Parshat Emor outlines the mitzvah of counting the Omer in the context of annual holidays:

ויקרא כג טו וּסְפַרְתֶּ֤ם לָכֶם֙ מִמָּֽחֳרַ֣ת הַשַּׁבָּ֔ת מִיּוֹם֙ הֲבִ֣יאֲכֶ֔ם אֶת־עֹ֖מֶר הַתְּנוּפָ֑ה שֶׁ֥בַע שַׁבָּת֖וֹת תְּמִימֹ֥ת תִּֽהְיֶֽינָה: טז עַ֣ד מִמָּֽחֳרַ֤ת הַשַּׁבָּת֙ הַשְּׁבִיעִ֔ת תִּסְפְּר֖וּ חֲמִשִּׁ֣ים י֑וֹם וְהִקְרַבְתֶּ֛ם מִנְחָ֥ה חֲדָשָׁ֖ה לַֽיהֹוָֽה:

Vayikra 23 15 And you shall count for yourselves, from the morrow of the rest day from the day you bring the omer as a wave offering seven weeks; they shall be complete. 16 You shall count until the day after the seventh week, [namely,] the fiftieth day, [on which] you shall bring a new meal offering to the Lord.

The Torah outlines the requirement to count both days and weeks. The Gemara discusses whether this procedure changes after the destruction of the Temple:

תלמוד בבלי מנחות סו.

גופא אמר אביי מצוה למימני יומי ומצוה למימני שבועי רבנן דבי רב אשי מנו יומי ומנו שבועי אמימר מני יומי ולא מני שבועי אמר זכר למקדש הוא.

Talmud Bavli Menachot 66a

The Gemara analyzes the matter itself of Abaye’s statement cited in the course of the previous discussion. Abaye said: It is a mitzva to count days, and it is also a mitzva to count weeks. The Gemara notes that in fact the Sages of the study hall of Rav Ashi counted days and they also counted weeks. Ameimar counted days but not weeks. In explanation of his practice, Ameimar said: Since there is no longer an omer offering, the counting is performed only in commemoration of the Temple. Therefore, one does not need to count both days and weeks.

The Gemara confirms that we are commanded to count both days and weeks. The Rabbis in the academy of Rav Ashi followed this standard formulation. Ameimar however counted only days following the destruction of the Temple and not weeks.

רש"י מנחות סו. – אמימר מני יומי ולא שבועי – אמר האי מניינא דהשתא לאו חובה הוא דהא ליכא עומר אלא זכר למקדש בעלמא הוא הלכך ביומי סגי.

Rashi Menachot 66a – [Amaimar held] that from the fact that nowadays there is not a (full-fledged) obligation since we no longer have the Omer [offering], rather it is a commemoration of the temple in general, therefore [counting] the days is sufficient.

According to Rashi, since the nature of the mitzvah changed after the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash. We alter the method of counting, apparently to differentiate it from the observance as it was previously practiced. What is the idea behind this modification? Why tinker with the formulation outlined in the Torah?

The Rav explained that there are two distinct modes of commemorating the Best HaMikdash. One is exemplified by certain mourning practices adopted by the Jewish people after the destruction:

תלמוד בבלי בבא בתרא ס:

עושה אשה כל תכשיטיה ומשיירת דבר מועט מאי היא אמר רב בת צדעא שנאמר {תהלים קל"ז:ה'} אם אשכחך ירושלים תשכח ימיני תדבק לשוני לחכי וגו’. מאי על ראש שמחתי אמר רב יצחק זה אפר מקלה שבראש חתנים א״ל רב פפא לאביי היכא מנח לה במקום תפילין שנאמר {ישעיהו ס״א:ג׳} לשום לאבלי ציון לתת להם פאר תחת אפר. וכל המתאבל על ירושלים זוכה ורואה בשמחתה שנאמר {ישעיהו ס״ו:י׳} שמחו את ירושלים וגו׳.

Talmud Bavli Bava Batra 60b

Rabbi Yehoshua continues: The Sages said that a woman may engage in all of her cosmetic treatments, but she must leave out a small matter to remember the destruction of the Temple. The Gemara interjects: What is this small matter? Rav said: She does not remove hair from the place on the temple from which women would remove hair. The source for these practices is a verse, as it is stated: “If I forget you, Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its cunning. Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, if I remember you not; if I set not Jerusalem above my highest joy” (Psalms 137:5–6). The Gemara asks: What is the meaning of: Above my highest [rosh] joy? Rav Yitzḥak says: This is referring to the burnt ashes that are customarily placed on the head [rosh] of bridegrooms at the time of their wedding celebrations, to remember the destruction of the Temple. Rav Pappa said to Abaye: Where are they placed? Abaye replied: On the place where phylacteries are placed, as it is stated: “To appoint to them that mourn in Zion, to give to them a garland in place of ashes” (Isaiah 61:3). Since phylacteries are referred to as a garland (see Ezekiel 24:17), it may be inferred from this verse that the ashes were placed in the same place as the phylacteries. The baraita continues: And anyone who mourns for the destruction of Jerusalem will merit and see its joy, as it is stated: “Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all that love her; rejoice for joy with her, all that mourn for her” (Isaiah 66:10).

