With Synagogues Closed, Omer App Sees Spike in Use and New Downloads

by Menachem Posner – chabad.org

With synagogues shuttered indefinitely, Jewish life is evolving to conform with the new home-based reality. When possible, technology is taking a more prominent role, facilitating Torah study, fellowship, and more.

Perhaps one of the most difficult mitzvahs to fulfill in an ordinary year is the counting of the Omer, which requires that each sequential day be counted (after nightfall) without missing a day—from the second night of Passover all the way until the eve of Shavuot. (If one misses a day, one should still count, but without making a blessing before the counting.) Those who pray in synagogue have an easier time remembering the brief counting ceremony since it is included in the evening service.

This year, more than ever, thousands are turning to the Omer Counter app to help them remember to count each night.

In addition to remembering to count on each of 49 consecutive nights, the counter needs to verbalize that night’s count and the corresponding Kabbalistic formula—all that before daybreak, or at least, before sunset the following evening.

Chabad.org’s app development team has found a novel way to offer assistance with its “Omer Counter” app. In addition to daily reminders, a live counter tells the user how much time remains for counting that day.

Highly customizable, the app—with texts in Hebrew and English—tracks the user’s counting record and can then produce the appropriate text for that person (since a person who misses one day may no longer include the special blessing before counting on the subsequent nights that year).

Beyond the mechanics of the daily count, the app also features a specially created “daily meditation” from Rabbi Tzvi Freeman, corresponding to the Kabbalistic mystical confluence of sefirot (emanations) associated with each day, as well as a wealth of insights and other information culled from Chabad.org’s repository of Jewish content.

For the novice just foraying into the intricacies of Hebrew reading, the app features a trainer that assists students by highlighting each word as it is chanted, allowing them to familiarize themselves with the Hebrew at their own pace. Supported on mobile devices and tablets, it is ideal for those learning while they are on the move.

This Year More Than Ever

Lead developer Dov Dukes notes that the technology for the trainer is built on Chabad.org’s “Torah Trainer,” which now includes all 54 Torah portions, their Haftarahs, and the blessings recited before and after the readings.

This year, Dukes notes that preliminary data suggests a significant spike in people signing up for and using the app, reflecting its added relevance in a time when people struggle to maintain their Jewish observance without the physical presence of a community.

“Omer Counter” joins Chabad.org’s Jewish Apps Suite in strategically leveraging Chabad.org’s content and know-how to other platforms.

Through the vision and generosity of a group of funders, the “Omer” app joins the “Hayom” app, the “Passover Assistant,” the “Jewish.tv” Video App, the “Shabbat Times” app, a JewishKids.org App for children and others—all designed to help bring Jewish wisdom and tools to the fingertips of users. Additional apps are in the planning and developmental stages by an international Chabad.org team.

The drive, vision for and underwriting of the apps, which are available free of charge, come from the generous partnership of Dovid and Malkie Smetana, Alan and Lori Zekelman, the Meromim Fund, and Moris and Lillian Tabacinic—all dedicated to spreading the wisdom and practice of Judaism worldwide.

“The possibilities in app development for a Jewish audience are virtually endless,” says Chabad.org’s managing director, Rabbi Meir Simcha Kogan, “and we are determined to implement the drive and vision of our generous partners and our staff to use the best practices and highest standards in leveraging these technologies for strengthening Jewish awareness and observance.”

The “Omer Counter” app is available free of charge on Apple’s App Store for iOS devices and Google’s Play Store for Android devices.