Articles in Metzora
Mitzorah: The Jewish House
On the Walls
Tzaraat was a prevalent disease in Biblical times that presented in the form of lesions on skin, hair, clothing and even the walls of a Jewish house. Tzaraat wasn’t an ordinary condition produced by heat or humidity. Tzaraat was a Divinely ordained affliction in punishment for various sins.
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Tazria Mitzorah: A Sign of Love
The Walls Know
We love closed doors for the cover they provide; what we do behind them others can’t know and what they don’t know can’t hurt them. We can be irascible, immoral and impossible in private, yet parade in public as amicable, wise and generous and no one will be …
Tazria Metzorah: Our Clash Of Priorities
A Curious Order
Tzara’as was a skin condition prevalent in Biblical times. Our sages taught that rather than a physical illness tzara’as was a symptom of a spiritual malaise; it struck the gossip as a consequence of Lashon Hara.
Tzara’as exhibited in four places, on skin, hair, clothing and the walls of …
Mitzorah: Food for Thought for your Dinner Table
Sunday: Sequence of Portions
The Torah portion we read last week dealt with the affliction of Tzaraas, its symptoms and treatment. The Torah portion we read this week deals with the process that renders a past Metzorah ritually pure. Allegorically these two portions can be viewed as metaphors for the Jewish …
Tazria Mizora: The Priest and the Pariah
Inopportune
There is an ancient tradition by which Jews pledge to charity in the hope of bringing merit to a loved one that has fallen ill. (1) Similarly, rabbis often suggest that performance of Torah commandments stimulates blessing from above.
Doesn’t this rise to the heights of hypocrisy? Is devotion for the …
Tazria Mitzora: Isolationist Joys
Not A Simple Pain
In discussing the subject of “Tzoraas: Biblical leprosy,” our sages explained that it was not a physical ailment but a manifestation of a spiritual malaise. The Jewish body is intimately linked with the soul and when the soul is ailing the body responds accordingly.
The spiritual ailment of …
Tazria Mitzora: Treating the Cause
Signs of Leprosy
Our Parsha elaborates upon the laws of “Tzaraa’s: a dermatological condition.” Why is this particular skin condition so central to Torah law? The Midrash teaches that sometimes man’s physical afflictions are consequences of his actions and that leprosy is a sign of slander.
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Mitzora: The Duel of Life
Body and Soul
Life, according to Torah, is a duel between two forces, the body’s gravitation towards self benefit and the soul’s attraction towards fulfillment and meaning. This body / soul dynamic is the crux of the human experience. It is the duel of life.
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