Might an obscure ancient ritual that has not been practiced in millennia have relevance for contemporary technology such as artificial intelligence? Let’s consider a curious turn of phrase in Parashat Chukat, “this is the Torah (of) a person who dies” (זאת התורה אדם כי ימות). Numbers 19 describes an unusual ritual to purify a living…
Category: Hukkat
Redemption Begins Within: Parah 5775
Purim and Pesah are both festivals of redemption, serving as bookends in the final and first months of the Hebrew year. But Purim is by far the lesser holiday. True, the Jews of Persia escaped from Haman’s genocidal threat, but they then remained in a vulnerable position, and in the final chapters of the Megillah they…
Sacred BBQ: Shmini/Parah 5774
Spring has arrived, and with it the smell of sacred BBQ. I don’t mean that literally, especially with so many vegetarians in our community, but the confluence of Parshat Shmini and Shabbat Parah means that there is a great deal of attention paid to the selection, slaughter, sacrifice and eating of animals. Chapter 11 of…
Rabbi Danny Nevins 