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g n i h t e Som e n o y r e v for E
Parshat Bamidbar
Service Times
1 Sivan 5777 26 May 2017
Shabbat Kabbalat Shabbat
19:30
(Candle Lighting)
19:40
Shacharit
09:15
Leining
10:15
Mincha & Seudah
21:20
Shabbat Ends
22:33
Weekday Shacharit
Mincha & Ma’ariv
Sun
09:00
19:30
Mon
09:00
19:30
Tues
07:00
20:45
Wed Thur Fri
Please refer to Shavuot Timetable 07:00
19:30*
Candle Lighting
19:45
Security team: Orange
Chayim Arukim
to all those who have Yahrzeit this week as follows Mon
Mon
29 May 4 Sivan
Tues
Michael Green
Father
Lady Beryl Steinberg Mother
30 May 5 Sivan
Sandra Jaffa
Father
Wed
Vivian Newgrosh Linda Braunstein
Father Father
31 May 6 Sivan
Thurs
1 June 7 Sivan
Fri
2 June 8 Sivan
Page No.s Artscroll Gutnick Hertz
Leining
Haftarah
726 848 567
1180 1444 584
Thought For The Week Making The Investment The book of Numbers, ‘Bamidbar’ acquires
survival. Contained within it is the Love of
its name from the census which takes place
Hashem to His people that does not quiver
at the beginning of this week’s Parsha.
or exhaust whether at a time of miraculous joy such as the departing of Egypt or the
* Mincha & Kabbalat Shabbat
28 May 3 Sivan
d"sb
Rashi explains that as a form of Hashem’s
inevitable Sin imbedded in Man’s imperfec-
affection to Bnei Israel, He counts them all
tion (but with equal ability to repent and
the time. The first census occurred when
improve). It is this ‘core Jew’ that G-d is
the Jewish people left Egypt. The second
counting.
after the sin of the Golden Calf, and for a third time as G-d comes to rest His Divine
As the festivities of Shavuot begin, we
Presence in the Mishkan.
raise our heads in pride and actively take part in internalising the Torah. Just as the
The significance of counting goes beyond the
transmitting of the Torah from generation
Ben Solomons Sister Lady Beryl Steinberg Father Niki Lee Father
equality displayed by the census. Hashem
to generation enabled our ancestors to stay
doesn’t just count the wealthy, pious or
strong in their beliefs, Shavuot brings our
Basil Sufrin Larraine Wolff
the famed. Nor is He counting the individual
true identity to surface.
Father Brother
Mazaltov to Michelle & Nick Ross, Paula & Steve Talbot, and Naomi & Dennis Wright, on Talisa, Adam and Esther all graduating as Doctors from the University of Birmingham.
based on their talents and achievements. Rather G-d is counting our identity; the
Rabbi Aharon Bloch
‘Jew’. There is a nucleus that is shared by all of us. It’s this nucleus that makes us a nation that is dependent on each other for
Shabbat Weather AM Showers 23o High 16o Overnight Low
Parsha
verview
First Aliyah - 19 verses A census is taken of all Jewish men of military age. One member of each tribe is appointed as the tribal leader. Each leader would assist Moses and Aaron in taking a census of his tribe. This census also helped establish the tribal lineage of every Jew. Second Aliyah - 35 verses Each tribe is counted separately. The grand total is 603,550. The Levites are counted separately, and are assigned holy tasks of dismantling, carrying, and re-erecting the Tabernacle whenever the Jews traveled. They camped around the Sanctuary, keeping guard over it and its vessels. Third Aliyah - 34 verses The Jews are instructed regarding their camping formation. The Tabernacle was at the center of the encampment, surrounded by three tribes on each side. Fourth Aliyah - 13 verses The Levites are appointed to serve in the Tabernacle. Fifth Aliyah - 26 verses Moses is commanded to count all Levite males from the age of one month and older. The total is 22,000. The three Levite families; Gershon, Kehat and Merari, are counted, and a leader is appointed for each of the families. Sixth Aliyah - 12 verses All the firstborn Israelites are counted. The census reveals that there are 273 more firstborn than Levites. Each of these “extra” firstborns (as determined by a lottery) gave five shekel to the priests, and was thus “redeemed. Seventh Aliyah - 20 verses A census is taken of members of the Kehat family between the ages of thirty and fifty. Their job is described: When the Tabernacle was to be dismantled, the priests would cover all the holy vessels with specially designated sacks. The Kehat family would then take the covered vessels and carry them to their destination.
If 603,550 males are counted in the census, that means there were around 3 million people who came out of Egypt in total!
