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Shabbat Korach Shabbat 8 June 2013 30 Sivan 5773

e pray every week for one of the Jewish ministry leaders and, according to our list of prayer for 2013. I suggest that our partners pray from June 9 to 15 for Elena Kopylova, and Sergey Komarnitsky. They are the leaders of the Jewish Adventist congregation in Moscow (Russian). Elena Kopylova was born to a secular Jewish family in Moscow. She works for the West Russian Union. She is one of the editors of Boruh. info website. Sergey Komarnitsky is a Seventh-day Adventist pastor in Moscow, he started a Jewish work at his congregation. I am sharing with you pictures of Shavuot service from the St. Petersburg (Florida) Beth-El Shalom congregation. We commemorated the occasion with the reading of the Ten Commandments by our Hebrew students. Remembering that Moses was on Mt. Sinai during the first Shavuot,

List of Prayer From June 9 to 15

News

Parasha
1 Newsletter n 532

We had also an immersion service commemorating the first Shavout after the Messiahs resurrection when 3,000 Jewish men, plus women and children, were immersed.

Shavuot in Florida

David Barzola, pastor in Buenos Aires, informed us that he started to publish a newsletter in Spanish. BBTz Informa If you want to receive it El comentario de la parash semanal Recuerda que... you can send your email to David at barzolad@ y a hoo.com. ar. I am sure that each one who speaks Spanish can receive it.
HOR A R I OS Y A C T I V I D A D E S :
PUESTA DE SOL:
31 de mayo 17:50 hs. 5 de junio 17:49 hs.

Newsletter in Spanish
Kabalat Shabat Shajarit Viernes 19:30 Sbados 11:00 Sbados 19:00
PARASHOT:

Havdal

31 de mayo: Shelaj Lej (Bamidbar / Nmeros 13:1-15:41) 5 de junio: Koraj (Bamidbar / Nmeros 16:1-18:32)

Bet Bnei Tzion Comunidad Hebrea Adventista

31 de Mayo de 2013 22 de Sivn de 5773

Nmero 39, Ao 1

Shelaj Lej (Bamidbar 13:1-15:41)

Resumen de la Parash: Los israelitas llegan a Kadesh, en el desierto de Parn. Doce representantes, uno por cada tribu, son enviados por Mosh para explorar la tierra prometida de Canan y volver con un informe sobre las condiciones de la poblacin, lugares de residencia y suelo. Iehosha y Calev formaban parte de este grupo de meraglim (espas). Los enviados atraviesan Canan de un extremo al otro. Regresan al campamento luego de una ausencia de cuarenta das, llevando con ellos grandes racimos de uvas, granadas e higos como evidencia de la fertilidad de la tierra. Pero diez de los meraglim afirman que ser imposible conquistar Canan, sealando que sus ciudades estn demasiado fortificadas y que sus habitantes son muy poderosos. Por el contrario, Iehosha y Calev mantienen su fe en HaShem y aconsejan que el pueblo marche sobre Canan. Pero los israelitas se adhieren al informe de la mayora: completamente desmotivados, proponen la eleccin de un lder para conducirlos de regreso a Egipto, y amenazan con apedrear a Calev y Iehosha. El Seor se enoja grandemente por la falta de fe de su pueblo, pero Mosh intercede exitosamente a favor de Israel. Si bien los israelitas no son aniquilados, Ds los condena a deambular por el desierto durante cuarenta aos (uno por cada da que los meraglim haban investigado el pas), hasta que todos los mayores de veinte aos (con excepcin de Calev y Iehosha) hubieran muerto. Los meraglim que haban presentado el informe negativo mueren a causa de una plaga repentina. El pueblo comprende tardamente su error e intenta ir por su cuenta a la Tierra Prometida, pero son totalmente derrotados

por las tribus de Amalek y Canan que vivan en ese territorio. Los israelitas reciben la promesa de que sus descen dien tes poseern Eretz Israel. El Seor le dice a Mosh que dicte la Ley que entrara en vigor en ese tiempo: que las ofrendas de comida y las ofrendas de bebida deban acompaar a la ofrenda de animales; que la parte de la masa llamada jal deba ser apartada para HaShem, y que si la congregacin practicaba la idolatra por error, deba expiar su culpa por medio de un sacrificio. Luego, se relata brevemente la historia de un hombre que es ejecutado por profanar el shabat. La parash concluye con la promulgacin de la ley que establece que deben usarse tzizit en las cuatro esquinas de las vestimentas para recordar al pueblo la necesidad de observar los mandamientos divinos en todo momento.

