They have reached the Promised Land. Okay. The Children of Israel not only reach the Promised Land this week, Moses sends out 12 men to scout out the land in advance of the Children of Israel crossing over the Jordan River to begin the fulfillment of God’s covenant made to Abraham so long ago.

And it is a beautiful land indeed!

The 12 scouts see the bounty of the land. For forty days they travelled throughout the land of Israel and return to Moses and Aaron and the whole community and they bring the bounty of the land back with them. Yes, God’s promise of the land flowing with milk and honey is real. And it is right before them; within their reach.

And yet for 10 of the scouts it seems too good to be true. They get nervous and scared and begin to tell the community of Israel that there is no way to conquer the land. They say, “The people who inhabit the country are powerful and the cities are fortified and very large; moreover we saw the Anakites there” (Num. 13:28). Their negativity becomes infectious despite the fact that Caleb counters their words; “Let us by all means go up and we shall gain possession of it for we shall surely overcome it” (Num. 13:30).

The ten let their fears overcome them and they whip the Israelites into a frenzy of fear and longings to return to Egypt. How quickly a group can be influenced! How quickly lack of faith spreads! How quickly we can doubt our own strengths!
Even when countered by Caleb by Joshua (who is Moses’ assistant) the fears and lies seem to win the day. It was this moment and lack of faith in God’s ability to aid the Israelites in their tasks to settle the Promised Land that irritated God so much that Israelites had to dwell for 38 more years in the desert before attempting to settle the Land. God had enough of their doubts.
From the Golden Calf incident to now these former slaves can’t accept the gifts of abundance that keep coming their way.

This past week U.S. Senate Candidate Rand Paul from Kentucky made headlines because he criticized the Civil Rights act of 1964. Paul, the son of libertarian darling, Ron Paul, said that the government should not enforce civil rights. Backed by the Tea Party, he won a primary race for a Kentucky Senate seat and immediately came under fire. He hastened to state that if he had been there at the time he would have voted for it. But his contradictions hung out in the media like a shooting flare. He spent the weekend trying to distance himself from the tinge of racism. In his libertarian glee and enjoying the spotlight Rand Paul doesn’t understand the symbolic nature of his words and the damage he inflicts with his words.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 helped to build a basis for equality in this country and began to smash the blatant and overt second class status of blacks in this country. Racism still exists as is evident in so many corners but without the Civil Rights Act of 1964 it would have been impossible to image an African American President less than 50 years later!
I cite this most recent headline because this week’s Torah contains a story where the words of a leader create hurt and pain. Miriam one of the leaders of the people makes an accusatory comment about the color of the skin of Moses’ wife. She spoke against Moses because of the “Cushite woman he had married” (12:1). Cush was the name of then Ethiopia. She was joined by Aaron in this moment, in part challenging Moses’ leadership of the people but doing so through hurtful and hateful remarks. Moses’ wife (Tzipporah) skin color was dark. But she was faithful to the covenant at Sinai and made sure the sons of Moses’ were circumcised. Moses our portion tells us was a very humble man.
And so God calls Moses and Aaron and Miriam to the Tent of Meeting and speaks to the three of them. God praises Moses. “I make Myself known to him in a vision; I speak with him in a dream. (Num. 12:6). God affirms Moses’ leadership and that Moses is the chosen of God. This is a rebuke of Miriam and Aaron. But God doesn’t stop there-as God’s Divine Presence withdraws from them in a cloud, Miriam turns scaly white. Her words, dripping with racism has turned upon her as God sends a message loud and clear that this kind of slander and hatred is not permitted.

At the end of this week’s Torah portion, Naso, in the book of Numbers, Moses finishes assembling the Tabernacle. The tribes have been given their station around the Tabernacle. At the beginning of the portion the three different classifications of Levites, the Merarites, the Kohathites and the Gershonites each are given their tasks in relationship to setting up and taking down the Tabernacle. And then the Tabernacle, the altar, and all of the utensils used in the sacrificial worship are dedicated and consecrated by Moses. “On the day that Moses finished setting up the Tabernacle; he anointed and consecrated it and all its furnishings, as well as the altar and its utensils” (Numbers 7:1

With great ceremony this was conducted. But having Moses put the finishing touches and dedicating the altar and Tabernacle is not enough. Then each of the tribal leaders who were named in last week’s portion and who helped take the census of the Israelite men over the age of twenty, brought dedication offerings for the altar. Each leader is named again and each on behalf of their tribes brings exactly the same offering. It is spread out over the period of the next 12 days, one tribe a day. And it is a huge offering: a silver bowl and silver basin, a gold ladle filled with incense; on bull one ram and one lamb in its first year; one goat; two oxen; five rams, five goats and five yearling lambs. It took the whole tribe to gather this kind of offering. Not just the leader who presented it.

