This week we finish the fourth book of the Torah, b’Meedbar (Numbers). The final parsha (weekly Torah portion) is called Mas’ay which means travels, and the parsha starts off by reviewing 40 years of travels by the children of Yisrael. At the end of this review, we read that haShem (god) once again talks to Moshe (Moses) telling him to tell the people something. This time it is what to do when they cross the Jordan river: remove the people … Continue reading
Hello friends and neighbors, This week, we read the second to last parsha (Torah portion) in the book of Vayikra (Leviticus). This parsha is called B’har which means, “On the mountain.” It is referring to Mount Sinai, which we see from the first verse that reads: And haShem (god) spoke to Moshe (Mses) on mount Sinai saying…” So, what does god tell Moshe to say? He told him to tell the children of Yisrael how to treat the land that … Continue reading
This Shabbat we read a parsha that is near and dear to my heart. It is called Emor which means, “You will say.” It is called Emor because the parsha begins with haShem (god) telling Moshe (Moses), “You will say to the cohanim (priests), the children of Aharon…” What makes this parsha near and dear to me is that the first part of it is all about the priesthood, and since my great, great…great granddaddy was Aharon, it has special … Continue reading
Hanukkah started tonight; so, I thought I would share a thought or two about it. Why did the sages make Hanukkah a holiday? The obvious answer is the two miracles: defeating the Greeks and the oil lasting 8 days. However, we have had other miracles like these that the sages did not turn into holidays: Joshua stopping the sun and the defeat of Cicero two name just two. So why did the sages make a holiday of Hanukkah? The answer … Continue reading