THE SOUND OF MUSIC One striking difference between the service in the Temple and our prayer services today is the absence of instrumental music. In Temple times, the Levites accompanied the sacrificial service with a full orchestra: lyres, flutes, trumpets, harps, and cymbals. So essential was the music to the atmosphere of the service that...
THE SIX-FOLD BLESSING Two tiny silver scrolls are the oldest surviving biblical texts. Dated to around 600 BCE, the time of the prophet Jeremiah, they were discovered in 1979, when archaeologist Gabriel Barkay was examining ancient burial caves at Ketef Hinnom. This is just outside the walls of Jerusalem, in the area now occupied by...
LIFE BY NUMBERS This Shabbat we begin the fourth book of the Torah, commonly called Bemidbar, “In the desert,” a key word from the opening verse. In Rabbinic literature, however, it is referred to as Chumash HaPekudim — “The Torah-book of Counting.” This parallels the Greek title in the Septuagint, Arithmoi, meaning “numbers.” The ancient...
NOTICING WARNING SIGNS Recognising the early signs of a problem and addressing it before it escalates is a vital lesson we learn from this week’s parasha. “Should your brother become poor and is struggling, vehechezakta bo—then extend him support.” (Vayikra 25:35) The Hebrew phrase vehechezakta bo comes from the root chazak, meaning to be strong....
MAKING EACH DAY COUNT This week’s parasha includes the mitzvah of Sefirat HaOmer—Counting of the Omer—a commandment that directly relates to the period we are currently in. What’s striking is that we are not merely asked to know what day it is, but to say it aloud. This Shabbat, we declare: “Today is the 34th...
