July 7 - Parshat Pinchas - pp. 924 – 931
Within this Parsha is one of the most striking events
in Torah history. Prior to the appearance of the Five
Sisters, inheritance law favored only male heirs. Five
sisters approached Moses and revolutionized Jewish
law on the subject! You may not recall all of their
names but at least one is familiar- Noa. For the
record, NOA is a woman’s name and NOAH is a
man’s name. We need to remember that NOA was an
Israelite woman of action whereas Noah was a man
of non-specified ethnicity who followed all of God’s
direction without question. The full scene is found on
pp. 925 - 927.
Haftarat Pinchas - pp. 938 - 940
Elijah is at the end of his rope. Pursued by Israelite
soldiers who have been ordered to kill him by King
Ahab (yes, there was a Jewish Ahab and he was
cruel), Elijah takes shelter at Mt. Sinai. God came
forth to Elijah. There was a great wind, an
earthquake and a firestorm. How is God described?
This description becomes a center point in the High
Holiday liturgy.
July 14 - Parshat Matot-Masei - pp. 949 – 953
Forty years of wandering are nearly over! Moses
prepares the 12 tribes to cross into Israel. Suddenly,
21⁄2 tribes flout God, Moses and centuries of tradition
by proclaiming their desire to do _____(What?)____.
Haftarat Matot-Masei - pp. 973 – 977
If Israel returns to God, nations of the world will
bless themselves. Jeremiah lived at the time of the
first Temple’s destruction. What might he be saying
in this Haftarah?
July 21 - Parshat Devarim - pp. 990 – 994
In this section of Moshe’s speech he reminds Israel
that Esau and Moab (pp. 990 - 991) are not to be
displaced or attacked. Why? Does this make sense for
a nation about to conquer its land?
Haftarat Devarim - pp. 1000 – 1004
This Haftarah is famous and comes from the book of
Isaiah. He speaks to Israel 500 years after Moses. He
challenges them to purify their sins and change them
from deep red (scarlet) to snowy white. This
symbolism leaves the Haftarah and migrates to the
Yom Kippur liturgy. He nicknames the Jewish people
“Chiefs of Sodom”. What could possibly make us as
bad as the people of Sodom? Read verse 17 on p.
1002.
July 28 - Parshat Vaetchanan - pp. 1015 - 1031
Wow! THE SHEMA! THE TEN GREAT WORDS!
What a Parshah!
And a Bar Mitzvah too! Sam Hochhauser, a new
member, will be reading from the Torah and
Haftarah. Please come to Shul and welcome his family!
Haftarat Vaetchanan – pp. 1033 - 1036
The Haftarah speaks of the importance of everybody
coming together to share simchas and to offer shared
comfort in times of loss. This message is for us all.