#Shabbat Parah

[eretzyisrael]

Shabbat Parah 2024 / שַׁבָּת פּרה 5784

Shabbat of the Red Heifer 🕍

Shabbat Parah for Hebrew Year 5784 begins at sundown on Friday, 29 March 2024 and ends at nightfall on Saturday, 30 March 2024. This corresponds to Parashat Tzav.

Shabbat Parah (“Sabbath [of the] red heifer” שבת פרה) takes place on the Shabbat before Shabbat HaChodesh, in preparation for Passover. Numbers 19:1-22 describes the parah adumah (“red heifer”) in the Jewish temple as part of the manner in which the kohanim and the Jewish people purified themselves so that they would be ready (“pure”) to sacrifice the korban Pesach.

[istodayajewishholiday]

30 March 2024 - 20 Adar II 5784

Yes, today is the special Shabbat Parah. Shabbat shalom!

[brookston]

Holidays 3.29

Holidays

Alchemy Day

Alder Day (French Republic)

Barthélemy Boganda Day (Central African Republic)

Borrowed Days begin (Calendar legend held that March stole 3 days from April; England, Ireland, Scotland)

Britney Day (San Francisco)

Commemoration of Boganda (Central African Republic)

Commemoration of the 1947 Rebellion (a.k.a. Martyrs’ Day; Madagascar)

Day of the Young Combatant (Chile)

Declaw Awareness Day

Food Chain Day

Good Deeds Day

International Day of Solidarity with Haiti

International Day of the Landless

International Mermaid Day

Juenger Day (Germany)

Knights of Columbus Day

Love the Children Day (Texas)

Martyrs’ Day (Madagascar)

Memorial Day (Malagasy Republic)

Mule Day (Columbia, Tennessee)

National Governance Professionals Day

National Mom and Pop Business Owners Day

National Nevada Day

National Vietnam War Veterans Day

Niagara Falls Runs Dry Day

PayDay It Forward Day

Phagwah (Suriname)

Piano Day [88th Day of the Year]

Smoke and Mirrors Day (a.k.a. Festival of Smoke and Mirrors)

Swedish Colonial Day (Delaware)

Vesta Asteroid Day

World Marbles Day

Youth Day (Taiwan)

Food & Drink Celebrations

Coca-Cola Day

Gnocchi Day (Argentina)

Lemon Chiffon Cake Day

National Pita Day

5th & Last Friday in March

Fry Day (Pastafarian; Fritism) [Every Friday]

National Cleavage Day (South Africa) [Last Friday in March or 1st Friday in April]

No Homework Day [Last Friday]

Tater Day Festival begins (Kentucky) [Last Friday; ends Monday]

Wear a Hat Day (UK) [Last Friday]

Independence & Related Days

Barotseland (Declared; 2012) [unrecognized]

Helvetian Republic (Proclaimed; 1798)

Punjab Annexation (by the British; 1849)

Festivals Beginning March 29, 2024

Charleston Bluegrass Festival (Charleston, South Carolina) [thru 3.30]

Cherry Blossom Festival (Vancouver, Canada) [thru 4.25]

WonderCon (Anaheim, California) [thru 3.31]

Feast Days

Adolfo Müller-Ury (Artology)

Aequinoctium Vernum, Day 3 (Pagan)

Altoona Rooney (Muppetism)

Armogastes, Archinimus, and Satur (Christian; Martyrs)

Artemis Soteira (Goddess Artemis Festival; Ancient Greece)

Berthold (Christian; Saint)

Celsus (Positivist; Saint)

Cocktail Hour Every Hour Day (Pastafarian)

Cyril (Christian; Martyr)

A Day of Redress (Shamanism)

The Delphinaia (Festival to Apollo; Ancient Greece)

Egg Lore Day (Starza Pagan Book of Days)

Erik Satie Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Eugene Onegin, by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Opera; 1879)

Eustace of Luxeuil (Christian; Saint)

Expulsion of the Demons of Bad Luck (Pagan)

Festival of Ishtar (Babylonia)

Festival of Smoke and Mirrors

Gundleus, a Welsh King (Christian; Saint)

Gwladys (Christian; Saint)

Gwynllyw (Christian; Saint)

Hans Nielsen Hauge (Lutheran)

Imam Mahdi Day (Iran)

Jonas, Barachisus, and companions (Christian; Martyrs)

Johann Moritz Rugendas (Artology)

John Keble (commemoration, Anglicanism)

John Russell (Artology)

Jo Nesbø (Writerism)

Ludolf (Christian; Saint)

Mark of Arethusa, in Syria (Christian; Saint)

Masquerade Ritual Day (Bobo People of Africa; Everyday Wicca)

Rupert (Christian; Saint)

Christian Liturgical Holidays

Friday before Easter (a.k.a. ... 

Goede Vrijdag (Suriname)

Good Friday

Jour Chômé d’Usage (French Guiana, Guadeloupe)

Långfredagen (Sweden)

Lord’s Evening Meal (Jehovah’s Witness) [Nisan 14]

National Hot Cross Buns Day

Paixão de Cristo (Brazil)

Passion Friday

Procession of the Mysteries (Italy)

Semana de Turismo (Uruguay)

Via Crusus Way (Philippines)

Viernes Santo (Cuba, Spain)

World Marbles Day

Hebrew Calendar Holidays [Begins at Sundown Day Before]

Shabbat Parah (Sabbath of the Red Heifer: שבת פרה) [19-20 Adair II]

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Sakimake (先負 Japan) [Bad luck in the morning, good luck in the afternoon.]

Unfortunate Day (Pagan) [22 of 57]

Premieres

The Birthday Party (Oswald the Lucky Rabbit Cartoon; 1937)

Black Magic Woman, by Santana (Song; 1968)

Blow by Blow, by Jeff Beck (Album; 1975)

Breakfast in America, by Supertramp (Album; 1979)

Career Opportunities (Film; 1991)

Death on the Riviera, by John Bude (Novel; 1952)

Death to Smoochy (Film; 2002)

Desperately Seeking Susan (Film; 1985)

Fishing Tackler (Noveltoons Cartoon; 1957)

Fistic Mystic (WB LT Cartoon; 1969)

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire (Film; 2024)

Give and Tyke (MGM Cartoon; 1957)

Godzilla x. Kong: The New Empire (Film; 2024)

Hare-Way to the Stars (WB LT Cartoon; 1958)

The King and I (Broadway Musical; 1951)

Little Beau Pepe (WB MM Cartoon; 1952)

Lust for Life, by Irving Stone (Biography; 1934)

Male Bags or Homely Are the Brave (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S6, Ep. 358; 1965)

Mother Hub-Hubba-Hubbard (Color Rhapsody Cartoon; 1947)

My Old Kentucky Home (Mighty Mouse Cartoon; 1946)

Piano Concerto No. 2 in Bb, by Ludwig van Beethoven (Piano Concerto; 1795)

Please Don't Eat the Daisies, by Jean Kerr (Novel; 1957)

