Pesach I "Passover”

As it is now Passover week, each day has its own specific parasha

study portion. Today’s is from Exodus 12. This Saturday, the Sabbath,

will have its special reading from Exodus 33.12-34.26. I will share a

few comments about this portion.

Shemot 33.12-14 states: Moshe said to ADONAI, "Look, you say to

me, ‘Make these people move on!’ But you haven’t let me know

whom you will be sending with me. Nevertheless you have said, ‘I

know you by name,’ and also, ‘You have found favor in my sight.’

Now, please, if it is really the case that I have found favor in your

sight, show me your ways; so that I will understand you and continue

finding favor in your sight. Moreover, keep on seeing this nation as

your people.”He answered,"Set your mind at rest — my presence will

go with you, after all.”(33.12-14, CJB).

Twice Moshe uses ...

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Vayikra "and He called”

This week we begin studying the book of Leviticus. Our first study

portion is called "Vayikra” ("And He called”), taken from the first

words of the book, "And God called to Moses…”. This book is

sometimes called "The Book of the Priests”, since it lays out a good

portion of the role of the "kohens”, that is, the priests of Israel.

As the book opens, we see the instructions of God to Israel to offer

offerings at the Tabernacle, which later became the Temple. The first

offering mentioned is the "olah” offering, which was an animal that

was burned whole: "Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When

any of you brings an offering to the LORD, bring as your offering an

animal from either the herd or the flock. If the offering is a burnt

offering from the herd, he is to offer a male ...

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Vayakhel-Pekuday "and he gathered”

Today’s parasha is a "double portion”, that is, two portions combined

together, in order to help us arrive at the correct scripture readings

for Passover, which occurs on the evening of March 25th. Our portion

is entitled "Vayakhel-Pekuday” (spanning Exodus 35.1-40.38).

"Vayakhel” means "and he gathered”, from the 1st verse of our Torah

portion, ‘And Moshe gathered all the assembly of Israel…’. Pekuday

means "commandments of”.

The theme of our parasha revolves around the building of the

‘mishkan’, that is, the wilderness sanctuary or "Tabernacle”. And then

it develops into explaining what went into the uniform of the High

Priest, who was the supervisor of all Tabernacle rituals and events.

Why was this an important structure? Because this is where God’s

presence lived among the people, and where He met with Moses

(right above the cover of the Ark of the Covenant (the "mercy seat”).

God lived ...

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Megillat Esther "Scroll of Esther”

Our Parasha (Tetzaveh "you will instruct” and our Megillah

As a nation, on Saturday night, and in Jerusalem on Sunday night,

we read through the book of Esther, called the Megillah ("the scroll”)

in Hebrew. I had written some comments on our parasha for this

newsletter, but as I began to write about the book of Esther, I

couldn’t stop. So that is what we have this week: just a few thoughts

on the book of Esther.

Tonight begins the two day holiday of Purim (Feast of Lots). All over

the nation, children and adults will wear costumes, dressing up like

Queen Esther or Mordecai, her uncle. They are both two of our

national heroes. In Jerusalem, we have the privilege of celebrating

for 2 days; outside the capital, it’s for one day only. We eat cookies

that we call "Haman’s ears”, recalling the ...

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Terumah "Offerings”

The Torah portion for today is "Terumah” ("Offerings”). It is Exodus

25.1-27.19.

Our section from the Prophets today is 1 Kings 5.26-6.13, and it is from

there that we will share today: "So Adonai gave wisdom to Solomon, just

as He said to him. And there was shalom between Hiram and Solomon;

so they made a covenant between the two of them” (25.26, my

translation).

The place where God promised to give Solomon great wisdom is located

one kilometer from where I live—straight uphill! It is the highest point in

the Jerusalem area, and is called "Mitspah” ("The Height”). Whether one

walks or drives up this hill, it is a steep climb. From there, one can see

the entire Jerusalem area in all four directions, well into biblical Samaria,

and into a good portion of the tribal lands of Benjamin and Judah. For

this reason, it has been a ...

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