Why is it important to have the tribal leaders participate in the dedication of the altar? Isn’t it enough to have Moses dedicate the altar and consecrate it and then say open for business?

We begin a new book of the Torah with this week’s portion, Bemidbar. We begin the book of Numbers which is how this book gets its English name. The Hebrew name means in the Wilderness and the narrative of this book tells of the years of wandering from Sinai to the Promised Land. But the English name of the book, Numbers, comes from the accounting in this week’s portion. This week God tells Moses to count the Children of Israel and take a census. This is exactly what is happening in the U.S. right now. We are in the midst of the every decade census. Forms were sent to each household to be returned to the Census Bureau. But for those households that did not return their Census2010 form, home visits are now taking place trying to collect the necessary and very basic information about the size of each household and number of people in a household.
The every decade census is important because it determines the shape of our government and captures very important information about our people. I sat this past year on the California Complete Count Committee which was a statewide, governor appointed committee that tried to ensure that every resident of California was counted. We devised strategies and did outreach in all kinds of communities to make sure that California would not have an undercount. This happened in the 2000 Census. Estimates are that California was undercounted by more than 8 million people! Ouch! This impacts everything from Congressional representation to federal funds for schools and roads.

This double portion ends the book of Leviticus. With 36 blessings and 49 curses contained in this portion, the third book of the Torah ends. The double portion takes place at Mt. Sinai—behar—at the mountain. And the closing verse of Behukotai tells us (Lev. 27:34) “These are the commandments that Adonai gave Moses for the Israelite people on Mount Sinai.” These blessings and curses are wrapped in the knowledge that we heard them from on high at the covenantal moment.
The number of the blessings and curses are interesting. There are 36 blessings in this portion. Thirty six is of course double chai-2 times life. The blessings in this portion are indeed about the promises of life and security in the land when one observes the covenant. The perspective of the Torah portion is the promise of God’s goodness and reward when the Torah commandments are observed. This brings overflowing blessing and grants a double portion of life.
The curses or rebukes that are in this week’s portion number 49. This is also a significant number because of the cycle of the years that is outlined at the beginning of the portion; seven times seven years leading to the 50th year of Jubilee. The 49 curses or rebukes are directed at the children of Israel if they stray from the commandments and their responsibilities as a holy nation. The further Children of Israel move from God-God hides from them. In many communities these rebukes are read by the rabbi of the community because no one wants the “aliyah” the honor of this section.

In the midst of this week’s Torah portion, Emor, is the calendar of the Jewish people. The holy days and festivals are outlined beginning with the most important, the weekly observance of Shabbat. We might not often think of this as a holy day related to Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot or Shavuot. But the Sabbath is the pinnacle of our week. It is the great re-set button. Allowing each of us to reset our clocks, reset our thoughts and through prayer, meditation and time with friends and family reset our anxiety quotient to zero by not focusing on that which gives us so many worries.
The yearly calendar mentions the three big festivals starting with Pesach. Biblically Pesach is the beginning of the year. It wasn’t until much later that our year began at Rosh Hashanah. We even find the Biblical names of some of the months different than we know them now. There have been several developments through Jewish history including a bitter dispute in the Tenth Century of the Common Era between the leaders of the Jewish community in Babylonia and the remnant left in what was then called Palestine. Eventually the Babylonian methods won out.

The portion goes on to describe a bit about each holiday. Rosh Hashanah is not how we know it biblically-it is only Yom Teruah in the Torah- the day of Sounding of the Shofar. Of course Yom Kippur follows it but again these holy days come in the seventh month rather than the first. Today Yom Teruah-(known also as Rosh Hashanah) is the first of the year. One theory holds that when Israel was divided following the death of Solomon into the Northern Kingdom (eventually carried off by the Assyrians including the 10 lost Tribes) and the Southern Kingdom had vastly different ways to reckon. Some believe the differences in the calendar are reflected by the various practices of the two kingdoms. The Northern Kingdom counted the years of a king’s reign from Spring to Spring. While the Southern kingdom counted the king’s reign from fall to fall. And because we are heirs of the Southern Kingdom brought into exile in Babylonia we now reckon our calendar from fall to fall.

Again this week we have another double portion- Achrei Mot/Kedoshim. In the section of Kedoshim in chapter 19 we read from verse 9-10 the instructions about how to help sustain the poor in our midst.