Ready Player One (Film; 2018)

Rogues’ Gallery or Hole That Line-Up (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S6, Ep. 357; 1965)

The Rookie (Film; 2003)

Room 237 (Documentary Film; 2013)

Some Like It Hot (Film; 1959)

The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle (Film; 1939)

Umbrella, by Rihanna (Song; 2007)

When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?, by Billie Eilish (Album; 2019)

Today’s Name Days

Berthold, Helmut, Ludolf (Austria)

Bertold, Eustazije, Jona (Croatia)

Taťána (Czech Republic)

Jonas (Denmark)

Joakim, Joonas, Kimmo (Estonia)

Joni, Jonne, Jonni, Joona, Joonas, Jouni (Finland)

Gladys, Gwladys (France)

Berthold, Helmut, Ludolf (Germany)

Auguszta (Hungary)

Secondo (Italy)

Agija, Aldonis, Ilma, Ranta (Latvia)

Almantė, Bertoldas, Manvydas (Lithuania)

Jonas, Jonatan (Norway)

Cyryl, Czcirad, Eustachiusz, Eustachy, Ostap, Wiktoryn (Poland)

Denia, Marcu (Romania)

Miroslav (Slovakia)

Eustasio (Spain)

Jens, Jonas (Sweden)

Berthold, Fletcher, Pearl, Pearle, Pearlie, Pearline, Perla (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 89 of 2024; 277 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 5 of week 13 of 2024

Celtic Tree Calendar: Fearn (Alder) [Day 13 of 28]

Chinese: Month 2 (Ding-Mao), Day 20 (Red-Chen)

Chinese Year of the: Dragon 4722 (until January 29, 2025)

Hebrew: 19 Adair II 5784

Islamic: 19 Ramadan 1445

J Cal: 29 Green; Extraday [29 of 30]

Julian: 16 March 2024

Moon: 82%: Waning Gibbous

Positivist: 5 Archimedes (4th Month) [Galen]

Runic Half Month: Ehwaz (Horse) [Day 4 of 15]

Season: Spring (Day 11 of 92)

Week: Last Week of March

Zodiac: Aries (Day 9 of 31)

[brookstonalmanac]

Holidays 3.29

Holidays

Alchemy Day

Alder Day (French Republic)

Barthélemy Boganda Day (Central African Republic)

Borrowed Days begin (Calendar legend held that March stole 3 days from April; England, Ireland, Scotland)

Britney Day (San Francisco)

Commemoration of Boganda (Central African Republic)

Commemoration of the 1947 Rebellion (a.k.a. Martyrs’ Day; Madagascar)

Day of the Young Combatant (Chile)

Declaw Awareness Day

Food Chain Day

Good Deeds Day

International Day of Solidarity with Haiti

International Day of the Landless

International Mermaid Day

Juenger Day (Germany)

Knights of Columbus Day

Love the Children Day (Texas)

Martyrs’ Day (Madagascar)

Memorial Day (Malagasy Republic)

Mule Day (Columbia, Tennessee)

National Governance Professionals Day

National Mom and Pop Business Owners Day

National Nevada Day

National Vietnam War Veterans Day

Niagara Falls Runs Dry Day

PayDay It Forward Day

Phagwah (Suriname)

Piano Day [88th Day of the Year]

Smoke and Mirrors Day (a.k.a. Festival of Smoke and Mirrors)

Swedish Colonial Day (Delaware)

Vesta Asteroid Day

World Marbles Day

Youth Day (Taiwan)

Food & Drink Celebrations

Coca-Cola Day

Gnocchi Day (Argentina)

Lemon Chiffon Cake Day

National Pita Day

5th & Last Friday in March

Fry Day (Pastafarian; Fritism) [Every Friday]

National Cleavage Day (South Africa) [Last Friday in March or 1st Friday in April]

No Homework Day [Last Friday]

Tater Day Festival begins (Kentucky) [Last Friday; ends Monday]

Wear a Hat Day (UK) [Last Friday]

Independence & Related Days

Barotseland (Declared; 2012) [unrecognized]

Helvetian Republic (Proclaimed; 1798)

Punjab Annexation (by the British; 1849)

Festivals Beginning March 29, 2024

Charleston Bluegrass Festival (Charleston, South Carolina) [thru 3.30]

Cherry Blossom Festival (Vancouver, Canada) [thru 4.25]

WonderCon (Anaheim, California) [thru 3.31]

Feast Days

Adolfo Müller-Ury (Artology)

Aequinoctium Vernum, Day 3 (Pagan)

Altoona Rooney (Muppetism)

Armogastes, Archinimus, and Satur (Christian; Martyrs)

Artemis Soteira (Goddess Artemis Festival; Ancient Greece)

Berthold (Christian; Saint)

Celsus (Positivist; Saint)

Cocktail Hour Every Hour Day (Pastafarian)

Cyril (Christian; Martyr)

A Day of Redress (Shamanism)

The Delphinaia (Festival to Apollo; Ancient Greece)

Egg Lore Day (Starza Pagan Book of Days)

Erik Satie Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Eugene Onegin, by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Opera; 1879)

Eustace of Luxeuil (Christian; Saint)

Expulsion of the Demons of Bad Luck (Pagan)

Festival of Ishtar (Babylonia)

Festival of Smoke and Mirrors

Gundleus, a Welsh King (Christian; Saint)

Gwladys (Christian; Saint)

Gwynllyw (Christian; Saint)

Hans Nielsen Hauge (Lutheran)

Imam Mahdi Day (Iran)

Jonas, Barachisus, and companions (Christian; Martyrs)

Johann Moritz Rugendas (Artology)

John Keble (commemoration, Anglicanism)

John Russell (Artology)

Jo Nesbø (Writerism)

Ludolf (Christian; Saint)

Mark of Arethusa, in Syria (Christian; Saint)

Masquerade Ritual Day (Bobo People of Africa; Everyday Wicca)

Rupert (Christian; Saint)

Christian Liturgical Holidays

Friday before Easter (a.k.a. ... 

Goede Vrijdag (Suriname)

Good Friday

Jour Chômé d’Usage (French Guiana, Guadeloupe)

Långfredagen (Sweden)

Lord’s Evening Meal (Jehovah’s Witness) [Nisan 14]

National Hot Cross Buns Day

Paixão de Cristo (Brazil)

Passion Friday

Procession of the Mysteries (Italy)

Semana de Turismo (Uruguay)

Via Crusus Way (Philippines)

Viernes Santo (Cuba, Spain)

World Marbles Day

Hebrew Calendar Holidays [Begins at Sundown Day Before]

Shabbat Parah (Sabbath of the Red Heifer: שבת פרה) [19-20 Adair II]

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Sakimake (先負 Japan) [Bad luck in the morning, good luck in the afternoon.]