Todos los sbados a la noche, al finalizar el servicio de Havdal, organizamos distintas

actividades recreativas (cenas en restaurantes, salidas cul-

turales, etc.) Y todos los cuarcemos un almuerzo a la canasta al finalizar el servicio de Shajarit.

tos sbados de cada mes, ha-

Record que pods suscribirte sin costo alguno a este boletn Escribnos al correo

para recibirlo en tu e-mail. bet bneit zion@gmai l.com

"Y clam toda la congregacin y elevaron sus voces y llor todo el pueblo en aquella noche". As resume nuestra parash la reaccin popular tras el regreso de los emisarios enviados por Mosh para recorrer y reconocer la Tierra de promisin, una vez que estos espas informaron acerca de su periplo e
(contina en la pgina 2)

con el asunto Boletn- Suscripcin y te agregamos a nuestra lista.

Overview

orach, Datan and Aviram, and 250 leaders of Israel rebel against the authority of Moshe and Aharon. The rebellion results in their Moshe or Democracy? being swallowed by the earth. he Torah affirms, They assembled themselves Many resent their death and blame Moshe. G-ds together against Moses and against Aaron and anger is manifest by a plague that besets the nation, said to them, You have gone too far! For all in the and many thousands perish. congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD Moshe intercedes once again for the people. He instructs Aaron to atone for them and the plague is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above stops. Then G-d commands that staffs, each inscribed the assembly of the LORD? (Numbers 16:3). Korach, with the name of one of the tribes, be placed in the Datham and Aviram came to Moses and in front of the Mishkan. In the morning the staff of Levi, bearing Assembly of Israel with a claim. The claim: all in the congregation are holy when Aharons name, sprouts, buds, blossoms and yields we look at the Hebrew text, it is not the whole assembly ripe almonds. This provides Divine confirmation that Levis tribe as a whole who is holy but Kulam, but all its individual is chosen for priesthood and verifies Aarons position members they all are holy, and G-d is in their midst. Each one of the six hundred thousand members of the as Kohen Gadol, High Priest. The specific duties of the leviim and kohanim are community is holy and therefore close to G-d. Thus no stated. The kohanim were not to be landowners, but priest is required in order to express in the name of the were to receive their sustenance from the tithes and individual hid thoughts and his feelings and to bring other mandated gifts brought by the people. Also them near to G-d in an offering. Rabbi Hirsch confirms taught in this weeks Parasha are laws of the first fruits, that for Korach, Datam and Aviram G-d promised redemption of the firstborn, and other offerings. Our to cause His presence to dwell with these six hundred thousand not with any one person. Hence G-d does not comments are based on Rabbi Hirschs commentaries1. need a prophet in order to convey His Word to these six hundred thousand, all of them are close to G-d and G-d A Parasha on Rebellion is close to all of them, and neither Aaron or Moshe is ast week we have studied the parasha Shelach- required. Thus, the whole position of Moshe and Aaron Lecha, which was a rebellion against God. is presumption based on falsehood. As Leibowitz put it The correct policy Since everyone is close to G-d, each one can be the would have been for them to have relied on Divine leader, thus why not establishing democracy Why Providence, but since they wished to send in advance should the people not be given the right to choose its own men to scout the territory, God would not interfere representatives? What justifies Aaron and Moshe placing with their design, but on the contrary, help them to themselves at the head of the nation? carry it out, in the best manner possible. The initiative however was theirs, not His. Korach is the parasha Moshes Answer of the rebellion against Moshe. he Torah states: And Moses said to Korah, Hear now, you sons of Levi: is it too small a thing for Personal Motivations you that the God of Israel has separated you he Torah states, Now Korah the son of Izhar, from the congregation of Israel, to bring you near to son of Kohath, son of Levi, and Dathan and himself, to do service in the tabernacle of the LORD Abiram the sons of Eliab, and On the son of and to stand before the congregation to minister to Peleth, sons of Reuben, took men. And they rose them, (Numbers 16:89). In Jewish tradition, public

Kor ach Numbers 16:1-18:32

up before Moses, (Numbers 16:12). Korach had the presumption, to reprove Moshe and Aharon regarding their position in the nations. According to Rabbi Hirsch Korach was motivated by selfish considerations; he acted in his own interest, and his display of representing the interest of the community was nothing but deception and pretense.

