Posted on Jul 6, 2014
by Rabbi Paul Falk. This weeks Torah portion is called Balak if you are reading the first few lines, they would translate Now Balak son of Zapor saw what Israel had done to the Ammorites. This one Torah portion is special to me. Most of the Torah up to this point is a documentary, where the focus stays on one family. The relationship of the people of Israel and Yahweh. We don’t see the other three hundred and some degrees of what Yahweh is doing in the rest of the...
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Posted on Jun 28, 2014
by Rick Ortiz The first thing we find in this Torah portion is the commandment we find regarding the red heifer, Miriam’s death is in this, Moses striking the rock instead of speaking to it. If you look with more detail is it the act of him striking the rock that causes him to be punished. Initially he was instructed to strike the rock to get water from it, but then he was told to speak to the rock, there had to be a vast difference in what happened...
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Posted on Jun 22, 2014
explained by Patrick Shannon.
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Posted on Jun 14, 2014
explained by Patrick Shannon. (Summary) As the Israelites arrive adjacent to the promised land, spies are sent in to survey. Caleb, comes back and reports that, truly it is filled with Milk and Honey. And pommegranite fruit. The people are strong. The cities are walled. We saw the sons of Anuk. Giants. So let’s go, now let’s take it. But then other spies reported conversely, opposite perspective. The people lifted up their voices, and they cried. They grumbled...
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Posted on Jun 8, 2014
by Rabbi Paul Falk. and YHVH spoke to Moses saying speak to Aaron and say to him, “When you light the lamps…. ” This is a Torah portion that has many teachings. One aspect of it is Faith. In the world, most believers today study only from Matthew to Revelation. Messiah didn’t come to build something new. He came to repair, fix what had been distorted. We are going to start off with trying to understand Faith. Then we are going to step back...
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Posted on Jun 1, 2014
by Rick Ortiz. And the Lord spoke to Moses saying: “Take also the sum of the sons of Gershon throughout the houses of their fathers by their families.” “Register them, from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, all who enter to perform the service, to do the service in the Tent of Appointment.” Also in this Torah portion is the challenge of a jealeous husband accusing a wife suspected of adultery. How he brings her to the...
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Posted on May 25, 2014
explained by Rick Ortiz. God tells Moses he wants him to count all the people, a census. The form of the camp and where each tribe and how many is pictured. “And the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai in the tent of meeting on the first day of the second month in the second year.” To count all the males 20 and up who could go to war. The Levites were not to be counted among them, since they were to be in place of the firstborns. Then a census...
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