“When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap all the way to the edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. You shall not pick your vineyard bare or gather the fallen fruit of your vineyard. You shall leave them for the poor and the stranger; I Adonai am your God.”

These instructions apply to large farms and small gardens. The four corners are reserved property. Just when you think you own all of the land, just when you think the harvest is all yours- the Torah comes to teach you that it isn’t. The message loud and clear is that God owns the land and the produce as well. You may think you own it but there is a higher authority. And that higher authority, God, demands that you share your bounty. Yes, this is wealth redistribution. And free marketers and capitalists won’t like it. But the Torah is very clear what we have belongs first to God and is but lent to us.

We are taught in this section of Torah that the path to holiness (for Kedoshim means holiness and this is the holiness code) is expressed in how we care for the least of society and how we treat one another. You might think that if you don’t own fields or produce or vineyards that somehow this doesn’t apply to you. But the message is loud and clear that we have an obligation to bring some balance to the economic disparity that surrounds us. Though today many of us are not farmers or vintners, we are commanded here to pay attention to the poor and the stranger in our midst and care for them.

This instruction, if we are at all faithful, should also inform our policies. How might we apply this kind of helping hand and moral responsibility as described in the Torah in other ways? With all the talk now of shutting out undocumented workers from access to health care and education is this the way we are commanded to treat the stranger in our midst? Or does this verse call to us to care compassionately for the stranger.

This week’s double Torah portion Tazria/Metzora describes spiritual defilement by means of child birth, physical ailment, and discharges of both semen and blood by men and women. A small section of this week’s portion describes a kind of tzarat or affliction that attacks houses and fabrics.

This week we enter an ancient mindset that seemed to revile some of the natural functions of the body along with physical ailments that were poorly understood. It made everything from menstrual blood to semen as something to revile rather than as natural and normal functions of the body. Both blood and semen in these Torah portions with the potential for life are treated in a special category that can cause spiritual impurity.

The opening of the portion describes the conditions of childbirth that bring the mother spiritual impurity or uncleanliness. When a woman gives birth there is a lot of blood. It is part of the process of the body. And so according to this portion she must purify herself following the ordeal of giving birth and coming into contact with blood that holds life. Depending upon whether she has a male child or a female child there is a different ritual for restoring her spiritual purity. For a male child she is unclean for 33 days. For a female child it is double the time for 66 days. According to tradition she has to account for both her own and her daughter’s potential to bear children later on.

In the ancient mind and certainly the Biblical mind blood and semen were the sources of life. When blood or semen was spilled or oozed from the body they understood that the potentiality of life was being leaked. Thus ancient mindset called for a spiritual and holy state of being that needed to be restored in the individual. Balance needed to be restored, the balance of life and life giving forces. And this week’s portions describes ancient methods of restoring that spiritual balance put out of whack by contact with blood, semen and whatever the affliction of tzarat may be.

Rabbi Denise L. Eger
After bringing the sacrifices to the altar for Aaron and his sons and next for the people of Israel, in this week’s portion, Shemini, Aaron blesses the people Israel. “Aaron lifted his hands toward the people and blessed them; and he stepped down after offering the sin offering, the burnt offering and the offering of well-being” (Lev. 9: 22).
The High Priest offers a special blessing to the people. Although in this section of the Torah we are not told the words that the Aaron used, we assume that the verses from the book of Numbers known as the priestly benediction were the words of this blessing. Those ancient words of blessing, “May God bless you and keep you. May God’s face be turned toward you and be gracious to you. May God lift up your face and grant you peace” have been how Cohanim, have blessed the people throughout our history. Interestingly the offerings brought to the altar are not enough for the people’s purification. The blessing caps the offering and completes the process needed for the people. This blessing is clearly made on high at the altar because then Aaron has to step down when finished. His position matters. The blessing that comes from the altar isn’t just coming from him but through him to the people, because the real blessing and purification comes from God. Aaron is the conduit that makes it happen.

