ACHAREI MOT - LEVITICUS 16:1–18:30,COUNTING THE OMER

 ACHAREI MOT -  LEVITICUS 16:1–18:30, COUNTING THE OMER

 

 

 “Acharei Mot,” means “after the death of”, which hearkens back to. the deaths of Nadav and Avihu. Hashem warns us against unauthorized entry into the Holy of Holies. Only one person, the Kohen Gadol, once a year on Yom Kippur may enter the innermost chamber in the Sanctuary, the Holy of Holies

Another feature of the Yom Kippur service is described: the casting of lots over two goats, to determine which should be offered to Hashem and which should be dispatched to the wilderness to carry off the sins of Israel.

Parshat Acharei also warns against bringing animal or meal offerings anywhere but in the Holy Temple. It forbids the consumption of blood, and details the laws prohibiting incest and other deviant sexual relations.

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What is going on in northern Israel?

I hope you join this group.

You and I are on the same page.

We share similar values.

Join this Group:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/751572416879518

The focus of this group will be what is going on in Nahariya and northern Israel because there will be information that may be of interest to you, but which you probably do not have access to. Likewise, where there are national updates of interest, these will also be passed on.

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Acharei Mot starts at 16:1, where Hashem warns against unauthorized entry into the Holy of Holies.  Only the Kohen Gadol on Yom Kippur may enter this innermost chamber in the Sanctuary to offer incense to Hashem.  This brings to mind the fatal error of Nadav and Abihu.

 Also in Acharei Mot the casting of lots over two goats to determine which should be offered to G‑d and which should be dispatched to the wilderness is described.

Acharei Mot is read on Yom Kippur.  It warns against bringing sacrificial offerings anywhere but in the Holy Temple. The consumption of blood is forbidden, and laws prohibiting incest and other forbidden sexual relations are set out.

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At 16:8, among other things, we learn about fate and destiny:

וְנָתַן אַהֲרֹן עַל-שְׁנֵי הַשְּׂעִירִם, גֹּרָלוֹת--גּוֹרָל אֶחָד לַיהוָה, וְגוֹרָל אֶחָד לַעֲזָאזֵל.

“And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats: one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for Azazel.“

The casting of lots as a method to determine which goat will be sacrificed and which goat will be led into the dessert implies that no human hand is involved in the selection of outcomes for either of the two goats.  It is entirely left to Hashem to make that choice. 

Christians see in these verses the death of Jesus making atonement for humanity. 

Some people would say that in this circumstance: “Let the fates decide the outcome” or maybe “it was destined to happen that way”. This is reminiscent of Doris Day in the 50’s singing: “Que Sera, Sera, Whatever will be, will be. The future's not ours to see, Que Sera, Sera…”.  

We call this cheerful fatalism. I do not like it.  

https://youtu.be/xZbKHDPPrrc

Rabbi Soloveitchik has a different approach.  He differentiates between fate and destiny: Soloveitchik considers fate to be a preordained course of one’s life, a course that  occurs in spite of your actions.  In this instance you are considered as an object.  You have no say; you are passive.

Destiny, on the other hand regards the shaping of events that occur within your life as the result of you taking an active course of action.  You are a player and not an object.

For us Jews, particularly Israeli Jews, we are players who have made Israel our destiny.

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Is the Earth and/or the Land of Israel alive and do they exhibit self-regulatory functions?

Consider the Torah reading at 18:25 and18:27-28:

וַתִּטְמָא הָאָרֶץ, וָאֶפְקֹד עֲוֺנָהּ עָלֶיהָ; וַתָּקִא הָאָרֶץ, אֶת-יֹשְׁבֶיהָ.

“And the land became defiled, and I visited its sin upon it, and the land vomited out its inhabitants”

 כִּי אֶת-כָּל-הַתּוֹעֵבֹת הָאֵל, עָשׂוּ אַנְשֵׁי-הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר לִפְנֵיכֶם; וַתִּטְמָא, הָאָרֶץ

וְלֹא-תָקִיא הָאָרֶץ אֶתְכֶם, בְּטַמַּאֲכֶם אֹתָהּ, כַּאֲשֶׁר קָאָה אֶת-הַגּוֹי, אֲשֶׁר לִפְנֵיכֶם.

“For the people of the land who preceded you, did all of these abominations, and the land became defiled.  And let the land not vomit you out for having defiled it, as it vomited out the nation that preceded you”.

In this instance the Land of Israel is held to be a special place within the world, within the planet Earth.  The Land of Israel may be viewed as being part of an organism (the Earth) with self-regulatory functions.  This view seems similar to those who adhere to the Gaia - Mother Earth theory where the Earth itself is deemed to be organic and alive.  Consider the Earth opening up and swallowing Korach and his followers or the Earth crying out regarding the blood of the murdered Abel.

A rhetorical question, an answer is not expected:

If the Earth is an entity that embodies the properties of life, where then would you place Israel? Zionist that I am, without missing a beat, I would exclaim: the heart!

