Parashat Bamidbar
May 16, 2023
Jackie Grosser, Director of Upper School Admissions
There are 21 school days left this year. I counted. Our students probably have a countdown. Our whole community — parents, teachers, and bus drivers alike — are counting, too. Why is this count so important? Is it a celebration of how much was accomplished in the 151 days prior? Is it a yearning for what’s to come? As we near the end of counting the Omer, we are certainly in the season of counting.
This week’s parashah, Bamidbar, begins with a different kind of count:
שְׂא֗וּ אֶת־רֹאשׁ֙ כָּל־עֲדַ֣ת בְּנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֖ם לְבֵ֣ית אֲבֹתָ֑ם בְּמִסְפַּ֣ר שֵׁמ֔וֹת
כָּל־זָכָ֖ר לְגֻלְגְּלֹתָֽם
Take the sum of all the congregation of the Children of Israel, by families following their fathers’ houses; a head count of every male according to the number of their names (Bamidbar 1:2)
Why does the Torah spend so much time on the counting of people? Is the total number really that important, or is there another meaning behind the taking of the census?
According Rabbi Jonathan Sacks z”l, the significance of the census is contained in the words שְׂא֗וּ אֶת־רֹאשׁ֙ — “lift each head.” The purpose of the census was to show the people that each of them mattered. Each individual who was counted had a unique personal history and the prospect of a successful future. They had just been freed from slavery and were about to enter the promised land. They were individually special and had limitless potential.
As we are counting the days left in this school year, we take time to celebrate each student and their individual accomplishments. We look ahead to community celebrations: Springfest, all-school tefilah, moving up and graduation ceremonies, and so much more. Bamidbar teaches us that counting — noticing, marking, and highlighting — can help us recognize both our individual worth and our collective achievements. Ultimately, it is these moments and these achievements that make all the counting infinitely worthwhile. Shabbat Shalom.
This week’s parashah, Bamidbar, begins with a different kind of count:
שְׂא֗וּ אֶת־רֹאשׁ֙ כָּל־עֲדַ֣ת בְּנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֖ם לְבֵ֣ית אֲבֹתָ֑ם בְּמִסְפַּ֣ר שֵׁמ֔וֹת
כָּל־זָכָ֖ר לְגֻלְגְּלֹתָֽם
Take the sum of all the congregation of the Children of Israel, by families following their fathers’ houses; a head count of every male according to the number of their names (Bamidbar 1:2)
Hashem first commands Moshe to count all the men of military age. Later in the parashah, we learn that Hashem also orders Moshe to, separately, count the members of each tribe, the Levites, and finally the firstborn Israelites.
Why does the Torah spend so much time on the counting of people? Is the total number really that important, or is there another meaning behind the taking of the census?
According Rabbi Jonathan Sacks z”l, the significance of the census is contained in the words שְׂא֗וּ אֶת־רֹאשׁ֙ — “lift each head.” The purpose of the census was to show the people that each of them mattered. Each individual who was counted had a unique personal history and the prospect of a successful future. They had just been freed from slavery and were about to enter the promised land. They were individually special and had limitless potential.
As we are counting the days left in this school year, we take time to celebrate each student and their individual accomplishments. We look ahead to community celebrations: Springfest, all-school tefilah, moving up and graduation ceremonies, and so much more. Bamidbar teaches us that counting — noticing, marking, and highlighting — can help us recognize both our individual worth and our collective achievements. Ultimately, it is these moments and these achievements that make all the counting infinitely worthwhile. Shabbat Shalom.