It happened just before Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt.
It happened again, just as the Old Testament Queen Esther put a plan into place that saved the Jews from genocide.
And it will happen today, between 7 and 7:30 a.m., according to Jewish tradition.
The sun, the moon and everything else in the solar system will shift into the exact location they existed when God created them, Jews believe. According to Jewish tradition, that was 5,769 years ago. Every 28 years since then, Jews have paused to honor God’s power over creation.
There is nothing astronomically unusual about the moment celebrated as Birkat Hachamah, or Blessing of the Sun. The sunrise isn’t expected to appear any different than on any other morning, and many Jews aren’t familiar with the blessing. The proof is in tradition, Rabbi Zevi Goldberg said.
“We know this from generations before,” said Goldberg, who leads a small Chabad Jewish congregation in Edmonds. “We celebrated 28 year ago, and 28 years before that, from the beginning of creation.”
Birkat Hachamah always occurs on a Wednesday, because God created the cosmos on the fourth day, said Isaac Azose of Congregation Ezra Bessaroth in Seattle.
What’s unusual this year is that the celebration comes just hours before Passover begins, the annual Jewish celebration of deliverance.
Azose said that he was excited at the prospect of celebrating Birkat Hachamah just before Passover because important things in Jewish history have happened when the two events coincide. The Red Sea parted to offer passage for the Israelites who fled Africa, for example, and Queen Esther protected her people from a plot to kill them.
But other years have passed without known incident when Birkat Hachamah occurred just hours before Passover.
Still, there’s something special about any tradition that occurs less than four times each century, and something especially significant if that event heralds Passover, he said.
Younger Jews have grown up waiting for the moment.
“I’m 28 now, so I don’t remember when this happened the last time,” Goldberg said. “I’ve never blessed the sun before, and I want to thank God for creating such a beautiful thing.”
Krista J. Kapralos: 425-339-3422, kkapralos@heraldnet.com.
Sun’s blessing
To watch Birkat Hachamah ceremonies around the world, go to www.chabad.org.
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