Counting the Omer is a mitzvah that connects Pesach to Shavuot, the Exodus from Egypt to the Giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai. This period is also a time of mourning for the deaths of the twenty-four thousand students of Rabbi Akiva. There are two NLE Morasha Syllabus classes on the topic of Sefirat Ha’Omer. This first class will address the basics of the mitzvah of counting the Omer, the philosophy behind the mitzvah, and the reasons that this is a period of mourning. The second class will discuss the festive day of Lag B’Omer and how to use the period of Sefirah to achieve personal growth.