Chief Rabbi Isaac Sacca – May 2026
Shavuot (literally meaning “weeks,” as it is celebrated seven weeks — forty-nine days — after the first day of Passover) commemorates the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. On this very day, more than 3,000 years ago, God revealed the Ten Commandments to the people of Israel. These commandments constitute one of the spiritual and ethical foundations of civilization: principles that guide humanity toward justice and peaceful coexistence.
Yet it is striking that the most transcendent moment in the history of the Jewish people did not take place in a great city, a majestic temple, or a luxurious palace, but rather in the middle of the desert.
The desert represents emptiness, uncertainty, and human fragility. It is the place where material security disappears and a person stands face to face with oneself and with God. There are no distractions or artifices there — only the endless horizon and the need to learn to trust in God.
This is precisely why the Torah was given in the desert: to teach us that God’s presence does not dwell only in sacred places or extraordinary moments. God is everywhere — in inhabited places, and also in those that seem barren, dark, or desolate. Even in moments of loneliness, confusion, or hardship, the voice of God continues to speak to the human being.
Shavuot reminds us that the Torah was not given only to a generation of the past. Every person receives it anew in every era and in every circumstance of life. At times, it is precisely within our personal “deserts” — crises, fears, searches, and questions — that we are able to discover God’s closeness with greater clarity.
We can find God throughout Creation and at every moment. The challenge that Shavuot presents to us is to learn to pause, to look deeply, and to recognize His presence even amid the noise, routine, and difficulties of everyday life.