For a better answer, at least to me, consider Israel to be part of a cell, one of the trillions of cells that you and I have and which together comprise our body, our universe so to speak.  If Israel is a distinct part of a cell, I would place it within the cell’s nucleus as mitochondria where it has its own special DNA, as does us Jews. 

 For me, Israel is the equivalent of a cell’s mitochondria. That is the place where energy needed for the cell’s function is produced.  Without energy the cell will whither and die.

What do you think?

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 I don’t know if anyone caught it, but at 17:7 we were warned against sacrificing to daemons:

 וְלֹא-יִזְבְּחוּ עוֹד, אֶת-זִבְחֵיהֶם, לַשְּׂעִירִם, אֲשֶׁר הֵם זֹנִים אַחֲרֵיהֶם:  חֻקַּת עוֹלָם תִּהְיֶה-זֹּאת לָהֶם, לְדֹרֹתָם.

“And they shall no more sacrifice their sacrifices to the daemons, after whom they stray. This shall be a statute forever for them throughout their generations”.

Who are these demons, שְּׂעִירִם?

שְּׂעִירִם  are hairy goats maybe a satyr.  And there must be a connection to the casting of lots over two goats at 16:8.

What do you think the connection ?

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COUNTING THE OMER

We began counting on the evening of the second night of Pesach: Tuesday, 23 April 2024 , corresponding to the 16th of Nisan, 5784. The counting concludes on the night before Shavuot: Monday, 10 June 2024 , corresponding to the 5th of Sivan, 5784. Between the holidays of Passover and Shavuot, the Omer is counted each evening for a total of seven weeks or 49 days.

The Scriptural basis for beginning the counting is found is found in Leviticus 23:9-10  and - 

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Speak to the children of Israel and say to them: When you come to the Land which I am giving you, and you reap its harvest, you shall bring to the kohen an omer of the beginning of your reaping.

And in Deuteronomy 16:9 -

You shall count seven weeks for yourself; from[the time] the sickle is first put to the standing crop, you shall begin to count seven weeks.

The omer ("sheaf") is a Biblical measure of volume of unthreshed stalks of grain, the amount of grain used for the Temple offering. In Israel, the omer period begins with the harvesting of barley  and concludes with the final ripening period of wheat before it is harvested around Shavuot. In this period, the quality of the harvest is very sensitive, and can easily be ruined by bad weather. 

Thus, the omer period stresses human vulnerability and dependence on Hashem.

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The counting is a method for preparing oneself for receiving the Torah on the holiday of Shavuot. This preparation in a certain sense is a purification process, making one ready for the revelation of God at Mt. Sinai where the Torah was received. The purification process involves a detailed emotional refinement that is undertaken at each of the day’s counting.

 Its roots are in Jewish mysticism that is called Kabbalah. The counting is based on a rationale that we have been created in the image of God, and then sets out, if you will,  to clothe God in seven Divine Attributes. 

The seven Divine Attributes whose focus changes week by week and within a particular week day by day are:

Chesed - Loving-kindness

Week 1 of the Omer

Gevurah — Justice and discipline

Week 2 of the Omer

Tiferet - Harmony, compassion

Week 3 of the Omer

Netzach - Endurance

Week 4 of the Omer

Hod - Humility

Week 5 of the Omer

Yesod - Bonding

Week 6 of the Omer

Malchut - Sovereignty, leadership

Week 7 of the Omer

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Rabbi S.S. Jacobson reflects on the connection between the Omer count and the attributes of Hashem.

Last week we began the Omer Count. The emphasis of the first week is that aspect of our Creator called Chessed, or Love.

Love is the single most powerful and necessary component in life. Love is the origin and foundation of all human interactions. It is both giving and receiving. It allows us to reach above and beyond ourselves. To experience another person and to allow that person to experience us. It is the tool by which we learn to experience the highest reality – Hashem In a single word: love is transcendence.

The second week of the Omer counting focusses on Gevurah, or Discipline.

If love (Chessed) is the bedrock of human expression, Discipline (Gevurah) is the channels through which we express love. It gives our life and love direction and focus.

Gevurah - discipline and measure - concentrates and directs our efforts, our love in the proper directions. Another aspect of Gevurah is - respect and awe. Healthy love requires respect for the one you love.

TAZRIA - Leviticus 12:1 - 13:59

   TAZRIA -  Leviticus 12:1 - 13:59

                                                   Group of Lepers

This week we read Parshat Tazria.  It is also Rosh Chodesh Nisan. It is a busy week. 

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 Tazria,  תַזְרִיעַ means sow a seed or inseminated. 

Parshat Tazria begins by setting out the rules and purification rituals which govern a woman upon giving birth. In order to regain a status of ritual purity. She must undergo a time-related sanctification process. This process varies in length depending on whether she has given birth to a boy or a girl. It is 41 days for a male child and 81 days for a baby girl.

This raises a question: Why is additional time required when a mother has given birth to a girl?

