Tumat Met

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1. On Sin and Redemption

   Haftarot: Para

   Rabbi Mosheh Lichtenstein

   When the sins of Am Yisrael are compared to the impurity of the menstruating woman, this is a positive metaphor. It indicates that the sin stems from human nature, and that it is a passing state. The comparison to impurity that stems from contact with death is worse: this impurity is more complicated to shed, and seems to be related to moral corruption. However, just as the Red Heifer has the power to overcome impurity despite our inability to reverse death, so sinners who seemingly have no hope of atonement can be purified by God. The haftara discusses redemption that does not stem from teshuva - and notes that this form of redemption cannot be complete.

2. The Living Dead

   Rabbi Alex Israel | 35 minutes

   In this shiur, we look at Parshiyyot Tazriya and Metzora in the wider context of the world of tum’a and tahara – purity and impurity. We explore some philosophical ideas behind the laws and rituals of tum’a and tahara (such as found in the Kuzari and in Rav Soloveichik’s Halakhic Man) to enable us to appreciate the meaning behind these abstract concepts.

3. The Sequence of the Tzara'at Laws

   Rabbi Elchanan Samet

   There are two perspectives from which one can gain an understanding of the laws of tum'a and tahara. By exploring the order of the parshiot dealing with these laws from a more general perspective, and then more specifically by examining the structure of every individual parsha.  

4. The Reasons Behind Tzara'at and Other Forms of Tum'a

   Rabbi Elchanan Samet

   What can we learn from the structure of the verses detailing the laws of tzara'at? What is tzara'at? What is the significance of the tum'a of tzara'at? We can attempt to answer these questions utilizing an exploration of the general significance of all the tum'ot in the Torah as a basis for discussing the tum'a of tzara'at specifically.

5. Tum'a - Metaphysical Pollution or Halachic Construct

   Rabbi Daniel Wolf

   תאריך פרסום: תשע"ד | |

   Is the state of “Tum’a” merely a post-Sinaitic halakhic construct, or is it something else, something that existed earlier? We focus on the passage of Yaakov’s instructions to purify the camp after his sons’ revenge on Shechem (in the book of Bereisheet), as well as the “three days” before the Giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai and the commandment about the Parah Aduma (Red Heifer), to better understand the concepts of Tum’a and Tahara. Statements of Haza”l, various midrashic literature, commentary, Targum, the Kuzari, and other Jewish sources aid us in our analysis of the Biblical passages and in our quest to define and understand Tum’a and Tahara.

6. Why is Para Aduma Called "Chuka"?

   Rabbi Ezra Bick | 36 minutes

    We examine the commentary of Ramban on the beginning of Parashat Hukkat about the strange and perplexing aspects of the “Para Aduma” ritual. We explore ideas in the words of Ramban about the nature of tum’a, the relationship between the Written and Oral Torah, and explanations for the apparent anomalous sacrificing outside the Mikdash, fraught with the dangers of crossing the fine line between Avodat Hashem and Avoda Zara in this setting.  Ramban argues that tum’a is life being overcome by sin, and through the Para Aduma ritual, one drives out sin by reconnecting with God, the Source of purity.

7. Yehezkel’s Description of the Nation’s Purification

   Dr. Tova Ganzel

   The various descriptions of redemption in Sefer Yehezkel suggest that the occurrence of the redemption is not dependent on the nation’s deeds, rather the process is carried out in its entirety by God. The prophet states the reason for this: the ingathering of the nation into its land takes place solely because of God’s desire that His Name be sanctified in the eyes of the nations. The Destruction and the exile do not cause any fundamental change in the nation’s attitude towards God, and therefore the desired processes – purification and atonement - will take place without any preconditions.

8. Sin and the Metaphor of Impurity

   Rabbi Mosheh Lichtenstein

9. Yehezkel’s Prophecy regarding Gog and Magog

   Part 2 - The Purification of the Land

   Dr. Tova Ganzel

   The corpses of the armies of Gog defile the land and must be buried in order to purify the land. However, the valley in which they are buried alludes to the valley of Ben Hinom, the valley in which children were sacrificed to Molekh. Thus, on a deeper level the prophet is hinting that the passing of children through fire - which had been common in the land - is what truly caused the land’s defilement. In addition to purifying the land from the casualties of war, this ceremony also purifies the land from the sins of the past.

   Although burying the dead bodies can stop those bodies from causing impurity, the burials cannot stop the graves from becoming a pilgrimage site. In these verses, the dead themselves become flesh for consumption. Those who consume them – the birds and the beast of the field – could have been sacrificed as offerings to the dead, while here the situation is reversed: they themselves eat the flesh and drink the blood of God’s enemies, thus ensuring that the graves do not become places of worship.

   Whereas in Yirmiyahu’s prophecy of destruction, the flesh of the sinners from the nation of Israel is eaten by the birds and the beasts of the field, in Yehezkel’s prophecy of revival it is God’s enemies who succumb to this fate.

10. The Vision of the Future Temple

    Part 1 - The Temple with God’s Glory in Its Midst

    Dr. Tova Ganzel

    The final nine chapters of Sefer Yechezkel set forth a vision of the future Temple. These chapters are rich in detail about the dimensions of the building, the various sacrifices, land inheritances, and more.

    It is not coincidental that Yechezkel’s prophecy about the future Temple comes now, a point when the nation has become accustomed to the reality of life in exile, without an active Jewish center in the land. In their new reality, the exiles are left uncertain about their future and their status.

    The detailed but opaque description of the future Beit HaMikdash carries a dual – and indeed self-contradictory – message: on one hand, the Mikdash is presented as something concrete and real; on the other, it cannot actually be built, at least not at this stage.

    The prophet describes the return of God’s glory to the Temple, creating an exalting sense of God’s complete presence, followed by a harsh description of the sins that led to the destruction of the Mikdash and the departure of God’s presence. The sudden fall from such lofty exaltation to such depths seems to reflect the fact that one of the conditions for the return of God’s glory to the Temple is that “the house of Israel will no more profane My holy Name”.

11. Haftarat Para and Parshat Ki Tisa

    Rabbi Mosheh Lichtenstein | 23 minutes

    Parashat Para deals with the issue of tum’at met. The Haftara goes an additional step to compare sin to tuma (impurity) and uses the metaphor of tuma and tahara to relate to the sins and purification process  of Bnei Yisrael. Interestingly, the beginning of the haftara relates not to tumat met, but to nidda.  We compare the two types of impurity found in Vayikra and Bemidbar. We end with a message of hope that relates to the regular Parasha (Ki Tisa)-about the rehabilitation of the relationship between God and Israel after the Sin of the Golden Calf.

12. Parashat Para, Zachor, and Ki Tisa - Non-Intuitive Laws

    Rabbi Jonathan Snowbell | 21 minutes

    The two sections of Parashat Para end off in with a conclusion that they are "hukkat olam" - an eternal laws. Hazal say that the commandment of the Para Aduma (Red Heifer) was given to Bnei Yisrael before Mount Sinai - and before the Mishkan. If this is so, what could the significance and relevance of Parashat Para be to that generation? Parashat Para deals describes a purification process from impurity (which bars one from entering the Mikdash), ostensibly so that one could come to the Mikdash afterward. If there was no mikdash yet, why would they receive these laws? Hazal are saying that there is still something to learn from non-practical laws, like laws that are perhaps never to be performed - like Ben Sorer U-Moreh (the Wayward Son). Perhaps the law about Amalek can be viewed in a similar light today.  We also  relate to the Sin of the Golden Calf, the limits of teshuva and the challenges in facing evil.