This Shabbat is the last of the four special Shabbatot. We read Parshat HaChodesh that relates the commandment of Rosh Chodesh and of the first Pesach, and the Haftarah is of from Yechezkel, describing the dedication of the final Temple.
Linear annotated translation of the Haftarah of Shabbat HaChodesh
There are so many interesting ideas that the Haftarah brings up in connection with Rosh Chodesh Nissan, and Rosh Chodesh Nissan itself is such an interesting date, it was hard to find just one thing to focus on. So perhaps some day in the future I will write about whether the world was created in Nissan or Tishrei and what difference it makes, and about the Gates of the East and the return to Gan Eden. This time I wrote about the 1st of Tishrei as the New Year for kings.
This is also a chance to summarize the 4 special Shabbatot that prepare us for the season of national independence and achievement:
- Shekalim on the power and utility of money, which is one of the bases of society.
- Zachor on the shared values that are worth standing up to protest
- Parah on the paradoxical nature of Jewish history, and on the potential for change
- HaChodesh on how we became a nation in the first place.
May this season bring only good news and joy to the entire Jewish People, wherever they may be.