The beginning of the ritual purification is set out at 12:2 (in part) -

אִשָּׁה כִּי תַזְרִיעַ, וְיָלְדָה זָכָר--וְטָמְאָה שִׁבְעַת יָמִים

"If a woman be delivered, and bear a man-child, then she shall be unclean seven days".

And continues at 12:5 -

וְאִם-נְקֵבָה תֵלֵד, וְטָמְאָה שְׁבֻעַיִם כְּנִדָּתָהּ; וְשִׁשִּׁים יוֹם וְשֵׁשֶׁת יָמִים, תֵּשֵׁב עַל-דְּמֵי טָהֳרָה

"And if she gives birth to a female, she shall be unclean for two weeks, like her menstruation. And for sixty six days, she shall remain in the blood of purity".

I think the reason for the additional time goes like this: 

During the period of gestation there is a presumption that the mother knows or thinks she knows that she is carrying a girl. At that point the mother realizes that it is incumbent upon her to pass on the superior wisdom and understanding, spirituality, sensitivity and teaching skills inherent in a woman to her unborn daughter.

She does this having in mind that one day the unborn daughter will have children of her own and likewise have the responsibility to educate them. Passing on this bounty to her unborn daughter depletes the mother of her natural gifts, and she needs more time to spiritually recover and resume her maternal responsibilities.

What do you think?

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At 12:3 -

וּבַיּוֹם, הַשְּׁמִינִי, יִמּוֹל, בְּשַׂר עָרְלָתוֹ

And in the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.

At Rabbi Seltzer's  shiur, Reb Yitz raised the question as to why the penis was chosen as the place to be snipped.  It could have been located somewhere else, a piece of an ear for instance.

The answer may be found in 19:23  where there is a three year prohibition from eating fruit from a newly planted fruit tree.

"וַעֲרַלְתֶּם עָרְלָתוֹ, אֶת-פִּרְיוֹ; שָׁלֹשׁ שָׁנִים, יִהְיֶה לָכֶם עֲרֵלִים--לֹא יֵאָכֵל..."

"... its fruit for three years will be uncircumcised;

 its fruit they shall be surely uncircumcised for you, three years it will be for you uncircumcised not to be eaten".

It seems that in order for the the fruit of a tree to be sanctified for eating, it is

 blocked or forbidden for a certain amount of time, and likewise our organ of creation must be sanctified by circumcision in order for it to be used.

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Outside the Camp

In Parashah Tazria at 13:46 provides that the person with skin disease "shall dwell alone; without the camp shall his dwelling be,".  

The Parshah Tazaria concerns a person punished with a spiritual disorder called צָּרַעַת, tzara'at.  It manifests itself on a person’s skin, something akin to psoriasis.  A Kohen is called upon to diagnose the disease.  

The only treatment offered for a person with tzara’at is quarantine for a period of time outside of the camp and shaving of the body.  After a period of time, if the treatment is effective as determined by the Kohen, the person undergoes a purification process.  Firstly the person immerses in a Mikveh, a sort of spiritual repair and cleansing.  The person must wait until the end of the day, for nightfall, and the beginning of a new day before entering back into the camp.  He is now permitted to partake in, to eat sacred food, the Korban, a part of the holy offering.  By consuming some of the Korban, the person has been fully restored to spiritual health

Tzara'at may also affect one’s clothing.  The Torah discusses "clothing tzara'at," a green or red discoloration which can affect certain types of materials. The garment is shown to a priest who quarantines it for up to two weeks.  At the conclusion of the quarantine period, depending on the circumstances the garment is either declared pure, or completely burnt, or only the part which was discolored is torn out and burnt.

We don't have this type of disease currently and we do not understand how all the details are relevant to our practical lives.  But we do know that there are times when our spiritual being has been diseased and requires repair and purification.

It is not difficult to connect the Torah readings with the situation that we have been facing for some time with the Covid 19 virus.  I’ll leave it to you to make your own conclusions

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Woodcut From The Cologne Bible 1478-80

The Tazria haftarah when we are not celebrating the new month is from  2 Kings 4:42 - 5:19 concerns  Naaman, a general in the Aramean army who is stricken with skin disease.  The prophet Elisha heals him by having Naaman immerse seven times in the Jordan River.  This episode takes place around 850 BCE, not in Judah where the Temple is located, but in Samaria, the Northern Kingdom.

The account opens up with a farmer bringing 20 loaves of barley bread to Elisha, the farmer's "first Fruits". This is interesting, among other things, in that the obligation of bringing Bikkurim is being followed in Samaria, and that Elisha must be a Kohen.

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Rosh Chodesh Nisan 

On the first day of Nisan, God presented the first commandment of how to "sanctify the new moon" (kiddush hachodesh) for the onset of Rosh Chodesh making Nisan  the first month of the Jewish year.

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My Dad:

Samuel Jaron's 24th Yahrtzeit

will be observed on:
Wednesday, April 10, 2024 - Nissan 2, 5784

May his Neshama have an Aliyah.