Passover week is a unique opportunity to affirm one’s Jewish identity and to feel connected to a larger community. Jews around the world observe Passover. No matter if one is of Ashkenazi or Sephardic origins, Ethiopian background or Persian, Passover customs and traditions help us relive the Exodus from Egypt and make the journey toward freedom and the Promised Land real for each one of us. Of course if you had the opportunity to participate in a Seder meal, the special foods and symbolic nature of the ritual bring us immediately to that connection. The salt water, the charoset and marror (bitter herbs) help us taste the servitude and enslavements. The four cups of wine bring us the promise of freedom and belonging. But it doesn’t stop there at the Seder table. This entire week of Passover is meant to help us connect in a powerful way.
The rules for refraining from eating products with leavening called chametz can help us reaffirm the basic connection to our Jewishness. What we eat and how we eat help to define us as human beings. By refraining from bread and certain products during the entire week of Passover we can deepen our spiritual connection to our past and provide grounding to our Jewish identity. There is more to Passover than the Seder. Refraining from eating bread and pastas and pastries may be inconvenient; and it might be difficult but practicing this week-long discipline can help you reframe this holy Festival into an opportunity to commune with the Jewish people, your past, and your future.

This week we begin the book of Leviticus. The first parsha/portion bears the name of the entire book of Leviticus “Vayikra” – “And God called to Moses.” (Lev.1:1). This book calls us to come close to God through the sacrificial system.
The word for sacrifice, korban is from the Hebrew root KRV. This root is the same as karov—to come near, to come close. The sacrifices that are outlined in this book and in particular this portion helped the Israelites draw closer in communion with God. Whether they brought a guilt offering or sin offering as described in this parasha, the sacrifice helped to restore them, expiate their sin and reconstitute an individual as whole and forgiven when they followed the formulas listed in the portion.
For us moderns it is hard to imagine that the slaughter of an animal would bring us closer to God.
That is why the priest is given such detailed instructions in how to slaughter the animal. Its death isn’t just wanton killing but in the Torah’s view a sacred moment of transformation. The offering is a gift. And that gift to God is sacred food. Similarly today the rules of kosher slaughter developed from these ancient rituals. The rules are an attempt to be mindful that the life of the animal is sacred and is an offering of its life to sustain our lives.

We have made our way this week to the end of the book of Exodus. This double portion brings to a close the immediate part of the liberation story from Egypt to Sinai to Ten Commandments to building the Tabernacle. The portions include the building and making of all the pieces of the Tabernacle. We learn that it took skilled craftsmen and women under the direction of Bezalel and his assistant Oholiab to engage in this sacred building project: building God’s holy home that would move with the people wherever they went.

Bezalel’s name has symbolic purposes. One way to understand his name is translated “In the Shadow of God.” ZLL as a root in Hebrew to be or grow dark. The word shadow comes from this. The El at the end of this is one of the names of God. Bezalel is known for the spirit of wisdom that he possesses and carries out God’s plan for the Tabernacle, does so in God’s shadow. But the contrast is amazing. Bezalel in the dark or shadow of God builds a place for God’s glory to shine and dwell among the people. And his assistant Oholiab names is the counter to Bezalel’s shadow because his name is Father’s Tent but can also mean Father’s shine.

Symbolically what is the Torah trying to teach us from the primary builders of the Tabernacle, the Mishkan?

God hears and sees the people's lack of faith and disloyalty. They had just accepted the covenant. Moses went up the mountain to receive the details of the law in writing. But the people feared that he would not return. Their fear ate away at the faith they had developed through the series of miracles they had witnessed: the plagues in Egypt; the parting of the sea; providing manna and water in the desert; protecting them in battle against stronger enemies and hearing the voice of God at Mt. Sinai. But none of this was enough to sustain their faith. The Children of Israel wanted familiarity and comfort in the time of angst. They wanted an idol like the one they knew in Egypt. It became their focal point especially if Moses was no longer on the scene. Their fears drove them to return to old habits.

But the most dramatic moment is yet to come as Moses himself is ordered to return to the encampment by God. Moses has tried to talk God down (to quote Rachel Maddow). God is so angry according to the Biblical text that God wants to destroy the people..... "I see this is a stiff-necked people" (Ex. 32 9).

This week’s portion Tetzaveh opens with instructions for the Israelites to bring clear olive oil from beaten olives for lighting the menorah. Beaten olives are a special preparation that was meant to release the oil. Harvesting was done by first beating the trees with a stick so that the olives would fall to the ground and break releasing some of the oil. Large cloths were placed underneath the tree to catch the beaten olives. They were wrapped up and then crushed again by millstones. This is the first pressing of the oil and the oil used in the ancient temple.
This oil helps the menorah shine through the tabernacle and bring a light of God’s presence to the Israelites. The menorah is the ancient symbol of the Jewish people. Many branches unified on a single stem, combining their light to illumine the most holy place, the ancient Tabernacle.
We also celebrate Purim on Saturday night and Sunday. The light of God’s presence hovers in this story although not made explicit in the Book of Esther. God’s name is never mentioned in the Megillah of Esther.