Don’t forget Shmini Atzeret

What exactly is Shmini Atzeret? It is hard for many of us to actually work out its identity. We sit in the Succah on Shmini Atzeret – but we do not say a blessing on it. We say the blessing of Shechechiyanu at kiddush signifying a new festival, and yet the day seems to be a continuation of Succot. Will the real Shmini Atzeret please stand up!

Well let’s set the record straight – according to the Talmud, and according really to how one reads the Torah in a number of places, Shmini Atzeret is a separate festival called by that name. So when we add the special additional bit to our silent prayer on a festival, we add for Pesach, Shavuot, Succot and also for Shmini Atzeret. But to be sure, we call it ‘yom hashmini, Chag Ha-Atzeret Hazeh’ – ‘the eighth day, this Atzeret Festival’. In other words, we still relate to Shimini Atzeret as an eighth day of Succot, but give it a separate name ‘Atzeret’.

So what is ‘Atzeret’ and why is it so close to Succot. There are of course many approaches – that is the beauty of Judaism. Here is one for you to mull over in your Succah over the eighth day. Each festival contains with it a message for us individuals, for us as a nation and also for us as a part of humanity. Ideally we have contemplated on and deepened our understanding of the specific festive messages. So on Pesach we would be contemplating the concept of freedom and the understanding of the birth of our nation and what it would lead to. On Succot we could be contemplating the journey of our people in the desert and how we matured from a slave nation to a people that could set up independent rule in the land of Israel. The idea of ‘Atzeret’ is that we do not abruptly move from the festival back into the year. Rather we have one day, a transition day maybe, to consider how we can take the ideas of the festival on into the rest of the year. This way, our year is full of the messages of our festivals, and not a year that has small islands of festivals dotted about a sea of banality and normality. In fact Atzeret comes from the word ‘atzor’ which means to stop and stay behind.

In fact, in the Talmud, Shavuot us also called Atzeret. According to the 13th century Rabbi Moses Nachmanides (Ramban), Shavuot is the Atzeret of Pesach, and the Omer is in effect the Chol HaMoed between Pesach and Shavuot. The messages of freedom and the birth of our people are realised on Shavuot when we comemorate the receiving of the Torah. In fact we have now split the year into two halves. The first half starts with the later festival of Purim and moves through Pesach and ends with Shavuot. It is a reflection of G-d’s lovingkindness and salvation for our people. The second half begins with the later added 9th of Av and moves through Elul, through Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, Succot and ends with Shmini Atzeret. It reflects G-d’s judging of the world and relates more to awe and fear of G-d than love of G-d.

So there you have it – don’t leave Shmini Atzeret behind. It can teach us much about the Jewish year.