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Parsha of the Week

This week’s Parsha is Parshas Emor. One must be careful not to become spiritually unclean from a dead body since they must be spiritually pure to be able to prepare to eat from the korbon. A Kohen may become spiritually unclean for the “Seven relatives”- father, mother, brother, sister, son, daughter, wife and someone who dies with no one to bury him. A Kohen cannot marry a woman who is divorced or a woman who married someone who she was not allowed to.

A Jewish person must honor a Kohen with high priority. For example, when there is a meal the Kohen should be served first and when he washes his hands to eat he should wash first, just as he should be given the honor to say the blessing over the bread. After the meal, the Kohen also says the grace after the meal.
Teruma is a portion of crops that we give to a Kohen. The following people may eat from the Teruma; The Kohen, his wife, his children, his slaves (not Hebrew slaves) and his animals.
One may not bring an animal to offer as a sacrifice if the animal is not physically perfect (has a blemish) the animal has to be at least 8 days old. One may not sacrifice a mother animal or the mother’s child.


Shabbat Shalom! Have a Good Shabbos!

      We celebrate Lag BaOmer on the day Rabbi Shimon Bar Yohoi died. Before he died, he hid in a cave for twelve years with his son, Rabbi Elazer where they studied Torah day and night. During this time of study they also created a book called The Zohar (Kabbalah) Which revealed some of the secrets in the Torah. A person is not allowed to study the Zohar  if one had not studied the Torah, Talmud, Shulchan Aruch and all the commentaries. If one has studied these then they may study the Zohar. When the Romans found out that Rabbi Shimon Bar Yohoi was hiding and was learning with a candle, they went out on a search for Rabbi Shimon Bar Yohoi’s fire but when they went out to search all the jews had lit fires to confuse the Romans so they wouldn’t be able to find him. This is why some people light Bonfires as a custom on Lag Baomer.

                This week’s parsha is parshas Achrei Mot and Kedoshim. The Kohen Gadol did the special work on the tenth day of Tishrei, on Yom Kippur. The Jewish people must bring two goats. They must be identical.  One of the goats would be used for a sin offering, and the second goat would be pushed off from a high cliff.  The Kohen Gadol confessed the sins of the Jews to Hashem by putting his hands on the head of the goat that will be pushed off the cliff and saying “Viduy “ (with Hashem’s name). The special place the Kohen Gadol goes to on Yom Kippur is the holly of hollies, where he brought spice offerings, and dripped the blood of the Korbons. The time for eating from the Korbon is the day that the Korbon was created, and the following night afterwards it must be burned.
On another note one becomes holly by staying away from the sins. A person should:

1.       Stay away from idol worship
2.       Being careful about eating Kosher
3.       Be careful who we marry
4.       Not imitating the way of the other nations act

This week’s Parsha is Parshas Tazria and Metzora, and speaks about Loshon Hora.  צרעת (leprosy) is a type of disease you get when you say Loshon Hora. צרעת (leprosy) is unusual spots on a person’s body, house, hair, etc. If a person thinks he has צרעת (leprosy) then he must be examined by a כהן (Kohen) who then could Say if he is טמא (spiritually unclean) or טהור (spiritually clean). If the Kohen isn’t sure whether the spot is צרעת (leprosy) then the person must be placed in isolation for seven days and the Kohen must examine the person again after those seven days.  If the Kohen still isn’t sure if it is צרעת (leprosy), the person must be isolated for 7 more days. If the person is טמא (spiritually unclean) he must go outside the camps, since the person separated himself by talking Loshon Hora, and now he must think over and do Teshuva, repentance, by himself. If the clothing has צרעת (leprosy), then the clothing should be burned. A מטהר (one who had צרעת (leprosy) but is now purifying himself) must bring:

 1)      Two birds – because the birds chattered as he did
 2)      תולעת שני – A red ribbon and אזוב-moss, since these are low things to teach modesty
 3)      עץ ארז-A piece of a tall tree to show that one considered himself too big

One of the birds is slaughtered over spring water, showing that one hopes that the צרעת (leprosy) will stay dead and away. The second bird is dipped in the water along with the other things, and then the צרעת (leprosy) and the bird are sent away, but the צרעת (leprosy) could return just like the bird might return.

The מטהר now cuts all his hair and washes his clothing and himself in a Mikvah. After seven days he must repeat. On the 8th day the מטהר must bring an offering with oil and the Kohen places some blood of the offering and the oil of the מטהר‘s right ear, thumb, and foot forefinger.

Shabbat Shalom! Have a Good Shabbos!

      This weeks parsha is parshas Shmini. On the eighth day when the kohanim and the mishkan were being prepared for service ,Nadab and Abihu brought incense on the Golden Altar without any permission. Moshe and aharon asked Hashem to send a fire  down. Hashem sent a fire and the fire killed Nadab and Abihu instantly.After they were killed aharon did not complain but instead he kept queit about what happened a Hashem rewarded him by teaching him new halachot.
      The signs of a kosher animal are:

  1. The animal must have split hooves 
  2. The animal must chew it's cud 
      The signs of a kosher fish:
  1. The fish must have fins
  2. The fish must have scales

Shabbat Shalom! Have a Good Shabbos!