Good things come in twos

There is only One Who is complete on His Own. In His creation, everything can only be noticed in contrasts.

You want Stones Table with engraved the main guidelines , G-d asks Moses. How much does that cost? It’s for free. Then I’ll have two. (The joke has a very deep basis, as many good Jewish jokes. We understood that the Law does not take away our Freedom but rather set us Free.)

Israeli Nature

Ever noticed in Israel that that it doesn’t have the Four Seasons? Spring and Autumn hardly exist.

In Winter, it’s too cold and too dark for much of Nature to blossom. In Summer it’s too hot and too dry for much to flower. However, blooming we find in the Holy Land year round. Trees can do it in December. Citrus trees flower thrice a year! And as soon as there is a downpour, desert plants (also outside of the desert) soak it up like a sponge and bloom.

But there is also something very special in how the beginning of Winter and the beginning of Summer resemble each other in Nature in Israel.

Trees burgeon and flowers bud en masse. As soon as the cold and darkness depart, Israel’s Nature comes to life again. But also, as soon as the heat and dryness disappear, Israel’s Nature comes to life again. Again, trees bud and flowers burgeon en bloc.

So, Nature in Israel has two new years! And … the Jewish calendar has two beginnings too. How elegant!

The Jewish Year

The Torah has as the new year the beginning of the Month of the Exodus from Egypt, Passover. Nissan is the first month of the Jewish calendar.

But Jewish life has Rosh Hashanah as the beginning of the year. We reflect on the past year and intend to improve for the coming year. We do that year round, but at no time as intense as around Rosh Hashanah.

At Rosh Hashanah, we commemorate that G-d created Humans.

At Pesach, we commemorate that G-d created the Jewish People.

Directly after that, Jews and Gentiles trade places on the calendar.

The Feast after the High Holidays, Tabernacles, Jews celebrate that we lived miraculously for forty years in the desert.

The Festival after Pesach, Pentecost, we rejoice that Mankind received the Ten Commandments (via us, but in the desert: for all).

(Talking of which, there is one very strange Commandment in the Ten. Shabbat. Non-Jews are not even allowed to keep Shabbat the way Jews must. What is that doing in the universal Ten Commandments?

I think that this line comes to tell us that there is holiness, not only in place but also in time. It even just teaches to pay attention that there is time. If you’re not ware of time, you can’t make changes and you can’t improve well. Don’t let time go right over your head.)

So, soon we’ll celebrate the creation of people and pray for all of them, followed by how Jews miraculously survived the desert and the centuries.

In half a year’s time, we’ll celebrate the creation of the Jewish People, followed by how we, in the desert, received universal moral Law for all.

Have a great year!

