* Translation by Yehoshua Siskin
What is the first mitzvah given to the nation of Israel? To sanctify the new month. To look up at the slender lunar crescent that marks the onset of each month and to bless that month accordingly.
In “Netivot Shalom” by Rabbi Shalom Noah Berezovsky, we learn about the significance of this call for renewal:
“The first commandment, that is, the very first thing that God told the nation of Israel was that a Jew, first and foremost, must constantly renew himself. To look at the moon and, like it, be forever renewed and re-emerge from the darkness. This is the first commandment and it reflects our reality here on earth, in every generation and on every single day.
In these Torah portions concerning the Exodus from Egypt, the Torah gives a Jew the strength to prevail over every hardship in every generation. When the Torah prioritizes the moon’s constant renewal in its first commandment, it hints to every Jew that continual renewal is essential to him as well.”
Yesterday, thousands of years after this commandment was given, we celebrated the new moon on Rosh Hodesh Shevat. The beautiful words from “Netivot Shalom” remind us that renewal is not only meant for the beginning of each month, but can happen at any moment and that we should be constantly on the look out for opportunities to be renewed.
