65 degrees. The cold will likely return, but today there is some hope in the air.

Shevat is the month where we celebrate the “New Year of the Trees.” Indeed, little buds are sprouting everywhere. Signs of new life.

Gadi Mozes, 80 years old, is alive. Some of the young women, taken injured and bloodied, are again standing on their feet and smiling.

As Jews we are taught to believe in life after death. We don’t typically get to see walking examples before our eyes.

Right now, the moon is just a sliver. In the coming days it will wax and then wane. It will disappear altogether and then reappear again. There is a lot of uncertainty and much unknown about what awaits us in the months ahead. A lot of unanswered questions. A lot of tough decisions that will have to be made.

But today on Rosh Chodesh, we can stop for a moment to reflect, give thanks, pray, take in a deep breath, talk to those we love and give them a hug.

“May the Holy One, Blessed be He, renew this month upon us and upon all His people, the Family of Israel, for life and for peace, for joy and for gladness, for salvation and for consolation…and for good tidings.”

Here’s to a new moon. Here’s to slivers of hope. Here’s to never giving up. Here’s to good tidings. Here’s to rebirth. Here’s to life itself.

About the Author
Shayna Goldberg (née Lerner) teaches Israeli and American post-high school students and serves as mashgicha ruchanit in the Stella K. Abraham Beit Midrash for Women in Migdal Oz, an affiliate of Yeshivat Har Etzion. She is a yoetzet halacha, a contributing editor for Deracheha: Womenandmitzvot.org and the author of the book: "What Do You Really Want? Trust and Fear in Decision Making at Life's Crossroads and in Everyday Living" (Maggid, 2021). Prior to making aliya in 2011, she worked as a yoetzet halacha for several New Jersey synagogues and taught at Ma’ayanot Yeshiva High School in Teaneck. She lives in Alon Shevut, Israel, with her husband, Judah, and their five children.
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