The Jewish tradition generally places a high value on learning and study, especially of religious texts. Torah study (compromising study of the Torah and more broadly of the entire Hebrew Bible as well as Rabbinic literature such as the Talmud and Midrash) is considered a religious obligation.
This is a double parsha, made up of parshas Behar and Bechukotai. The seven aliyot of this week’s reading are indicated by special aliyah markings within those two parshas in the Chumash. Parshiyot Behar and Bechukotai are power-packed doubleheaders, this one emphasizing the connection between the Jew and Eretz Yisrael. The lunisolar Hebrew calendar contains up to 55 weeks, the exact number varying between 50 in common years and 54 or 55 in leap years. In leap years, parshah Bechukotai is read separately. In common years, parshah Bechukotai is combined with the previous parshah, Behar, to help achieve the needed number of weekly readings. Behar: The thirty-second reading from the Torah and second-to-last reading from the book of Leviticus is called Behar (בהר), which means “On the Mountain.” The name comes from the first words of the first verse of the reading, which could be literally translated to [...]
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We have the culmination of the Mishkan (Taberncle) creation and beginning of use, doubled with the beginning Aaron and his sons being set aside as high priests occurring this week in the portion Shemini. Aaron loses two of his sons to the Most High’s fire and HaShem gives us the kosher dietary laws, kashrut. This parsha has quite the storylin ...
Galut or Golus (Hebrew: גלות), means literally exile. Galut or Golus classically refers to the exile of the Jewish people from the Land of Israel. There were altogether four such exiles. These are said to be alluded to in Abraham’s biblical vision of the future of his descendants according to Bereishit Rabba (44:1 ...
Techiyat hameitim means the resurrection of the dead. Rambam stated: "I believe with perfect faith that the dead will be brought back to life when God wills it to happen." (This is the 13th and last of Rambam’s Principles of Faith) Is there no hope for the dead? Is our life simply finished — over — when we die? No, not a ...
The Korban Todah (offering of thanksgiving) of a Nation. The special laws of the korban Pesach (offering of Passover) can be understood in a similar manner, for it too is an offering of thanksgiving – not for a personal case of redemption, but rather for our national redemption. Let’s review the special laws of the korban Pesach to show ...
People talk about "believing in Jesus…" Let me ask you something, you who profess to believe in the Rav (Master), Yeshua ben Yosef, MiNetzeret… Yeshua says, ‘THINK NOT that I have come to destroy the Torah and the Prophets. I HAVE NOT come to destroy but to bring them to their fullness. (Cf. Yeshayahu / Isaiah ...
"Jesus was a good Christian boy who went to church every sunday" We might as well begin with a Before/After kind of test in which you, the reader, are its main protagonist. How many mistakes can you spot on the top of this article? Most believers will spot three; only those "in the know" will catch the fourth one. Try it yoursel ...
The letter Kuf is the nineteenth letter of the Hebrew alphabet. In Hebrew, Kuf is spelled with three letters: קוף Kuf, Vav and final Pei, which literally means “monkey, baboon, or ape.” In Aramaic, קוף Kuf means “the eye of a needle.” The letter Kuf equals the number o ...
The spiritual cycle of the Jewish year depends on an interaction among the flow of holidays, the marking of Rosh Chodesh (the new month) and the weekly Shabbat (Sabbath) observance. The holidays and fast days sometimes permeate the surrounding Shabbatot (plural of Shabbat) with holiday themes. These special Shabbatot may create the mood for an upco ...
The following explanation is meant to serve as a primer to the individuals’ search to become "Torah Observant". The following "drash" (teaching example) should enlighten the average believer: ‘Most new automobiles come with two important pieces of literature: an owner’s manual, and a set of registration papers. ...
Tzadi’s saying sound is like "tz” or “ts” as in tsade or that end-word sound of mets or nuts. It is one of the Hebrew letters that has a sofit or final form. Tzadi has a gametric numerical value of ninety (90). Iyun: The sofit form of the letter represents the elevated Tzaddik, standing up with arms lifted upward in vic ...
Generally translated as trust, bitachon is a powerful sense of optimism and confidence based not on reason or experience, but on emunah (active faith). You know that "G‑d is good and He’s the only one in charge," and therefore you have no fears or frets. That is, if a bad occurrence happens, then true, it is a bad occurrence t ...
Parochet (Hebrew: פרוכת) (also paroches, parokhet) is the curtain on the front of the Aron Kodesh (Torah Ark) in a synagogue that covers the Sifrei Torah (Torah scrolls). In most cases, behind the parochet is also a door. This curtain represents the covering that was on the original Ark of the Covenant. The term paroch ...
Giving may seem like a sacrifice at times (especially when money is tight) or we often wonder if the person we give to is worthy or really needs our help, but in reality being charitable to others does more for us, for our relationships with G-d and with our fellow human beings than it does to the people who we give to. Jewish people are reno ...
The seventeenth letter of the Hebrew alphabet is called “Peh” it has the sound of “p” as in “park.” The sole difference between the letter Peh and the letter Feh is the presence or absence of the dot in the middle of the letter (called a dagesh mark). When you see the dot in the middle of this letter, pronounce i ...
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