Parasha 2 Newsletter

office dignifies the server because it entails service of the community. The bearer of the office does not control others; he serves them. He does not assume Sharar (rule or dominate) but avodah (service). The dignity of public service lies in the fact that the individual is imbued with the idea of the community and its purposes, which he promotes in the spirit of the community and from its standpoint. Rabbi Hirsch put these words in the mouth of Moshe: In your accusation, you accused me and Aaron of the greatest sin against G-d: the misuse of His name and authority for selfish, ambitious purposes. According to your claim, our whole position is a rebellion against G-d and a violation of His Will. This accusation will fall back with double force on your own head and on the heads of your coconspirators. They are not satisfied with being a servant in the Sanctuary on the peoples behalf. Rather, you also want to be priests within the Sanctuary; thus you rebel against orders given not by us but by G-d. You are the ones who conspired to rebel against G-d.

desired from any one of them, nor did I harm any one of them. (Numbers 16:15 NETS). I have chosen this translation because most of the English translation have written that Moses was very angry, when I prefer extremely indignant or as Rabbi Hirsch this hurt Moshe exceedingly the words used burnt inside him, The words of Korach hurt him deeply, that they dared to talk to him in this way, for they accused him of exploiting his position to rule arbitrarily and unlawfully. We have just to read the wonderful prayer of intercession that Moses pronounced in Exodus 32:11-13 and in Numbers 14:13-19 to discover the great love of Moses for his people.

Parasha 3 Newsletter

he Torah affirms, Is it a small thing that you have brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, that you must also make yourself a prince over us? (Numbers 16:13 ESV). Korach, Datam and Abiram have already forgotten the suffering of the slavery in Egypt for them Egypt is now the symbol of a land flowing with milk and honey The next reproach of the rebels is that they accuse Moshe to be a despot even though in my esv translation it is written prince. Rabbi Hirsch explains The three roots . and Sound very much alike but differ in their meanings. All three denote rule. denotes ruling by superior power. denotes leading by moral influence, which sets the standard for others. related to , intractable disobedience denotes capricious tyranny, which does not submit to legal authority. This is the attribute they fault Moshe with, and they even cite a proof of it: look he takes the liberty of summoning them, even though he has no right whatsoever to do so! The rebels were moved by a despotic spirit, and they accused moshe of being a despot leader.

Moshe a Despot?

his parasha gives us two lessons, first it is not our duty to be in conflict with the leaders G-d has chosen. Moses and Aaron were chosen by G-d, it was important for all the people of Israel to respect G-ds election and the leadership chosen by G-d for His people. The second lesson is that if G-ds people had followed Korach, Datam and Abirams claim, and had elected this clan instead of Moses and Aaron, Israel would had real despots and dictators as leaders. G-ds people is not exempt of this danger today too. A leader can be democratically elected and can abuse of his power and become imperceptibly a dictator and a despot, ignoring committees, and deciding everything alone. The only way to avoid this is to pray for our leaders and to pray intensively in time of elections, asking G-d to lead his people to be in harmony with His Will and to choose those who have already been chosen by G-d. Reference Cited

Which Leaders Today?

Moshe is Deeply Hurt

Hirsch, Samson Raphael. 2008. The Hirsch Chumash: he Torah affirms, And Moses was extremely The Five Books of the Torah, Sefer Bemidbar. Translated indignant and said to the Lord, Pay no attention by D. Haberman. Third edition in 6 volumes, Vol. 5. to their sacrifice; I have not taken what was Nanuet, NY: Feldheim Publishers.

A certain village along a well-traveled route always had strangers staying for the Sabbath. The custom in the village was that householders would invite these strangers after the Friday night services in the synagogue. The president would be the first to choose his guest, and afterwards, the householders would extend invitations to the others. A poor traveler once passed through the village and spent the Sabbath there. Friday night, he stood at the back of the synagogue waiting for someone to invite him for the meals. The president was talking to the rabbi. One of the householders walked up to the traveler, shook his hand and extended an invitation. The traveler accepted gratefully. Just then, the president turned around and saw what had happened. Did you see that? he said to the rabbi furiously. How dare that fellow extend an invitation before me. Maybe I wanted him as my guest! My good fellow, said the rabbi. If you are really motivated by feelings of hospitality, then you should be happy for the traveler who now has a good place to stay. If you are upset, it must be that you were more concerned with your own pleasure than with the needs of the guest. In our own lives, we constantly need to evaluate and reexamine our own good deeds. We must look closely into ourselves to discover if we are acting for the higher good or if we are seeking honors and acclaim for our spiritual accomplishments. And we must always remember that selflessness is the surest route to be far from the Almighty. (by Rabbi Naftali Reich and Torah.org)

Selfishness

But Rabbi Levi Yitzchak persisted. Tell me why are you in such a rush. What you are doing? The man replied, Cant you see, Rabbi. Im trying to make a living... thats what Im doing. You are making a mistake! replied the Rabbi. Making a living is G-ds doing and that was predetermined on Rosh Hashana. What you have to do is make the proper vessel for G-ds blessings to descend. The study of Torah, giving charity and the performance of mitzvot is included in that which you have to do. My question was, What are YOU doing? Are you living up to your part? n Pirkei Avot, Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai asked five of his students, Go out and see which is the good way to which a person should cling? Each of the five had a different idea. His disciple, Rabbi Yossi said, to have a good neighbor. When Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai said, Go out and see which is the evil way from which a person should keep far away? Rabbi Yossi replied, A bad neighbor! Thus, from the story of Korach we see the importance of having a good neighbor and how much one must avoid a bad neighbor.