Unfortunate Day (Pagan) [22 of 57]

Premieres

The Birthday Party (Oswald the Lucky Rabbit Cartoon; 1937)

Black Magic Woman, by Santana (Song; 1968)

Blow by Blow, by Jeff Beck (Album; 1975)

Breakfast in America, by Supertramp (Album; 1979)

Career Opportunities (Film; 1991)

Death on the Riviera, by John Bude (Novel; 1952)

Death to Smoochy (Film; 2002)

Desperately Seeking Susan (Film; 1985)

Fishing Tackler (Noveltoons Cartoon; 1957)

Fistic Mystic (WB LT Cartoon; 1969)

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire (Film; 2024)

Give and Tyke (MGM Cartoon; 1957)

Godzilla x. Kong: The New Empire (Film; 2024)

Hare-Way to the Stars (WB LT Cartoon; 1958)

The King and I (Broadway Musical; 1951)

Little Beau Pepe (WB MM Cartoon; 1952)

Lust for Life, by Irving Stone (Biography; 1934)

Male Bags or Homely Are the Brave (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S6, Ep. 358; 1965)

Mother Hub-Hubba-Hubbard (Color Rhapsody Cartoon; 1947)

My Old Kentucky Home (Mighty Mouse Cartoon; 1946)

Piano Concerto No. 2 in Bb, by Ludwig van Beethoven (Piano Concerto; 1795)

Please Don't Eat the Daisies, by Jean Kerr (Novel; 1957)

Ready Player One (Film; 2018)

Rogues’ Gallery or Hole That Line-Up (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S6, Ep. 357; 1965)

The Rookie (Film; 2003)

Room 237 (Documentary Film; 2013)

Some Like It Hot (Film; 1959)

The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle (Film; 1939)

Umbrella, by Rihanna (Song; 2007)

When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?, by Billie Eilish (Album; 2019)

Today’s Name Days

Berthold, Helmut, Ludolf (Austria)

Bertold, Eustazije, Jona (Croatia)

Taťána (Czech Republic)

Jonas (Denmark)

Joakim, Joonas, Kimmo (Estonia)

Joni, Jonne, Jonni, Joona, Joonas, Jouni (Finland)

Gladys, Gwladys (France)

Berthold, Helmut, Ludolf (Germany)

Auguszta (Hungary)

Secondo (Italy)

Agija, Aldonis, Ilma, Ranta (Latvia)

Almantė, Bertoldas, Manvydas (Lithuania)

Jonas, Jonatan (Norway)

Cyryl, Czcirad, Eustachiusz, Eustachy, Ostap, Wiktoryn (Poland)

Denia, Marcu (Romania)

Miroslav (Slovakia)

Eustasio (Spain)

Jens, Jonas (Sweden)

Berthold, Fletcher, Pearl, Pearle, Pearlie, Pearline, Perla (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 89 of 2024; 277 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 5 of week 13 of 2024

Celtic Tree Calendar: Fearn (Alder) [Day 13 of 28]

Chinese: Month 2 (Ding-Mao), Day 20 (Red-Chen)

Chinese Year of the: Dragon 4722 (until January 29, 2025)

Hebrew: 19 Adair II 5784

Islamic: 19 Ramadan 1445

J Cal: 29 Green; Extraday [29 of 30]

Julian: 16 March 2024

Moon: 82%: Waning Gibbous

Positivist: 5 Archimedes (4th Month) [Galen]

Runic Half Month: Ehwaz (Horse) [Day 4 of 15]

Season: Spring (Day 11 of 92)

Week: Last Week of March

Zodiac: Aries (Day 9 of 31)

[choosejesuschrist]

RED HEIFER SACRIFICE!!! Shabbat Parah 2024 / שַׁבָּת פּרה 5784 Shabbat o...

[girlactionfigure]

Shabbat Parah 2022 / שַׁבָּת פּר�� 5782

Shabbat of the Red Heifer 🕍

Shabbat Parah for Hebrew Year 5782 begins at sundown on Friday, 25 March 2022 and ends at nightfall on Saturday, 26 March 2022. This corresponds to Parashat Shmini.

Shabbat Parah ("Sabbath [of the] red heifer" שבת פרה) takes place on the Shabbat before Shabbat HaChodesh, in preparation for Passover. Numbers 19:1-22 describes the parah adumah ("red heifer") in the Jewish temple as part of the manner in which the kohanim and the Jewish people purified themselves so that they would be ready ("pure") to sacrifice the korban Pesach.

[netzarifaith]

Shabbat Parah / שבת פרה

Shabbat Parah / שבת פרה

Shabbat Parah (“Sabbath [of the] red heifer” שבת פרה) takes place on the Shabbat before Shabbat HaChodesh, in preparation for Passover. Numbers 19:1-22 describes the parah adumah (“red heifer”) in the Jewish temple as part of the manner in which the kohanim and the Jewish people purified themselves so that they would be ready (“pure”) to sacrifice the korban Pesach. Once again, this Shabbat is a…

[davidibenzion]

Tanàkh (תנך, TNKh raramente Tenàkh) è l’acronimo con cui si designano i Testi Sacri dell’Ebraismo. Questi Testi costituiscono, insieme ad altri Libri non riconosciuti Apocrifi dall’Ebraismo, l’Antico Testamento della Bibbia Cristiana, per cui spesso vengono indicati comunemente anche come Bibbia Ebraica. Secondo l’Ebraismo comprende la Torah scritta, ricevuta dal Profeta Mosè, ed ereditata eternamente dal popolo Ebraico.

Le tre lettere TNKh componenti il termine Tanakh sono le iniziali dell’espressione Torah, Nebi’îm (o Nevi’îm), Ketubîm (o Ketuvîm), (תורה Torah, נביאים Profeti, כתובים Scritti), e corrispondono alle tre parti in cui si divide l’opera.

Altro termine Ebraico per indicare tale letteratura religiosa è Miqra’ (מקרא, “lettura”, derivato dal fatto che questo testo era letto pubblicamente e tale lettura rappresentava lo stesso nucleo della liturgia ebraica), di origine medievale e oggi diffuso soprattutto in Vicino Oriente.

Il termine “Bibbia” è di origine greca, da βιβλία (biblia) con il significato di “libri o insieme di libri”, e fu utilizzato dagli Ebrei di lingua Greca che tradussero l’opera in quella lingua.

Questa indicazione di “libro” (in ebraico סֵ֫פֶר sefer) riferito alle scritture ebraiche è già comunque presente, sempre in ebraico, in Daniyyel (Daniele) IX,2:

(HE)” בשנת אחת למלכו אני דניאל בינתי בספרים מספר השנים אשר היה דבר יהוה אל ירמיה הנביא למלאות לחרבות ירושלם שבעים שנה “(IT)”

Nel primo anno del suo regno, mi misi a meditare sui libri (בספרים bassefarim) il numero degli anni che, secondo la parola divina al profeta Geremia dovevano trascorrere, sulle rovine di Gerusalemme, cioè settant’anni.“

E ciò spiegherebbe come il più antico e diffuso termine Ebraico per indicare la raccolta del Tanakh sia stato proprio Ha-Sefarim (I Libri).

