Saturday, March 14, 2009

Haftarat Parah

A few words of Torah before my brother's second yartzheit on yom shlishi.

The haftarah for Parshat Parah has a few points that we should ponder:

  • Yehezkel 36:20 - The goyim see Jews living in Chutz La'Aretz and they say to themselves that this is the nation of Hashem, and they have left His land.  This is considered a Chillul Hashem.  It does not refer to the religious level of the Jew in Galus.  The very existence of Jews being physically out of Eretz Yisrael is a Chillul Hashem.
  • After Kibbutz Galuyot comes divine assistance in Teshuvah.  Verse 24 states that Hashem will gather us in, verse 25 states He will then sprinkle upon us clean water.  This is of course analagous to what is stated in chapter 30 of Devarim.  Am Yisrael will do some level of Teshuvah, and after Kibbutz Galuyot, Hashem will help us achieve he rest.
I have been learning the Perek Yomi cycle of Mishnayot for a year and a half now.  This morning's chapter begins with the words:
ארץ ישראל טהורה ומקוואותיה טהורין
Eretz Yisrael is pure, and its mikvaot are pure.
For a person to purify himself in a mikveh, he must submerge completely.  For Am Yisrael to become pure, we must all come home.

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