Weekly Parsha

Refuah Sheimah: "May it be Your will, LORD my G-d, and the G-d of my forefathers, that You quickly send refuah sh'lemah (complete healing) from heaven, spiritual healing and physical healing to Aryeh ben Leah, Esther bat Simcha, Stuart Holtzclaw and Randy Shute from Syracuse, NY.

Continue praying for: Teddy Welz, Miriam (Mariana) "bat Zulay", Adina (Heidi) "bat Sarah" e Yosefa (Josie) "bat Sharon", Rafael ben Gladis e Esther Bracha "bat Sarah".

Emor

Leviticus 21:1 - 24:24

In the context of Judaism, "Emor" (אֱמֹר) means "speak" or "say" in Hebrew.It's the name of the 31st weekly Torah portion (Parashah) in the Jewish year, and the eighth in the Book of Leviticus. The Parashat Emor outlines laws regarding priestly behavior, sacred times, and festivals.

This week's portion sets forth the standards of purity and perfection for a Cohen; specifies the physical requirements of sacrifices and what is to be done with blemished offerings; proclaims as holidays the Shabbat, Pesach, Shavuot, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot.

It reminds the Jewish people to provide pure olive oil for the Menorah and designates the details of the Showbread (two stacks of 6 loaves each which were placed on the table in the portable sanctuary and later in the Temple once a week upon Shabbat).

The portion ends with the interesting story of a man who blasphemed G-d's name with a curse. What should be the penalty for this transgression? Curious? Leviticus. 24:14.

"You shall not desecrate My holy Name, rather I should be sanctified among the Children of Israel" (Leviticus 22:32).

This verse is the source of the mitzvah of kiddush HaShem (sanctification of the G-d's name), which is that a person should accept martyrdom rather than deny G-d. Unfortunately, this mitzvah has too often been fulfilled in Jewish history -- when Jews have given up their lives when put to the ultimate test of their faith -- whether to convert to another religion under threat of death or to die as a Jew.

Although kiddush HaShem is generally thought of as martyrdom, one does not have to give up one's life to fulfill this mitzvah. Anytime that a Jew behaves in a manner that brings honor to G-d, and that people can point to him saying, "That is the beauty of obeying the Torah," that is a kiddush HaShem.

We are required to think of kiddush HaShem every time we recite the Shema. This willingness to give up one's life rather than deny G-d, is required of every Jew. If you know what you are willing to die for, then you know what you should live for.

For any act to have meaning and value, it must have a purpose. For life to have meaning and value, it must be purposeful. Everything a person does consciously has a purpose. Rational people do not do things that have no purpose.

If an act is not part of an ultimate purpose, the act has little meaning. For the Jew, the ultimate purpose should be to do the will of G-d -- this gives great meaning and substance to our every action, our every mitzvah and ultimately our very lives!

It is not the years in your life, but the life in your years that counts.

We're tested not to show our weakness, but to discover our strengths.

Shabbat Shalom,

R. Ovadiah Tank

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Rabbi Tank is a professor at the American Jewish College in New York, where he teaches classes on Talmud, Jewish History, and Contemporary Jewish Law. Rabbi Tank is dedicated to finding modern utility and meaning in ancient wisdom texts and is pleased to provide spiritual, cultural, social and educational programming to communities around the world. 

Rabbi Tank was educated at Yeshivas in New York and Miami. He studied Biblical Archeology at Bar Ilan University and Jewish Studies at Harvard University. Rabbi Tank has a Bachelor degree in Business Administration and he is also graduated in International Economic Development from the University of Oxford. 

Rabbi Tank is actively involved in peace negotiations and relief operations. Rabbi Tank is the director of international affairs at the World Jewish Confederation in the United States and He is member of the White House National Religious Leaders , an Executive Office of the President of the United States in Washington, D.C.