Sempre come Ha-Sefarim (I Libri), il Tanakh viene indicato nel periodo tannaitico (I secolo a.C./II secolo d.C.) dai trattati talmudici e mishnaici come, ad esempio, in Gittin (4,6), in Kelim (15,6) e in Megillah (1,8).

Un altro termine utilizzato per indicare il Tanakh è Sifrei ha-Qodesh (ספרי קודש, Libri Sacri) diffuso soprattutto a partire dal Medioevo ma già presente nel testo conservato in greco, ma precedentemente redatto in ebraico, del Libro dei Maccabei.

Diffuso nelle opere del periodo tannaitico è invece il termine Kitvei ha-Qodesh (כתבי הקדשׁ, Sacre scritture), esso infatti compare, ad esempio, in Parah (10,1), in Shabbat (16,1) e in Yadayim (3,2,5; 01,06 BB).

Infine anche il termine Torah, ovvero quello indicante la prima parte del Tanakh, è stato utilizzato in un significato più estensivo tale da includere l’intera raccolta di “libri” ovvero dell’intera “rivelazione”. Ciò si riscontra, anche se occasionalmente, nella letteratura rabbinica: Mo’ed Katan (5a), Pesikta Rabbati (3,9) e Sanhedrin (91,b). Così nella tradizione ebraica si chiama “Torah Scritta” (תורה שבכתב – Torah shebikhtav) quella contenuta nei ventiquattro libri, e “Torah Orale” (תורה שבעלפה – Torah she be’alpe; più tardi, “Talmud”), la quale invece fu trasmessa, sempre secondo questa tradizione religiosa, oralmente da DIO a Mosè sul monte Sinai e più tardi messa per iscritto con le discussioni rabbiniche che avevano luogo al tempo del Tempio di Gerusalemme, e con tutte le codificazioni ad esso posteriori.

**LA STRUTTURA:**

La divisione in tre parti del Tanakh è stabilita dalla tradizione Ebraica nei trattati talmudici.

Queste tre parti sono suddivise, a loro volta, in altri libri per un totale di trentanove.

Il Tanàkh è così composto:

•Torah (תורה, “Insegnamento; istruzione”, per estensione “Legge”).

1. Bereshìt (בראשית, “In principio”). Prende il suo nome dalla prima parola del testo: בראשית Bereshìt. Corrisponde al Libro della Genesi.

2. Šemot (שמות, “Nomi”). Prende il suo nome dalle prime parole del testo: Ve’elleh Šemot (ואלה שמות, “Questi sono i nomi”). Corrisponde al Libro dell’Esodo.

3. Vaiyikra (ויקרא, “Chiamò”). Prende il suo nome dalle prime parole del testo: Vaiyikra el Mosheh ( ויקרא אל משה, [Il Signore] chiamò Mosé). Corrisponde al Libro del Levitico.

4. Bemidbar (במדבר, “Deserto”). Prende il suo nome dalle prime parole del testo: Vaydabber Hashem el-Mosheh bemidbar (ידבר יהוה אל משה במדבר, “Il Signore parlò a Mosè nel deserto). Corrisponde al Libro dei Numeri.

5. Devarim (דברים, “Parole”). Prende il suo nome dalle prime parole del testo: Elleh haddevarim (אלה הדברים, “Queste sono le parole”). Corrisponde al Libro del Deuteronomio.

•Nevi’im (נביאים, Profeti).

Nevi’im Rishonim (נביאים ראשונים, Profeti anteriori)

6. Y’hoshua (יהושע). Corrisponde al Libro di Giosuè.

7. Shoftim (שופטים). Corrisponde al Libro dei Giudici.

8. Sh’muel (שמואל). Corrisponde al Libri di Samuele I e II.

9. M’lakhim (מלכים). Corrisponde al Libri dei Re I e II.

•Nevi’im Acharonim (נביאים אחרונים, Profeti posteriori)

10. Isaiah (ישעיה). Corrisponde al Libro di Isaia.

11. Yermĭyahu ( ירמיהו). Corrisponde al Libro di Geremia.

12. Yehzqè’l (יחזקאל). Corrisponde al Libro di Ezechiele.

13. Trei Asar ( תרי עשר). Corrisponde ai Profeti minori.

I. Hošeah(הושע), corrisponde al Libro di Osea.

II. Joel (יואל) corrisponde al Libro di Gioele.

III. Amos (עמוס) corrisponde al Libro di Amos.

IV. Obadiah (עובדיה) corrisponde al Libro di Abdia.

V. Jonah (יונה) corrisponde al Libro di Giona.

VI. Micà (מיכה) corrisponde al Libro di Michea.

VII. Nachum (נחום) corrisponde al Libro di Naum.

VIII. Ḥavaqquq (חבקוק) corrisponde al Libro di Abacuc.

IX. Tsefanjà (צפניה) corrisponde al Libro di Sofonia.

X. Haggai (חגי) corrisponde al Libro di Aggeo.

XI. Zekharya (זכריה) corrisponde al Libro di Zaccaria.

XII. Malachì (מלאכי) corrisponde al Libro di Malachia.

Ketuvim (כתובים, Scritti riportato anche come Agiografi).

14. Tehillim (תהילים) corrisponde al Libro dei Salmi.

15. Mishlei (משלי) corrisponde al Libro dei Proverbi.

16. \`Iyyov (איוב) corrisponde al Libro di Giobbe.

17. Shir ha-Shirim (שיר השירים ) corrisponde al Cantico dei Cantici.

18. Shavuot (רות ) corrisponde al Libro di Rut.

19. Eikhah (איכה ) corrisponde al Libro delle Lamentazioni.

20. Qohelet (קהלת ) corrisponde al Libro dell’Ecclesiaste.

21. Esther (אסתר ) corrisponde al Libro di Ester.

22. Daniyyel (דניאל ) corrisponde al Libro di Daniele.

23. Ezra v’Nechemia (עזרא ונחמיה) corrisponde al Libro di Esdra e al Libro di Neemia.

24. Divrei Hayamim (דברי הימים) corrisponde ai Libri delle Cronache I e II.

[jewishshadowhunters]

Judaism 101: Torah

The word “Torah” is tricky to define, because it can mean different things in different contexts. In its most limited sense, “Torah” refers to the Five Books of Moses: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. But the word “torah” can also be used to refer to the entire Jewish bible (the body of scripture known to non-Jews as the Old Testament and to Jews as the Tanakh or Written Torah).

In its broadest sense, “Torah” can refer to the whole body of Jewish law and teachings. 

Below we talk about the Tanakh (written Torah), Talmud (Oral Torah), and other important texts. 

Written Torah/Tanakh

To Jews, there is no “Old testament”. The books that Christians call the New Testament are not part of Jewish scripture. The so-called Old Testament is known to us as Written Torah or the Tanakh.

Below is a list of the books of Written Torah, in the order in which they appear in Jewish translations, with the Hebrew name of the book, a translation of the Hebrew name (in the case the translation is different from the English name) and English name of the book.

