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We are making our way through the last week between Pesach and Shavuot and find ourselves beginning a new book of Torah. We know it best by its English name, Numbers, named for the census by which the book opens, but in Hebrew, it is known by the word Bamidbar, meaning the wilderness, or desert.

We are not the only faith tradition that centralizes the setting of the desert as part of its narrative. Jesus spends 40 days in the desert trying to resist evil temptation. Mohammad began life in the desert, orphaned, and Hagar and Ishmael are banished to the desert after Isaac takes an elevated position as the son of Sarah.

What about the desert is so important? As the Israelites wandered the desert, they owned no land. There is an equality in the desert that is erased once each tribe lays claim to land in Eretz Yisrael. Equality in the desert engenders equal access to Torah. As we stood at Mount Sinai, no one could say that they were more important or had a greater right to the Torah because they were a landowner (unless you count women which is another article altogether).

In a place where material things don’t matter, the desert becomes a place (and a time) when one can confront oneself. We all spend time in our own deserts. Think about the times when nothing was going to change unless you made the change, or took the first step, or gained new perspective. Those revelations happen in our personal deserts, where we reflect and sit with ourselves-to grapple, struggle, and listen to the voice deep within us reminding us of who we are and what we’re capable of.

And so, too, the Israelites spend time in the desert-winding their way through trials and tribulations and forging their identity. They are us. Let us celebrate the wandering that leads to struggling and ultimately, God-willing, to peace.