Another mode of commemoration is exemplified in the practice of taking the Lulav all 7 days, even in exile:

תלמוד בבלי סוכה מא.

מַתְנִיתִין: בָּרִאשׁוֹנָה, הָיָה לוּלָב נִיטָּל בַּמִּקְדָּשׁ שִׁבְעָה, וּבַמְּדִינָה יוֹם אֶחָד. מִשֶּׁחָרַב בֵּית הַמִּקְדָּשׁ, הִתְקִין רַבַּן יוֹחָנָן בֶּן זַכַּאי שֶׁיְּהֵא לוּלָב נִיטָּל בַּמְּדִינָה שִׁבְעָה, זֵכֶר לַמִּקְדָּש

גְּמָרָא: מְנָא לַן דְּעָבְדִינַן זֵכֶר לַמִּקְדָּשׁ? אֲמַר רִבִּי יוֹחָנָן: דַּאֲמַר קְרָא: {ירמיהו ל׳:י״ז} ״כִּי אַעֲלֶה אֲרוּכָה לָךְ, וּמִמַּכּוֹתַיִךְ אֶרְפָּאֵךְ, נְאֻם ה׳, כִּי נִדָּחָה קָרְאוּ לָךְ, צִיּוֹן הִיא דּוֹרֵשׁ אֵין לָהּ.״ דּוֹרֵשׁ אֵין לָהּ, מִכְּלָל דְּבָעְיָא דְּרִישָׁה.

Talmud Bavli Sukkah 41a

Mishna: Originally, during the Temple era, the lulav was taken in the Temple for seven days, and in the rest of the country outside the Temple it was taken for one day. Once the Temple was destroyed, Rabban Yoḥanan ben Zakkai instituted an ordinance that the lulav should be taken even in the rest of the country for seven days, in commemoration of the Temple.

GEMARA: The Gemara asks: From where do we derive that we institute ordinances in commemoration of the Temple? Rabbi Yoḥanan said that it is as the verse states: “For I will restore health unto you and I will heal you of your wounds, says the Lord; because they have called you an outcast, she is Zion, there is none that seeks her” (Jeremiah 30:17). From the fact that the verse states: “There is none that seeks her,” it can be learned by inference that it requires seeking, i.e., people should think of and remember the Temple. That is the reason for Rabban Yoḥanan ben Zakkai’s ordinance.

The Rav explains these two modes of commemoration. One mode, expressed by the verse “If I forget you, Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its cunning. Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, if I remember you not; if I set not Jerusalem above my highest joy” (Psalms 137:5–6) reminds us of the incredible loss we experienced as a result of the destruction of the Temple. Even at times of great joy, such as a wedding, we do not get carried away in our celebration without acknowledging this loss and our hope for rebuilding in the future. According to Ameimar, we modify the method of counting the Omer to remind us of our current state of affairs and our corresponding hope for a better future.

A second mode of commemoration reminds us of the glory of the Beit HaMikdash. In this mode of commemoration, we extend the observance outside of its normal boundaries. The Rav referred to this as “Kedusha Imperialism”. This is based on the verse ““For I will restore health unto you and I will heal you of your wounds, says the Lord; because they have called you an outcast, she is Zion, there is none that seeks her” (Jeremiah 30:17). We seek out Zion through our observance to remediate this loss.

Perhaps this explains the debate in our original Gemara (Menachot 66a) between the Rabbis in the academy of Rav Ashi and Ameimar. There debate centered around whether in a post-mikdash world we adopt a modified method of counting to remind us of the destruction (Ameimar), or a full-fledged counting modeled after Rabbi Yohanan ben Zakai’s bold concept of “Kedusha Imperialism”, extending the opportunity to encounter God within the four cubits of halakha.

References

Rosenberg, A. (1980). A new English translation of the Hebrew Bible text and Rashi, with a commentary digest. New York: Judaica Press. Retrieved from: https://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/

Steinsaltz, A., In Weinreb, T. H., In Schreier, J., & Hotsaat Koren (Jerusalem),. (2017). Koren Talmud Bavli, the Noe edition: Talmud Bavli. Retrieved from: https://shas.alhatorah.org/

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