The Hebrew names are derived from the first few words of the book. The text of each book is more or less the same in Jewish translations as what you see in Christian bibles, although there are occasional, slight differences in the numbering of the verses, and other more significant in the translations.

TORAH (The Law):

Bereishith (In the beginning...) (Genesis)

Shemoth (The names...) (Exodus)

Vayiqra (And He called...) (Leviticus)

Bamidbar (In the wilderness...) (Numbers)

Devarim (The words...) (Deuteronomy)

NEVI’IM (The Prophets)

Yehoshua (Joshua)

Shoftim (Judges)

Shmuel (I &II Samuel)

Melakhim (I & II Kings)

Yeshayah (Isaiah)

Yirmyah (Jeremiah)

Yechezqel (Ezekiel)

The Twelve (treated as one book):

Hoshea (Hosea)

Yoel (Joel)

Amos

Ovadyah (Obadiah)

Yonah (Jonah)

Mikhah (Micah)

Nachum

Chavaqquq (Habbakkuk)

Tzefanyah (Zephaniah)

Chaggai

Zekharyah (Zechariah)

Malakhi

KETHUVIM (The Writings):

Tehillim (Psalms)

Mishlei (Proverbs)

Iyov (Job)

Shir Ha-Shirim (Song of Songs)

Ruth

Eikhah (Lamentations)

Qoheleth (the author's name) (Ecclesiastes)

Esther

Daniel

Ezra & Nechemyah (Nehemiah) (treated as one book)

Divrei Ha-Yamim (The words of the days) (Chronicles)

“Tanakh”, the term used to refer to the Written Torah is an acrostic of Torah, Nevi’im and Ketuvim.

The Torah Scrolls

The scriptures that we use in services are written on parchment scrolls. Always handwritten, they are in attractive Hebrew calligraphy with “crowns” (crows-foot-like marks coming up from the upper points) on many of the letters.

This style of writing is called STA”M (abbreviation for “Sifrei Torah, Tefillin, and Mezuzot”, which is where you will see that style of writing).

You are not supposed to touch the parchment on these scrolls. Some say it is because they are too holy, some say because the parchment, made from animal skins, is a source of ritual defilement, some say because your fingers’ sweat has acid that will damage parchment over time.

Instead, you follow the text with a pointer, called a Yad. “Yad” means “hand” in Hebrew, and the pointer usually is in the shape of hand with a pointing index finger.

The scrolls are kept covered with fabric, and often ornamented with silver crowns on the handles of the scrolls and a silver breastplate on the front.

They are kept in a cabinet in the synagogue called an “ark” (as in the Ark of the Covenant,not Noah’s ark. The words are different and unrelated in Hebrew. Noah’s ark is called teyvat (ship), while the synagogue ark is either an acrostic of “aron kodesh” or holy cabinet or coming from the latin “arca”.)

The Torah scrolls that we read in synagogue are unpointed text, with no vowels or musical notes, so the ability to read a passage is a valuable skill, and usually requires substantial advance preparation.

Chumash

Jewish scriptures are sometimes bound in a form that corresponds to the division into weekly readings (called parshiyot in Hebrew). Scriptures bound in this way are generally referred to as a chumash. This word came from the Hebrew word for five, and refers to the five books of the Torah. Sometimes, a chumash refers to a collection of the five books. But often, a chumash contains the entirety of the first five books, divided up in weekly parshiyot, with the haftarah portion inserted after each week’s parshah.

Oral Torah/Talmud

In addition to the Written Torah, we have an “Oral Torah”, a tradition explaining what the scriptures mean and how to interpret and apply the Laws. Orthodox Jews believe that G-d taught the Talmud to Moses, and that he in turn taught it to others. Talmud was maintained in oral form only until about the 2nd Century CE, when it was compiled and written down in a document called the Mishnah?

Over the following centuries, additional commentaries elaborating the Mishnah were written down in Jerusalem and Babylon. These additions are known as the Gemara. Mishnah and Gemara together form the Talmud, complete in the 5th century CE.

There are as a result two Talmuds. The Jerusalem Talmud, and the Babylonian Talmud, known to be the more comprehensive one, and the one most people refer to when saying “The Talmud.”

Additional commentaries on the talmud have been made by noted Jewish scholars such as Rashi (Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchakià) and Rambam (Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon, better known to the secular world as Maimonides.)

Adin Steinsaltz recently completed a new edition of the Talmud, with his own commentary instead of the Mishnah, Gemara and Rashi commentaries.

The Talmud is not easy to read. It’s like someone else’s class notes for a college lecture you never attended. There are often gaps in the reasoning where it is assumed the reader known what they are talking about, and concepts can often be expressed in a short-hand fashion. Biblical verses supporting a teaching are often referenced by only a couple of words. The Talmud preserves a variety of views on every issue, and does not always clearly identify which view is the accepted one.

The Mishnah itself is divided into six sections called sedarim (orders, English). Each seder contains one or more divisions called masekhtot (tractates, English). There are 63 masekhtot in the Mishnah. Approximately half of these have been addressed in the Talmud.

Though those divisions seem to indicate subject matter, we note that Mishnah and Talmud engage in a lot of free-associations. As a result, widely different subjects can be discussed in the same seder or masekhtah.

Zera'im (Seeds), dealing with agricultural laws

Berakhot

Peah

Demai

Kilayim

Shebiit

Terumot

Maaserot

Maaser Sheni

Challah

Orlah

Bikkurim

Mo'ed (Festival), dealing with Shabbat and festivals

Shabbat

Erubin

Pesachim

Sheqalim

Yoma

Sukkah

Besah

Rosh Hashanah

Taanit

Megillah

Moed Qatan

Hagigah

Nashim (Women), dealing with marriage, divorce and contracts

Yebamot

Ketubot

Nedarim

Nazir

Sotah

Gittin

Qiddushin

Nezikin (Damages), dealing with tort laws and other financial laws

Baba Qamma

Baba Mesia

Baba Batra

Sanhedrin

Makkot

Shabuot

Eduyyot

Avodah Zarah

Avot (also known as Pirkei Avot, Ethics of the Fathers)

Horayot

Kodashim (Holy Things), dealing with sacrifices and the Temple

Zevachim

Menachot

Chullin

Bekhorot

Arakhin

Temurah

Keritot

Meilah

Tamid

Middot

Qinnim

Toharot (Purities), dealing with laws of ritual purity and impurity

Kelim

Ohalot

Negaim

Parah

Tohorot

Miqvaot

Niddah

Makhshirin

Zabim

Tebul-Yom

Yadayim

Uqsin

In recent times, many observant Jews have taken up the practice of studying a page of Talmud every day. This practice, referred to as daf yomi (page of the day), was started at the First International Congress of the Agudath Yisrael World Movement in August, 1923. Rav Meir Shapiro, the rav of Lublin, Poland, proposed uniting people worldwide through the daily study of a page of Talmud. Daf Yomi started its 12th cycle on March 2, 2005. The 13th cycle was started in 2013, and has yet to finish.

