Tazria and HaChodesh

Hi,

This week we read two portions: Tazria, and an additional segment called HaChodesh.

Tazria
The end of the previous Torah portion, Sh'mini, dealt with laws of ritual purity, and that theme continues into this Torah portion, Tazria.

The Torah portion describes a rite of purification and a set of offerings brought by a woman after giving birth. According to one explanation of the Torah portion, one must go through a rite of purification after any experience involving creation or destruction of life. Thus one who comes into contact with the dead requires such a rite, and a woman who loses an egg goes through such a rite - and so does a woman who had been carrying an extra life as part of her, and now no longer is.

The Torah portion then describes Tzaraat, which is usually mis-translated as ‘leprosy.’ Tzaraat is not the same as the modern skin ailment called ‘leprosy.’ Tzaraat is a spiritual malady which manifests itself physically as marks on one’s skin. The marks are shown to a Kohen, who determines whether they are leprous or not. (For proof that this is not the same as any physical ailment, realize that this phenomenon may appear on clothing or homes!)

This disease is usually understood as punishment for slander against others – if a person publicly maligns others, that person finds himself publicly maligned, by his own skin. The marks may also appear on one’s skin, or even one’s home.

HaChodesh
Each year we add a special reading on the week before the start of the month of Nisan. This reading, called "HaChodesh," includes Gd’s declaration to Moshe in Egypt that the Jewish annual calendar should start with the 1st of Nisan, and Gd’s initial instructions to the Jews regarding preparations for the first Pesach.

Have a great day,
Mordechai