S L E W
JE
M S I DA
U J F O
Delve into the deeper side of Judaism This week we take a look at the mitzvah of giving charity
Give and Take For twenty-six generations since Adam’s creation, Hashem had waited to transmit to mankind the precious Torah which had preceded the creation of the universe. Finally, He foudn a people willing to accept it. The great moment of its Revelation was awaited anxiously by the entire universe since it would thereby realise the spiritual goal of Creation. It was Shabbat morning, the sixth of Siva, 2448. Mount Sinai was atremble with excitement at the momentous event about to take place on it. The Jews were still asleep becasue the summer night had been short. They were woken up by thunder and lightning on Mount Sinai, and by Moshe calling to them. Moshe brought the people to Mount Sinai like the usher who leads a bride to the wedding. The Jewish People who assembled at the foot of Mount Sinai were joined by all the millions of unborn souls of their descendants and by the souls of all future converts. When Hashem descended
upon Mount Sinai in a burst of fire, surrounded by a host of 22,000 angels, the earth quaked, and there was thunder and lightning. The Children of Israel heard the sound of a shofar becoming continually louder, growing in intensity until it reached the greatest volume which the people could possibly bear. The fire of Mount Sinai rose up to the very heavens, and the mountain smoked like a
Moshe brought the people to Mount Sinai like the usher who leads a bride to the wedding. furnace. The people trembled with fear. Then Hashem took Mount Sinai and suspended it over the people, indicating to them, “If you accept the Torah, good, but if not, you will be buried under this mountain!” Hashem thereby forced the people to accept the Torah, although they had previously accepted it willingly. It is surprising that the Torah was not given amidst bright and dazzling lights
but rather in the midst of a mountain obscured by dark clouds. The reason for this is because He foresaw that forty days after the giving of the Torah, they would make the Golden Calf. When the Torah was given, the Children of Israel not only heard Hashem’s Voice, but actually saw the sound waves as they emerged from Hashem’s mouth. They visualised them as a fiery substance. Although the Jewish People had requested to see Hashem’s Glory and to hear His Voice, their souls departed from their bodies when they actually experienced the Revelation. However, Hashem wanted to ensure that the Jews would never be able to claim in the future that they violated laws because Hashem never granted them a direct Revelation. After the first two Commandments, the Jewish People were so frightened that they begged Moshe to finish the rest of the Commandments rather than hear Hashem’s voice again. Based on ‘The Midrash Says’ by Rabbi M. Weiss
If you would like to share your words of wisdom, please submit your article of no more than 500 words to nick@hale-community.org.uk
Parsha Stats Bamidbar is the 34th of 54 sedras 1st of 10 in Bamidbar Written on 263 lines in a Torah 159 verses - ranks 3rd (3rd in Bamidbar) 1823 words - ranks 13th (4th in Bamidbar) 7393 letters - ranks 9th (3rd in Bamidbar)
Did You Know Of the 17 sedras in the Torah that do not contain a single mitzvah of the 613, Bamidbar is the largest. The top three sedras in the Torah with the largest number of verses all hail from the book of Bamidbar. The census of the Jewish People mentioned in this week’s parsha took place one year and two weeks after the Exodus from Egypt.
Tip #30 The Life of a ‘Tzaddik’
TEFILLAH TIPS
The Arizal teaches that each day a person should endeavour to respond Amen to a minimum of ninety blessings, should recite four Kedusha prayers, ten Kaddish prayers, and to make no less than 100 blessings. These numbers are alluded to in the numerical value of the word צדיק, righteous one, whose letters are valued at 90 ()צ, 4 ()ד, 10 ()י, and 100 ()ק.
To assure ninety Amen responses, many have the custom of saying the fifteen morning blessings out loud. With the repitition of the Amidah at Shacharit and Mincha, and the Kedusha prayers before Shemah and during U’va Le’Tzion, we reach four. Kaddish is recited several times during the services, resulting in ten. And the Chafetz Chaim famously delineates how one can reach 100 blessings each and every day.
The ethical standard of dealing with public funds is learnt from this week’s parsha. Since the census was counted by the donation of a half-shekel, and even though Moshe could be trusted to deal truthfully and honestly with the money, Hashem still insisted that two people collect the money.
Just For Fun Question: Why do Jews go on diets after Shavuot? Answer: Because they all have to cheddar few pounds!
2 In light of the tragic attack this week, there will be a community Tehillim service
on Monday 29th May, at 8.00pm,
at Holy Law Shul, which Chief Rabbi Mirvis will attend.
L
KING AHEAD
In The Spotlight Jennifer & David Zucker Shavuot is always a busy time at Hale Shule, and on Second Day Yom Tov, we are in for a treat, as the community is invited to a milky Kiddunch after the service, to celebrate Jennifer and David’s upcoming Ruby Wedding Anniversary. Jennifer and David met on the phone originally, as they were both working in shirt manufacturing. Jennifer had offered some advice at the time, and has been doing so ever since! They married in Newton Mearns, Glasgow, where they lived for ten years, and after a ‘brief’ stopover in Sheffield for six years, they eventually settled in Hale 27 years ago. Since they, they have been active members, taking charge of children’s and youth programmes for a while. Both have served on Council, and Jennifer was Chair of the Ladies Guild. David also spent a decade working his way up from Honorary Secretary to President! We are grateful for their years of dedication. Forty years on, and Jennifer and David are blessed with four children, and seven grandchildren, who keep them very busy. They recently returned from a trip to Australia where they went white water rafting! We wish them Mazaltov, and we thank them for their hospitality.