Other Writings

In addition to these works, we have midrashim, stories expanding on the incidents in the Bible to derive principles or Jewish law; or teaching moral lessons.

There is also a vast body of responsa, answers to specific questions of Jewish law. Beginning in the middle ages, when local rabbis were faced with difficult issues of Jewish law, they often wrote to the most respected rabbis in the world to get answers to these questions. The local rabbi would present the situation, often including detailed references to the Talmudic passages he had reviews, his own interpretations and the world-respected rabbi would provide a reasoned argument in favor of his answer. Over time, these responsa were collected into printed volumes. This tradition continues to the present day, with responsa dealing with issues relating to modern technologies. We have responsa on the permissibility of cosmetic surgery, the kashering of dishwashers, and artificial insemination. We are currently in the process of computerizing the thousands of volumes of responsa.

As you can see, the body of Jewish tradition is very vast.

In the Middle Ages, for quick answers, there were several attempts to create definite codes of Jewish law. The best-known are Rambam’s Mishneh Torah and Joseph Caro’s Shulchan Arukh. These works were very controversial in their own time, because they did not identify the sources, whether Talmudic or Torah, for these opinions, and generally ignored conflicting voices. There was a concern that such works would discourage Jews from studying the Torah and the Talmud. Today, these sources are well-respected, and the Shulchan Arukh is often treated as primary source.

We asl have a mystical tradition, own as Kabbalah. The primary written work in Kabbalistic tradition is the Zohar. Traditionally, rabbis discouraged teaching this material to anyone under the age of 40, because it is too likely to be misinterpreted by anyone without sufficient grounding in the basics.

[modernrabbistephen]

Ontario, California, USA Shabbat Times Candle lighting: 5:32pm on Friday, Mar 5 Shabbat Parah occurs on Saturday, Mar 6 This week's Torah portion is Parashat Ki Tisa Havdalah (50 min): 6:41pm on Saturday, Mar 6 Powered by Hebcal Shabbat Times שבת פרשת כי תשא March 5 - כ״א אדר  Candle lighting    5:32    Shabbat ends    6:29    72 minutes    7:04   (at Temple Sholom of Ontario) https://www.instagram.com/p/CL7VSPJlhwU/?igshid=1djquhl9vre9x

[he-harim]

mishnayot ive looked at inside

masechet brachot (whilst on hadar; july/aug 2017, av 5777 if i remember correctly)

masechet megilla (directly after that i guess?)

masechet yoma (1-5 inclusive on YK 5778; 6-8 inclusive in cheshvan 5778, b/c i remembered i had it left over)

masechet moed katan (perek alef during/before chagim 5777-8?, perek bet+gimmel cheshvan 5778)

masechet rosh hashanah, (1 and 2 elul 5777, 3 + half of 4 cheshvan 5778, 2nd half of 4 kislev 5778)

masechet chagiga 1:1-2 cheshvan, 1:3-2:4 kislev, up to 3:6 tevet, fin. in shevat

masechet sukkah 1:1-8 kislev, to end of 4 shevat, to end in adar 5778

masechet sotah to 1:8 in cheshvan, to 2:3 in kislev, to the end of perek 5 in tevet, to end of 7 in shevat, finished (to 9:15) in adar

masechet taanit, perek 1 cheshvan, 2 kislev, to 4:4 inclusive shevat, finished (to 4:8) in adar

masechet pesachim to 3:1 shevat, to 5:2 adar, to end (10:9) nisan

masechet ketubot to 1:4 adar, end of 5 nisan, end of 12 iyar, to end (13:11) sivan

masechet kiddushin to end (4:14) sivan

masechet bava metzia 1-4:8 inclusive shevat, to the end of 5 adar, to 7:6 nisan, to 9:11 iyar, to end (10:6) sivan

masechet zevachim to 2:3 adar, 4:1 nisan, end of 8 iyar, to end (14:10) sivan

masechet beitzah to end of 2 iyar, to end of 5:3 sivan, to end (5:7) tammuz

masechet pirkei avot finished in av 5778 (got bored on shabbat & read it from my siddur on 2nd shabbat of keilim)

masechet shekalim to 6:6 tammuz, to end (8:8) av

masechet menachot end of 5 in tammuz, to 11:3 av, to end (13:11) elul

masechet tahorot to 3:2 sivan, to end of 6 tammuz, end of 7 av, to end (10:8) elul 5778

masechet chullin to end of 4 elul 5778, to end (12:5) tishrei 5779

masechet gittin to 1:5 sivan, 3:3 in tammuz, end of 4 av, 7:1 elul 5778, 8:5 tishrei 5779, to end (9:10) marcheshvan

masechet mikvaot to 2:5 elul 5778, to 6:6 tishrei 5779, end (10:8) marcheshvan

masechet avodah zarah to 1:7 in adar, 4:4 in nisan, 5:9 in marcheshvan 5779, end (5:12) kislev

mishna bechorot to 5:2 marcheshvan, end (9:8) kislev

mishna peah end of 2 marcheshvan, end of 5 kislev, end (8:9) tevet

masechet arachin 2:3 kislev, end of 6 tevet, end (9:8) shevat

mishna nedarim end of 2 marcheshvan, end of 5 kislev, to 9:4 inclusive tevet, end of 10 shevat, end (11:12) adar rishon

masechet bava kamma end of 1 tishrei 5779, end of 3 marcheshvan, end of 6 kislev, end of 8 tevet, 10:4 shevat, end (10:10) adar rishon

masechet demai to 3:1 tevet, to 6:1 shevat, end (7:8) adar rishon

masechet oktzin to end (3:12) adar rishon

masechet makkot 2:2 kislev, end of 2 shevat, to 3:5 adar rishon, to end (3:16) adar sheini

masechet temura to 3:4 adar rishon, to end (7:6) adar sheini

masechet kilayim to 3:2 adar rishon, to 6:2 adar sheini, to end (9:10) nisan

masechet shabbat to end of 2 tammuz, to 6:1 av, to end of 11 elul 5778,  to 16:3 tishrei 5779, to end of 17 marcheshvan, to end of 20 kislev, to 22:2 shevat, to 22:5 adar rishon, 23:2 nisan, end (24:5) iyar

masechet sheviit to 2:7 nisan, 4:6 iyyar, end (10:9) sivan

masechet kritot 1:2 adar sheini, end of 3 nisan, end of 5 iyyar, end (6:9) sivan

masechet yadayim to end of 1 iyyar, 3 sivan, end (4:8) av 

masechet meilah to end of 4 tamuz, end (6:6) av

masechet yevamot to 2:7 adar rishon, to end of 5 adar sheini, to end of 7 nisan, end of 11 iyyar, to 13:10 tammuz, to end (16:7) av

masechet terumot to end of 1 sivan, to 8:4 tamuz, to 9:5 av, to end (10:9) elul

kelim:

bava kamma (1-10) to 5:1 kislev, 7:2 tevet, end of 10 shevat

bava metzia (11-20) to 11:7 adar rishon, to end of 16 adar sheini, to 17:11 nisan, to end of 20 iyyar

bava batra (21-30) to end of 21 iyyar, to 27:1 av, fin (30:4) elul

tvul yom end of 2 elul, end (4:6) tishrei 5780

masechet tamid 1:1 av, 5:4 elul, end (7:4) tishrei 5780

masechet maasrot 2:6 elul, end of 3 tishrei 5780, to end (5:8) marcheshvan

masechet middot 1:4 tishrei 5780, 4:5 cheshvan, end (5:4) kislev

masechet kinnim 2:2 kislev, to end (3:6) tevet hadran alach seder kodashim

masechet maaser sheini 1:6 marcheshvan, 3:12 kislev, 5:1 tevet, end (5:15) shvat

masechet zavim to end of 3 shvat, end (5:12) adar

masechet challah to 3:1 shvat, end (4:11) adar

masechet orlah 1:3 adar, end (3:9) nisan

masechet bikkurim to end (4:5) nisan hadran alach seder zeraim

masechet horayot end (3:8) nisan

masechet sanhedrin to end of 1 elul, to 4:5 tishrei 5780, to 7:1 marcheshvan, 7:9 kislev, end of 9 tevet, 10:5 adar, fin (11:6) nisan

masechet ohalot to 2:2 tishrei 5780, 3:4 marcheshvan, end of 6 kislev, end of 9 shvat, end of 12 adar, 15:8 nisan, end (18:10) iyyar

masechet negaim to end of 5 iyyar, end (14:13) sivan

masechet shevuot to 1:4 nisan, to end of 4 iyyar, end of 6 sivan, end (8:6) tammuz

masechet parah to 3:2 sivan, end of 11 tammuz, fin (12:11) av

masechet niddah to end of 6 av, fin (10:8) tishrei 5781 

masechet makhshirin to end of 3 tishrei 5781, end (6:8) marcheshvan hadran alach seder tahorot

masechet bava batra to 2:5 adar rishon, to end of 5 adar sheini, end of 9 cheshvan 5781, end (10:8) kislev

masechet eruvin to end of 2 nisan, end of 4 iyar, end of 5 av, end of 6 tevet, to 7:5 iyyar, to 8:7 sivan, end of 9 tammuz, 10:14 elul 5780

masechet nazir 2:4 av, 4:2 elul, 5:3 tishrei 5780, end of 8 marcheshvan, 9:4 kislev

masechet eduyot 1:3 tammuz, 1:10 cheshvan 5781

[eretzyisrael]

Shabbat Parah 2023 / שַׁבָּת פּרה 5783

Shabbat of the Red Heifer 🕍

Shabbat Parah for Hebrew Year 5783 begins at sundown on Friday, 10 March 2023 and ends at nightfall on Saturday, 11 March 2023. This corresponds to Parashat Ki Tisa.

Shabbat Parah (“Sabbath [of the] red heifer” שבת פרה) takes place on the Shabbat before Shabbat HaChodesh, in preparation for Passover. Numbers 19:1-22 describes the parah adumah (“red heifer”) in the Jewish temple as part of the manner in which the kohanim and the Jewish people purified themselves so that they would be ready (“pure”) to sacrifice the korban Pesach.

[istodayajewishholiday]

11 March 2023 - 18 Adar 5783

Yes, today is the special Shabbat, Parah!

[oneshul]

Shabbat Parah Adumah—Sabbath of the Red Heifer

I am the Red Heifer. Without my sacrifice, there can be no Pesach, no Seder, no Prayer for Dew (Tal); not even those matzo balls in chicken soup of which Jews (and gentiles) are so fond. The High Priest, Aaron, will sacrifice me, burn me to total and complete ashes, mix these with holy water, and flick the ashen water onto the assembled multitude of Israelites. Ironically, though my ashes are meant to purify all of Israel and allow them to indulge in the Korban Pesach—Paschal Offering—in a pure state, God has decreed in our Torah (for it is my Torah, too, though the best I can do is “moo” it, not chant) that all implements and tools used in my sacrifice shall be deemed tamay, impure. It is a curiosity, a hoke, meant not to be understood, only performed.

After all, slaughtering a little cow that never hurt anyone is odd, but it pleases the Most High that this should occur. I understand (for I am a prophetic cow) that only I and six other heifers were ever sacrificed throughout Jewish tradition (The Torah is not history). Some addlebrained religious zealots have prepared yet another red heifer to hasten Messiah’s Coming, but I take it with a grain of hay. One does not tell God what to do; He has been working His ways forever and aye, and we should leave things like Messiah alone. One brings Messiah by doing mitzvote and good deeds; one does not focus on archaic symbols and rituals.

And so, you may ask: why do I give up my life so readily? First of all, I am a cow; cows cannot resist the Power of Man. Secondly, I understand that my sacrifice is meant to atone for yet another cow—the Golden Calf, whose worship continues today, in places both low and high. Well and good. I see the High Priest coming, shining blade (not burnished) in hand. Understand, Mortal, that I have no illusions, unlike many of you. When my time comes, I will go joyfully. Whatever Afterlife exists for us cows, it will be real, without deception. God be praised: there, even a Red Heifer may rejoice.

Rabbi David Hartley Mark is from New York City’s Lower East Side. He attended Yeshiva University, the City University of NY Graduate Center for English Literature, and received semicha at the Academy for Jewish Religion. He currently teaches English at Everglades University in Boca Raton, FL, and has a Shabbat pulpit at Temple Sholom of Pompano Beach. His literary tastes run to Isaac Bashevis Singer, Stephen King, King David, Kohelet, Christopher Marlowe, and the Harlem Renaissance.

[galityomtov]

Join Rabbi Galit Shirah at 10:30am PDT as we learn the laws concerning kosher animals and about the ritual of the Red Heifer.  Beit HaLev welcomes all.

[thebeautyoftorah]

CHUKAT

bs'd

Shalom.

The thought of this week of my book 'Healing Anger'

"Our desire for control over others is the underlying cause of our anger. The irony is that in our quest for control over others, we lose control over ourselves. Additionally, if we cannot control our own temper, how can we expect to control others? The answer is that the only way we can influence or show any degree of control over others is by first controlling ourselves.”

Buy my book at  http://www.feldheim.com/healing-anger.html

 If you want to buy it from me in Israel let me know.

To join the over 4,000 recipients  in English and Spanish and receive these insights free on a weekly email, feedback, comments, to support or dedicate this publication which has been all around the world, or if you know any other Jew who is interested in receiving these insights weekly, contact me. Shabbat Shalom.

