[Avodah] sephira question

[hankman]

My previous response was just a partial as I had not yet read the next two citations that RMB posted.

I appreciate the direction in which the ideas from R' Elozor Reich, Maadanei Yom Tov, and the Chinuch move, but still feel the answer remains somewhat nebulous and open to further questions. This notion of the "virtual" count of day "zero" in arrears with the Chinuch's explanation leaves one wondering why it should be virtual? After all if the count is in arrears, and the work and anticipation of the mitzvos of the first day are now over, so why not count for real? Then of course one would have the problem of the final day (the day before Shavuous) not being counted unless we actually count FIFTY days (as the pasuk actually says).  This brings us to the obvious question of the seeming contradiction in the pesukim in Emor, where we are told to count 50 days, but consisting of only 7 complete weeks (49 days).  Temimos in the pasuk is only an adjective to weeks not days, which I guess are temimos by inference from weeks, ie a complete 49 day/7 week period. But this could leave us with the 1st virtual day (1st of Pesach) not necessarily complete (outside the "complete" 7 week period). This leaves the pshetele about the reason for the extra day to the 1st Shavuous (Matan Torah) as less than compelling. This does however answer why we count the weeks at the 6/7 point since if this is in arrears it is actually 7/7 point and thus in arrears for the complete week.

I also think the ordinal/cardinal issue is a red herring as is the notion of temimos as an answer to my question. They do not imply a count of days in arrears, as I could hear these going either way - neither being more compelling than the other. We seem to want to dance at both chasunas, its 49 that are also fifty that are sort of in arrears but not really as we only count 49 with 49 brochos (which implies count in advance).

Also why the switch from shabosos to shovuous respectively in Emor and Re'ai?

Still somewhat confused,

Kol Tuv

Chaim Manaster
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