Chapter 12 of this week’s Torah portion begins “This month shall mark for you the beginning of the months; it shall be the first of the months of the year for you.” (Exodus 12:2) The Jewish calendar begins the night of the Exodus from Egypt and liberation from slavery. For the Jewish people, time begins with the rebirth of Israel as free people. Pesach, then, is the birthday of the Jewish people. Each of us has our physical birthday, the day on which we were born. But we may also have a spiritual or psychological birthday—a day when we became more aware, or broke a habit that had enslaved us for years, or the day we met our beloved. What is the month (and year) that marks the beginning of your personal calendar?

Rabbi Dean

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