About the Author

MM is a prolific and creative writer and thinker, previously a daily blog contributor to the TOI. He often makes his readers laugh, mad, or assume he's nuts—close to perfect blogging. He's proud that his analytical short comments are removed both from left-wing and right-wing news sites. None of his content is generated by the new bore on the block, AI. * As a frontier thinker, he sees things many don't yet. He's half a prophet. Half. Let's not exaggerate. Or not at all because he doesn't claim G^d talks to him. He gives him good ideas—that's all. MM doesn't believe that people observe and think in a vacuum. He, therefore, wanted a broad bio that readers interested can track a bit what (lack of) backgrounds, experiences, and educations contribute to his visions. * This year, he will prioritize getting his unpublished books published rather than just blog posts. Next year, he hopes to focus on activism against human extinction. To find less-recent posts on a subject XXX among his over 2000 archived ones, go to the right-top corner of a Times of Israel page, click on the search icon and search "zuiden, XXX". One can find a second, wilder blog, to which one may subscribe too, here: https://mmvanzuiden.wordpress.com/ or by clicking on the globe icon next to his picture on top. * Like most of his readers, he believes in being friendly, respectful, and loyal. However, if you think those are his absolute top priorities, you might end up disappointed. His first loyalty is to the truth. He will try to stay within the limits of democratic and Jewish law, but he won't lie to support opinions or people when don't deserve that. (Yet, we all make honest mistakes, which is just fine and does not justify losing support.) He admits that he sometimes exaggerates to make a point, which could have him come across as nasty, while in actuality, he's quite a lovely person to interact with. He holds - how Dutch - that a strong opinion doesn't imply intolerance of other views. * Sometimes he's misunderstood because his wide and diverse field of vision seldomly fits any specialist's box. But that's exactly what some love about him. He has written a lot about Psychology (including Sexuality and Abuse), Medicine (including physical immortality), Science (including basic statistics), Politics (Israel, the US, and the Netherlands, Activism - more than leftwing or rightwing, he hopes to highlight reality), Oppression and Liberation (intersectionally, for young people, the elderly, non-Whites, women, workers, Jews, LGBTQIA+, foreigners and anyone else who's dehumanized or exploited), Integrity, Philosophy, Jews (Judaism, Zionism, Holocaust and Jewish Liberation), the Climate Crisis, Ecology and Veganism, Affairs from the news, or the Torah Portion of the Week, or new insights that suddenly befell him. * Chronologically, his most influential teachers are his parents, Nico (natan) van Zuiden and Betty (beisye) Nieweg, Wim Kan, Mozart, Harvey Jackins, Marshal Rosenberg, Reb Shlomo Carlebach, and, lehavdil bein chayim lechayim, Rabbi Dr. Natan Lopes Cardozo, Rav Zev Leff, and Rav Meir Lubin. This short list doesn't mean to disrespect others who taught him a lot or a little. One of his rabbis calls him Mr. Innovation [Ish haChidushim]. Yet, his originalities seem to root deeply in traditional Judaism, though they may grow in unexpected directions. In fact, he claims he's modernizing nothing. Rather, mainly basing himself on the basic Hebrew Torah text, he tries to rediscover classical Jewish thought almost lost in thousands of years of stifling Gentile domination and Jewish assimilation. (He pleads for a close reading of the Torah instead of going by rough assumptions of what it would probably mean and before fleeing to Commentaries.) This, in all aspects of life, but prominently in the areas of Free Will, Activism, Homosexuality for men, and Redemption. * He hopes that his words will inspire and inform, and disturb the comfortable and comfort the disturbed. He aims to bring a fresh perspective rather than harp on the obvious and familiar. When he can, he loves to write encyclopedic overviews. He doesn't expect his readers to agree. Rather, original minds should be disputed. In short, his main political positions are among others: anti-Trumpism, for Zionism, Intersectionality, non-violence, anti those who abuse democratic liberties, anti the fake ME peace process, for original-Orthodoxy, pro-Science, pro-Free Will, anti-blaming-the-victim, and for down-to-earth, classical optimism, and happiness. Read his blog on how he attempts to bridge any tensions between those ideas or fields. * He is a fetal survivor of the pharmaceutical industry (https://diethylstilbestrol.co.uk/studies/des-and-psychological-health/), born in 1953 to his parents who were Dutch-Jewish Holocaust survivors who met in the largest concentration camp in the Netherlands, Westerbork. He grew up a humble listener. It took him decades to become a speaker too, and decades more to admit to being a genius. But his humility was his to keep. And so was his honesty. Bullies and con artists almost instantaneously envy and hate him. He hopes to bring new things and not just preach to the choir. * He holds a BA in medicine (University of Amsterdam) – is half a doctor. He practices Re-evaluation Co-counseling since 1977, is not an official teacher anymore, and became a friendly, powerful therapist. He became a social activist, became religious, made Aliyah, and raised three wonderful kids. Previously, for decades, he was known to the Jerusalem Post readers as a frequent letter writer. For a couple of years, he was active in hasbara to the Dutch-speaking public. He wrote an unpublished tome about Jewish Free Will. He's a strict vegan since 2008. He's an Orthodox Jew but not a rabbi. * His writing has been made possible by an allowance for second-generation Holocaust survivors from the Netherlands. It has been his dream since he was 38 to try to make a difference by teaching through writing. He had three times 9-out-of-10 for Dutch at his high school finals but is spending his days communicating in English and Hebrew - how ironic. G-d must have a fine sense of humor. In case you wonder - yes, he is a bit dyslectic. If you're a native English speaker and wonder why you should read from people whose English is only their second language, consider the advantage of having an original peek outside of your cultural bubble. * To send any personal reaction to him, scroll to the top of the blog post and click Contact Me. * His newest books you may find here: https://www.amazon.com/s?i=stripbooks&rh=p_27%3AMoshe-Mordechai%2FMaurits+van+Zuiden&s=relevancerank&text=Moshe-Mordechai%2FMaurits+van+Zuiden&ref=dp_byline_sr_book_1