Come out of her, My people…

Chag S’meach!

This is another special week, since the regular Torah portion is — at least somewhat! — pre-empted by the final spring feast of Shavuot.

But because it turns out to be SO apropos anyway, Mark Call decided to incorporate at least SOME of parsha “Naso” (Numbers 4:21 through chapter 6, in this case) into this week’s two-part teaching.

The Erev Shabbat overview and “set-up” includes both the first couple of chapters of that parsha, along with some traditional readings from Exodus chapters 19 through 20 (the giving of the Torah and ‘Ten Debarim’ at Mount Sinai) as well, since that was at least the FIRST part of what happened during this time, so long ago.

The Sabbath midrash is not only about Shavuot, this final of the three Spring feasts [moedim], but how so much of what is happening RIGHT NOW in the biggest orchestrated global economic meltdown in history, but also the explicit destruction of most of “western civilization’ and the American republics as well, is literally about as much of a “proof” of the validity of Scripture as could be hoped for.

How do placebo masks, the ‘woman caught in adultery,’ and even the Book of Ruth manage to relate SO specifically to what happened in our history, and is now unfolding all around us, and more so than ever on this special day?

Shavuot, and a bit of Naso: Idolatary, Big Brother Style”

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The combined two-part teaching is here, via the Hebrew Nation Radio page.

Parsha “Bemidbar” begins the new Book with the same name (“Nunbers” in the English, which is also quite descriptive!) with instructions that Yahuah gave to Moses b’midbar, or “In the wilderness” of Sinai.

It is also the first commanded “head count” in the Bible, and it’s interesting that the colloquial term is a better translation of the literal Hebrew (“lift up the head”) than the idea of merely taking a census.

There’s also an important implication in the way the text is structured that what is intended here (“by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of NAMES”) is far more than just treating the many individuals among the mixed multitude simply as ‘numbers’.

The Erev Shabbat overview covers the specifics:

The Sabbath midrash picks up with another question about the numbers themselves, and why Scripture gives us so much detail about them. And that, in turn, should really raise some eyebrows today (interesting how His Word resonates, even in ways we don’t necessarily expect!) — because it should help us to understand TRUST. Why it matters, and where we must put it!

“Bemidbar: Why the Numbers Really Matter – then and now”

The combined two-part teaching is here, via the link at Hebrew Nation Radio.

One more week, Mark combines a somewhat different than traditional pairing of Torah portions in the annual sequence, but, after all, the Biblical-scale global economic and social[ist] upheaval certainly marks “interesting times” that fit as well.

Parsha “Kedoshim” (Leviticus chapters 19 and 20) is literally about what that word means. “Y’all be ‘holy’, in the southern plural conjugation of the word into English, is outlined by the specifics. And the following parsha, “Emor” (Leviticus chapters 21 through 24) takes the next logical step, by outlining how those who are specifically, by birth and avocation, set apart to Yahuah, are held to a still-higher standard.

The Erev Shabbat overview covers the specifics:

The Sabbath midrash begins with the fundamental question: “What is ‘holiness’?” Given the Big Lie that most of us have been exposed to for far too long, from denial of what the Book actually says in the form of everyting from “over-spiritualization” to outright obfuscation, maybe it’s not surprising that the word ‘holy’ has become a riddle.
“Kedoshim – Emor: Why being SET APART to Yahuah has NEVER Been More Vital!”

The combined two-part teaching is here, via the Hebrew Nation Radio page.