 Parashat Nasso - Numbers 4:21 - 7:89Babies. Isn't that what naturally comes to your mind after reading this week's Torah portion? Confused? Let me explain. This week's reading contains an unusual ritual, the testing of the sotah (the wayward wife). This is a strange and even fantastical ritual, quite foreign and bizarre to the modern mind. To the modern ear it appears to be more akin to alchemy than biblical instruction. It goes like this: |
 Parashat Bamidbar - Numbers 1:1-4:20Parashat Bamidbar begins our study of the book of Numbers. Chapter one starts off with the LORD’s command to take a census of the males among the Children of Israel who are of the age to go into battle. Every male twenty years old and older was to be counted. The Torah then lists out the census results according to each tribe. In chapter two, after giving the results of the census, the LORD gives Moses instructions for how the Children of Israel would both encamp and how they would travel. The Tabernacle and the Levites would be surrounded by the entire army of Israel. The tribal legions would be a buffer of protection for both the priestly tribe and also the holy house in the event of a military engagement. Chapter three, however, begins entirely different: |
Bechukotai (Leviticus 26:3-27:34)The double portion of Behar-Bechukotai is the last reading in the book of Leviticus. And although the bulk of the book of Leviticus deals with laws of the sacrificial system and the inauguration of the levitical duties, it ends on quite a different tone. Parashat Bechukotai begins with a reminder that if the Children of Israel heed Hashem’s instructions and obey His commandments, they will be blessed. It begins, “If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them,” and is followed by a list of things that will happen as a result of their obedience. |
 Leviticus 25:1-26:2His Responsibility And MineAs we have said in the previous editions of 5 Minute Torah, our current Torah portion is focused almost exclusively on the laws of the Shemitah (the sabbatical year) and the Yovel (the Jubilee, or 50th year). It describes how farmers living in Israel should allow their land to rest on the seventh year and depend on Hashem for their livelihood while they are not sowing or harvesting, or pruning their vineyards. It tells how the fiftieth year should be a year to release both land and indentured servants. It then speaks of how one should treat a poor person who sells himself into a position of servitude, followed by how the community should work to redeem a brother who has become impoverished and sold himself to a foreigner. It concludes with a prohibition against idolatry and a reminder to honor the Sabbath, as well as the Tabernacle. |
 The Relative Nearest HimParashat Emor begins with a problematic passage. Through Moses, God gives instructions to the priesthood prohibiting them from becoming ritually impure through corpse contamination. There are exceptions to this rule, however, and the Torah gives a list of close relatives by which a priest may allow himself to become ritually impure. This could be through either attending to the body of the deceased or merely attending their funeral, either of which would bring with it ritual contamination:
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 Parashat Kedoshim (Leviticus 19:1-20:27)Parashat Kedoshim is primarily focused on practical, ethical laws that will set Israel apart from her surrounding nations. It begins with the directive, “You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy” (Leviticus 19:2). But when Hashem gives this instruction, He tells Moses to speak this “to all the congregation of the people of Israel.” The way Hashem addresses the Children of Israel is unique to this event. Let’s take a look at why this is the case. |
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