The Parochet Curtain: Separating Between the Holy and Holy of Holies

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 2, 2022 | God, Holiness, Prayer, Temple, Terumah

In the Tabernacle, and later, in the Temples in Jerusalem, a curtain, called a parochet, separated the “Holy” from the “Holy of Holies.” The only person who passed through this curtain was the Kohen Gadol (high priest) on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. In order to...

Where is the Ark of the Covenant?

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 1, 2022 | God, Temple, Terumah

After leaving Egypt and receiving the Torah at Sinai, the Jews were commanded to build a Tabernacle. At the epicenter of the Tabernacle was the Ark of the Covenant into which were placed the stone tablets.  Made of acacia (shittim) wood and measuring a half amah long,...

The Tabernacle: Making God Our Neighbor

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 31, 2022 | God, Holiness, Israel, Marriage and Relationships, Temple, Terumah

In the book of Exodus, God gives Israel a commandment that seems decidedly undivine; to build Him a house to live in. The Israel Bible explains why the verse says to build God a house so that he may “dwell among them,” the people, and not that he may...

An Altar for All

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 21, 2022 | Temple, Yitro

After giving the Torah to the Children of Israel, God emphasizes that they are not to serve idols. He then commands them to serve him on an altar. The altar was used to burn communal sacrifices that were brought daily and on holidays, and for individual sacrifices...

The Clouds of Glory and the Feast of Tabernacles

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 13, 2022 | Beshalach, God, Holiness, Sukkot, Temple

God watched over the Children of Israel as they traveled through the desert toward the Promised Land, guiding them with a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. The pillars were a constant presence. At dawn the pillar of fire would stand in place,...

What Does the Command to Redeem the Firstborn have to do with the Exodus?

by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 2, 2022 | Bo, God, Gratitude, Prayer, Temple

Judaism is an ethnic identity that bears with it many religious obligations. It is widely known that Jews circumcise their sons on the eighth day, a ritual called brit milah, as mandated in the Torah. But less well-known is the commandment of pidyon haben, redeeming...