Timeless Torah

There is a certain magic moment that comes but once a year. If you have never experienced it personally, you have missed out on one of life's mystical junctures in time. It occurs between the last Mincha (afternoon) prayer of the old year and the first Ma’ariv (evening) prayer of the new. More specifically, just after the final Kaddish of the afternoon is intoned, a hush descends upon the congregation. It seems as if everyone realizes the importance of where they are in time. And then, the moment passes. The Chazzan approaches the cantor's lectern and his melodious voice brings forth the first word of the first Ma’ariv and ushers in the new year.
If time must have a stop, it takes place at this moment. The sun hangs in the evening sky, unmoving. There is a ‘stillness’ in the world. One can almost sense how in the heavenly court G-d is closing the book of the previous year, putting it away, and opening the brand new ledger.
The last word of the old year; do you know what it is? The last word of the concluding Kaddish of Mincha is Amen. The first word of the new year; do you know what it is? Barchu.
Amen signifies agreement, acceptance and affirmation. We say Amen to His rule over us, to His guidance over our lives and to His dominion over the affairs of mankind.
Barchu is an imperative; “You shall bless.” It is a public call to worship. It is the keynote of the new year. Barchu denotes our hopes and our fondest wishes that the coming season will be blessed with an abundance of health, livelihood , nachas from children, and most of all, peace.
Amen, the end; Barchu, the beginning. And in between the Amen and the Barchu is mankind, standing at the close of one adventure and poised at the outset of a new one.
The end and the subsequent dawning happen just once a year. It is a mysterious, awesome, delicate instant: a moment when man and all of creation, and even time, stands still. In fact, the only entity that is moving is G-d: He is storing away the old book and unveiling the new.