Insights on the Parsha & Mo'adim - From Joshua Moshe Mitchell

Parshat Shelach 5786 - "במספר הימים אשר־תרתם את־הארץ"

This week parsha is פרשת שלח, where משה sends the מרגלים to scout out ארץ כנען - a mission which lasts for 40 days. However, upon their return, the spies attempt to rally עם ישראל against entering ארץ כנען, claiming that its inhabitants are too strong to be defeated. Their report sparks an uprising amongst the nation, who even begin to plan a return to Egypt. In response, HaShem declares that this generation will not enter ארץ כנען, and that בני ישראל will wander in the מדבר for 40 years, “במספר הימים אשר־תרתם את־הארץ - according to the number of days that you spied the land”. This naturally raises 2 questions: Why should the punishment correspond to the number of days that the spies scouted ארץ כנען, and what exactly is this penalty’s purpose?

Parshat Beha’alotecha 5786 - "האספסף אשר בקרבו"

This week’s Parsha, פרשת בהעלותך is filled with excitement. The opening half of the פרשה describes עם ישראל preparing for the journey into ארץ ישראל. The לוים are inaugurated into their roles, משה invites יתרו to join them in their conquest, and HaShem details the order of the trumpets which will guide ישראל in their takeover of the promised land. The nation finally packs up and, for the first time since being reorganized, moves forward. But in פרק יא, there is a sudden shift in tone. Two episodes of complaints are made, and the momentum comes to a halt. First, the scene of the “complainers”, upon whom HaShem’s anger is kindled, resulting in the burning of their portion of the camp. Next comes the demand for meat, initiated by the ערב רב and spread to כלל ישראל, which elicits one of the most severe reactions from משה in the Torah, and introduces the first hints that this generation might not be fit to enter ארץ ישראל. However, this transition is deeply puzzling. Only one week ago, in פרשת נשא, we saw the greatness of עם ישראל, as they expressed unity in love of HaShem through each שבט’s קרבנות. How did they decline so quickly? Furthermore, the complaints themselves are difficult to understand. The Torah doesn’t go into depth about the sin of the “complainers”, and the nation’s earlier cry for food had previously been answered graciously. What, then, about these complaints warranted such harsh responses, and why did the Torah put them next to each other? Recorded in Yeshivat Sha'alvim

Shavuot 5786 - "שבעה שבעת תספר־לך"

This Thursday night, we celebrate שבועות, a חג best known as being זמן מתן תורתנו. It is also one of the שלוש רגלים, one of three festivals of the year where all the men of עם ישראל were commanded to ascend to the בית המקדש to celebrate. However, when comparing שבועות to the other רגלים it seems to be alike only in the obligation of ascent. While the other רגלים each have their own unique מצוות tied to the day, the מצוות of שבועות are largely those of a standard יום טוב. But, perhaps, the most striking of all is the difference in length: פסח and סוכות are both celebrated over the course of 7 days, with both יום טוב and חול המועד, what we consider ‘standard’ for a רגל. Yet, שבועות does not follow this structure; instead, it is a one-day יום טוב with nothing to follow. But why? Why is שבועות so different from the other רגלים, and what does this tell us about the purpose of the חג as a whole?

Parshat Bemidbar 5786 - " שאו את־ראש כל־עדת בני־ישראל"

This week we begin a new book of the Torah, ספר במדבר, starting, of course, with פרשת במדבר. We begin this פרשה with HaShem commanding Moshe to count the Jewish people, where the Torah states: “שאו את־ראש כל־עדת בני־ישראל למשפחתם לבית אבתם במספר שמות כל־זכר לגלגלתם - lift up the heads of all of the congregation of the children of Yisrael according to their families, by their father’s house, count the names of every male by their heads”. The rest of the Parsha details this poll - how only men aged 20-60 qualify, who will assist Moshe in tallying each שבט, the total amount of people per שבט, and finally the specifics of counting the לוים and their broader role within כלל ישראל. However, this command only raises questions: For what purpose was עם ישראל counted here? What is the meaning of the phrase שאו את־ראש - that their heads shall be raised? And even if it had a practical significance at the time, why is this count included in the Torah, an eternal book relevant to every generation?

Parshat Behar–Bechukotai 5786 - "וזכרתי את־בריתי יעקוב"

This Shabbat we read פרשת בהר-בחוקותי, the final parsha in ספר ויקרא. Most memorable is the portion in בחוקותי which describes the ברכות and קללות that will befall on עם ישראל if they don’t heed the commandments of HaShem. At the conclusion of the curses, the Torah relates their intended impact on כלל ישראל - to humble their hearts, and to lead them to confess their sins. HaShem then states: “וזכרתי את־בריתי יעקוב ואף את־בריתי יצחק ואף את־בריתי אברהם אזכר והארץ אזכר - and I will remember My covenant with Ya’akov, and also My covenant with Yitzchak, and also My covenant with Avraham I will remember, and the land I will remember”. This verse is particularly striking. Why does HaShem mention each covenant individually instead of just referring to one covenant made with all of the אבות? Why is יעקב’s name spelled with an extra ‘ו’? And why are the אבות listed in reverse order? Recorded in Yeshivat Sha'alvim