Perashat Bo 5776

Perashat Bo 5776

“Time is the measurer of all things, but is itself immeasurable, and the grand discloser of all things, but is itself undisclosed.” - Charles Caleb Colton

The above quote illustrates just how important is the concept of time.  In this week’s perasha, Bo, the very first commandment given to the Jewish people was the missva to sanctify and control time.  The Torah tells us that, “This month shall be for you the beginning of the months, the first of the months of the year for you.”  (Shemot 12:1)  The Almighty commanded us to declare and sanctify the New Moon, and thereby determine the beginning of the months, years and the holidays.  Moshe Rabbenu was taught the science of determining the “new moon,” and this method was passed on to the sages, who utilized it until the fixed calendar was adopted in the fourth century C.E.  

Why was this the very first missva given to us as a nation?  In his book, Sadeka Mimeni, Rabbi Steven Pruzansky refers to Rabbi Ya’akob Ariel, the Chief Rabbi of Ramat Gan, who places this missva in context in his book of essays on the perashiyot, “Me’Ohalei Torah.” Rabbi Ariel points out that the Jewish people were a nation of slaves, who, by definition, were not masters of their own time or bodies.  A slave’s time is not his own, which explains, why according to the Torah, certain slaves were exempt from “time-bound” commandments.  A slave is answerable to his master, and as such has no “free time” of his own.  Even his non-working hours are subject to his master’s will.  

What Boreh Olam did by giving us this missva, "החודש הזה לכם ראש חדשים" - “This month shall be for you the beginning of the months…”, as a prelude to redemption, was in fact, to give us the gift of time itself.  This was a very precious gift, for time is man’s most precious and delicate commodity.  However, this is a gift that carries with it great responsibilty. We were commanded to control time; however the sad reality, is that in most cases, people – being creatures of habit and circumstance - are controlled by time instead.  To control time, means to prioritize our lives and organize our daily activities in a way in which we will be most productive.  A “traditional” Jewish day, of rising for prayers, studying Torah and going off to work and ending the day with yet more prayer and study, if followed correctly, can indeed give a person the structure to utilize his time properly.  Only those people who manage their time appropriately can be truly considered
servants of G-d.” It was for this reason that G-d redeemed us from Egypt; in order that we may use our time constructively in his service, rather than building meaningless structures for Pharaoh.  

It is unfortunate, that modern man, with all his technological advances that have been engineered to “save time”, suffers from “time mismanagement.”  Unfortunately, the modern world offers many distractions, such as the Internet – even with all its positives as the “Information Super-Highway” – as well as numerous venues of entertainment, that often “rob” us of our valuable time, which could be spent in more productive ways, such as education and spending time with family, taking care of our physical needs, etc.  Modern man ends up becoming a slave to his passions.  The true “free person” knows how to live within his limits and appreciates the constraints of time.  Those people who have mastered time – rather than time becoming their masters – are able to fulfill their obligations in a “timely manner” and use the remaining time to enrich their lives, both physically and spiritually.  The great American statesman and diplomat, Benjamin Franklin was known to say that, “Lost time is never found again.”  This is indeed the lesson that the Torah is imparting upon us in this week’s perasha; Judaism demands that we master our time.  It is the very essence of freedom and responsibility, and it is the foundation of our redemption.  

(Based on an essay by Rabbi Steven Pruzansky in his book, Sadeka Mimeni)