CHUKAT- Parah Adumah, Why Now? This parsha discusses one of the most enigmatic laws of the Torah: the parah adumah (red heffer). It was burnt completely with other materials in a special ceremony . Its ashes were mixed with water and sprinkled on a person who had acquired tumat met (ritual impurity contracted from a corpse). This procedure restored the subject to a state of taharah (ritual purity), allowing him to enter the Bet HaMikdash and to eat certain holy foods. This law is located in a very unusual position in the Torah. This parsha jumps to the final year in the desert, but before doing so, the Torah records the parah adumah. This is hard to comprehend, as the laws themselves were given to the nation soon after the Exodus,[right after Kiriat Yam Suf], in Marah[1]: "There He made for them a statute and a judgment, and there He tested them". There (at Marah) He made for them, He gave them a few sections of the Torah to study: Shabbat, parah adumah, and civil laws[2]. Since the nation knew about the parah adumah at the very beginning of their desert journey, why does the Torah wait until now to record it?

To answer this question we need to mention that when Moshe was first chosen by G-d to lead am Israel, he resisted adopting the role on the basis of a speech difficulty[3]: "I am not a man of words ... for I am heavy of speech".

This problem, however, did not last throughout Moshe's life, as the Midrash relates: Before Moshe merited the Torah, the verse says of him: I am not a man of words. Once he merited the Torah, his speech was healed, and he began to speak... (4)

The Maharal explains Moshe's difficulty, not as a problem, but as an expression of his true greatness! He says that the unique human ability to speak is a function of the connection between the body and the soul. We learn this from the fact that when Adam HaRishon was created, G-d "breathed a spirit of life into his nostrils, and man became a living soul." At this moment, according to Targum Onkelos, Adam gained the power of speech. Thus, the moment of animation, when body and soul joined, was also the instant when man was empowered with speech. Moshe Rabbenu was a man of such tremendous spiritual abilities that his soul was unable to entirely link with his body. As such, he spoke with difficulty.

This makes the midrash difficult to understand, because when Moshe received the Torah, he became a more spiritual being. How could this cure his speech defect? It should have made it worse. The midrash teaches us a deep lesson: When Moshe  received the Torah at Sinai, his entire being underwent a great change. His physical being was raised by the experience, so much so that it was able to reach the heights of his soul. And once they were properly connected, he was able to speak!

Let us examine another relationship between the body and the soul. There is an principle that time is a function of matter. This means that only physical entities are subject to time and its consequences, whereas spiritual ones are not. As such, any changes which happen to a human being, which is a blend of body and soul) are the responsibility of the body. For the soul enters the body at birth and leaves it at death without having aged or changed in any real sense. While the soul is attached to the body, it can be affected - improved or damaged - but only by extension of its association with the body.

This concept has a remarkable corollary. If a person had perfected his body that it resembled his soul, then neither his soul nor his body would ever be subject to change. As we have explained thus far, Moshe was such a person. After Matan Torah, his body and soul were on equal footings, as the spirituality of the soul had totally pervaded his body. All other prophets underwent a complete change of personality during their revelations, whereas Moshe was unchanged, as he was in constant touch with the Divine and ready for G-d's word whenever it might come: Moshe said to them, "Stand still and I will hear what G-d will command about you." (Bemidbar 9:8)

One more point before returning to our original discussion: Moshe understood more of the Divine than any other human before or since. The Gemara [5] tell us: Fifty gates of wisdom were created in the world, and all were given to Moshe, except for one. Rabbi Avraham Azulai, in his work Chesed L'Avraham, notes that if anyone were to reach the fiftieth level of Divine comprehension, then his soul and body would be equal, and he would no longer be subject to change. We may suggest that the above statement from our Sages is referring to Moshe's state before Matan Torah, the giving of the Torah. But afterwards, when he had elevated his body to meet his soul, he may indeed have entered the fiftieth gate.

We may see in this a comparison between the parah adumah and the Torah itself. The Midrash says: The words of Hashem are pure words, silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified sevenfold [forty-nine] times. (Tehillim 12:7) Purified seven-fold times. What is this seven-fold times? Rabbi Yochanan ben Pazi said, "The Torah is explained in forty-nine ways; so, too, this parshah [that of the parah adumah] is refined forty-nine times, for there are forty-nine purities involved..."[6]. There are only 49 aspects of the Torah. Someone like Moshe, who has mastered and internalized all of these levels will eventually ascend to the fiftieth of his own accord. The parah adumah, whose laws are so enigmatic, are a microcosm of this. Indeed, only Moshe Rabbenu was able to understand them: Rabbi Yosi ben Rabbi Chanina said [7], "G-d said to Moshe, 'To you I will reveal the rationale for the parah, but to everyone else it is a chok [statute].' "

We are now able to see the link: it was only after Moshe had maximized his development and entered the fiftieth gate that he could understand the rationale of the parah adumah. Once he stood, so to speak, in a spiritual level never before or since trodden by any human, then he could appreciate the profound wisdom underlying the forty-nine purities of the parah adumah.

We may now suggest why this parshah is left out of the Torah until the last year of klal Israel's journey in the desert. We may assume that a man of Moshe's stature continued to develop in spiritually until the last moment of his life. Therefore, in the last year of his life, he was presumably at his greatest. Hashem  wanted Moshe to understand the parah adumah and this demanded supreme spiritual qualities. As such, G-d waited until this moment, toward the end of Moshe's mission to record the laws, to ensure that not only could His disciple fully understand them, but that this fact would be apparent for posterity. _________________________________________ [1] Shemot 15:25 [2] See Rashi at loc. [3] Shemot 4:10 [4] Devarim Rabbah 1:1 [5] Rosh HaShanah 21b. [6] Pesikta Rabbasi 14:5 [7] Bemidbar Rabbah 19:6

Le Iluy nishmat Eliahu ben Simcha, Mordechai ben Shlomo, Perla bat Simcha, Abraham Meir ben Leah, Moshe ben Gila,Yaakov ben Gila, Sara bat Gila, Yitzchak ben Perla, Leah bat Chavah, Abraham Meir ben Leah,Itamar Ben Reb Yehuda, Yehuda Ben Shmuel Tzvi, Tova Chaya bat Dovid.

Refua Shelema of Mazal Tov bat Gila, Zahav Reuben ben Keyla, Yitzchak ben Mazal Tov, Mattitiahu Yered ben Miriam, Yaacov ben Miriam, Yehuda ben Simcha, Menachem Chaim ben Malka, Naftali Dovid ben Naomi Tzipora, Nechemia Efraim ben Beyla Mina, Mazal Tov Rifka bat Yitzchak, Rachel Simcha bat Yitzchak, Dvir ben Leah, Sender ben Sara, Eliezer Chaim ben Chaya Batya, Shlomo Yoel ben Chaya Leah and Dovid Yehoshua ben Leba Malka. Atzlacha and parnasa tova to Daniel ben Mazal Tov, Debora Leah Bat Henshe Rachel, Shmuel ben Mazal tov, Yitzchak ben Mazal Tov, Yehuda ben Mazal Sara and Zivug agun to Gila bat Mazal Tov, Naftali Dovid ben Naomi Tzipora, Yehudit bat Malka, Elisheva bat Malka. For pidyon hanefesh & yeshua of Yosef Itai ben Eliana Shufra.