28 Tammuz 5774 / 25-26 July 2014
Torah: Numbers 33:1 – 36:13 (Chazak!)
Haftarah: Jeremiah 2:4-28, 3:4 (Ashkenazim);
Jeremiah 2:4-28, 4:1-2 (Sephardim) (Second Haftarah of Admonition)
Calendar of Events and Dedications follow. Full calendar and lots more
info about our community available at: http://www.bethmeier.org/
Please feel free to pass this on to a friend,
and please cite the source.
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CITIES OF REFUGE
“You shall provide yourselves with places to serve as cities of refuge to which
a manslayer who has killed a person unintentionally may flee.” Numbers
35:11
The purpose of the cities was to protect someone who was not guilty of
intentional murder from avenging members of the victim’s family. These
cities of refuge were only partly established. Although the Torah called
for six cities, Moses established only three: Betzer, Ramot and Golan.
Rabbi Yochanan sees these passages as a metaphor for spiritual, rather than
physical refuge. He asks, “Where do we learn that the study of Torah
provides asylum? From the passage, ‘Then Moses set aside three cities:
…And this is the Torah that Moses set before the children of Israel.’”
Deuteronomy 4:43-44; in B. Talmud Makkot 10a
One may understand Rabbi Yochanan in several different ways. First, the
study of Torah protects one from unintentional sin - study teaches one how
to act properly. Second, Torah study may serve as atonement for sin -
it’s certainly better than physical punishment, especially the death
penalty! Third, it helps one escape from the troubles of society -
Torah is a safe haven in a world that seems out of whack. Be an asylum
seeker. Any way you look at it, Torah study is the place to be!
Shabbat Shalom.
Rabbi Richard A. Flom
Congregation Beth Meier - Studio City, CA
Blogging at: rav-rich.blogspot.com
Visit me on Facebook
"For the sake of Zion I will not be
silent; for the sake of Jerusalem I will not be still." Isaiah 62:1
P.S. – I have found the following on-line
articles, reflective of several points of view held by my rabbinic colleagues,
particularly meaningful these past few days:
http://truah.org/19-who-we-are/585-for-the-honor-of-torah-a-rabbinic-response-to-rabbi-dov-lior.html
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Calendar and Dedications
Candlelighting: 7:41 pm
Friday: Shabbat
Evening Service – 8:00 pm. Oneg Shabbat follows.
Saturday: Shabbat
morning service – 10:00 am. Kiddush lunch follows.
Tuesday: Lunch
and Learn – 12:00 noon.
This d'var torah is offered in
memory of Ira Goodman, father of Ken Goodman, who passed away this week. Y’hi
zikhro liv’rakhah – May his memory be a blessing.
This d'var torah is offered in
memory of Israel’s fallen soldiers. May their memory and their sacrifice be a
blessing.
This d'var torah is offered for a
refuah shleimah for all of the wounded innocents in the fighting between
Israel and Hamas.
This d'var torah is offered for a
refuah shleimah for Miriam Minya bat Alisa Batya, Sarah Mindel bat Toby,
Elsbet Brosky, Howard Ehrlich, Dr. Samuel Fersht, Jerry Forman, Pamela
Huddleston, Rose Jordan, Annie Rivera, Helen Schugar, and Helen Tomsky.
Please let me know if there is
anyone you would like to add to the refuah shleimah list or if there is anyone
who may be removed from the list.
My weekly divrei torah are also available via the Cyber Torah e-mail list.
Cyber Torah list management (no salesman will call!):
Cyber Torah list management (no salesman will call!):
To subscribe to Cyber Torah, send an
e-mail with the subject heading “Subscribe Cyber Torah” to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net
To request dedications of Cyber
Torah in honor of a simchah, in memory of loved ones or for a refuah shleimah
send an e-mail with your request to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net
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