Parasha 4 Newsletter

Your Neighbor

By looking down we learn to look up! Korach promoted himself in this world and as a result he was demoted. Shame! (Rabbi Label Lam)

EDITOR
A newsletter published by the World Jewish Adventist Friendship Center Under the umbrella of the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission Dr. Richard-Amram Elofer 5, Square Yves du Manoir 91300 Massy France Tel. +33 980 929 077 Fax +33 985 929 077 Mobile +33 637 241 555 email: richard@elofer.com web: jewishadventist.org

abbi Levi Yitzchak of Barditchev once saw a man running about frantically in the marketplace. He stopped the man and asked him, What are you doing? The man barely gave the Rabbi a glance and replied, Sorry Rabbi, Im very busy and I dont have time to talk to you now.

What Are You Doing?

n the text of the parasha the people of Israel are not happy that Moses and Aaron are keeping the great responsibilities of Governance and Priesthood to themselves. Moses and Aaron were brothers and it seemed to the people and especially to 250 leaders who were influenced by Korach, that a conflict of interest had occurred. You have gone too far! All the congregation are holy, everyone of them, and the L-RD is among them. So why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the L-RD? (Num. 16:3). In our haftara the people of Israel challenge the authority of Samuel and G-d and decide to have a new king. But Samuel is not satisfied and wants to be sure that nobody accuses him of anything wrong during his time of leadership. I have listened to you in all that you have said to me, and have set a king over you. See, it is the king who leads you now; I am old and gray, but my sons are with you. I have led you from my youth until this day. (1Sam. 12:1-3). The people confirmed to Samuel that they have no reproach against him. You have not defrauded us or oppressed us or taken anything from the hand of anyone. (1Sam. 12:4). Samuel recalls to the people of Israel all the mistakes they have made during their history from the time of Jacob to the present. The L-rd confirmed Samuel by sending thunder, and the L-RD sent thunder and rain that day; and all the people greatly feared the L-RD and Samuel (1Sam. 12:1-3). Samuel confirmed to the people of Israel that G-ds love is unconditional. G-d has chosen Israel. He will not rebuke him and will not reject him And Samuel said to the people, Do not be afraid For the L-RD will not cast away his people, for his great names sake, because it has pleased the L-RD to make you a people for himself. (1Sam. 12:21-22).

1 Samuel 11:14-12:22

Haftara

his letter has been written by Yehuda, one of the brothers of Yeshua, in the besorat Mattatyahu we read Is not this the carpenters son? Is not his mother called Miriam? And are not his brothers Yaacov

Apostolic Writings Jude or Yehuda

and Yoseph and Simon and Yehuda? (Mat 13:55); and in the introduction of his letter Yehuda wrote: Yehuda, a servant of Yeshua Hamashiach and brother of Yaacov, (1:1). The text of Mattatyahu let us understand that Yehuda was not a talmid of Yeshua during his ministry, but he certainly believed that Yeshua was the Mashiach after the resurrection, because in Acts 1:14 the brothers of Yeshua are mentioned with Miriam. Since this letter mentions those who took part to Korachs rebellion (11) this letter has a strong connection with the books of Moses and our parasha. In fact Yehuda has written a very short letter, but had a good knowledge of what was written before him and was so much in connection with the Ruach Hakodesh that he reveals to us an extraordinary truth (the resurrection of Moses 1:9). First his knowledge of the holy writings: Yehuda was waiting for the second coming of his brother, the Mashiach and had a good knowledge of the Apocrypha as the book of Enoc quoted in verse 14 the seventh from Adam, prophesied, saying, Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones, (1:14). And Yehuda had a good knowledge of the writings of Yeshuas Talmidim: Shaul and Shimon-Cephas But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the Shaliach of our Adon Yeshua Hamashiach. (1:17), the shaliach is the Hebrew word for the sent or apostle in Grec. The intention of Yehuda is to exhort the readers to remain faithful, the Tanach is full of disobedience and unfaithfulness, that is why he quote so many of these examples of unfaithfulness those who did not believe (1:5), the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority (1:6), Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities (Jude 1:7), they walked in the way of Cain and abandoned themselves for the sake of gain to Balaams error and perished in Korahs rebellion (1:11). Then his exhortations start with the beautiful expression But you, beloved, (1:20), those who believe in G-d and his Mashiach are the beloved, their love and patience should be practiced in order to be the recipient of G-d blessings and ability to be faithful Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy (1:24).

Parasha 5 Newsletter