BIRMINGHAM BLOOMFIELD
Arr
il 4111
•
Presents
the asst
Annual
birmingham
Presented by:
Lifia2 @at;
26
Parshat Behar/Bechukotai: Leviticus
25:1-27:34; Jeremiah 16:19-17:14.
0
ur parshah contains within
it the historic words that are
engraved upon the Liberty
Bell in Philadelphia: "Proclaim lib-
erty throughout the land unto all the
inhabitants!'
The context of these words in the
Torah is that after seven sabbatical
cycles, a total of 49 years, the Jubilee
should be declared. In the Jubilee, all
land in Israel that may have been sold
since the last Jubilee is to be returned
to its owner or the relatives
of the original owner; also,
any indentured servant is to
be emancipated and permit-
ted to return to his family.
The liberty mentioned is
referring to that of the
emancipated servant.
Surely, shouldn't the verse
have said, "and you will
declare liberty to all the ser-
vants," rather than "liberty
throughout the land"?
The answer is that grant-
ing freedom to the servants does not
only benefit the servants themselves,
it benefits the masters and it benefits
society as a whole. No man can appre-
ciate freedom until it is enjoyed by all.
The Jubilee represents the end of a
process that involves seven sabbatical
cycles. This is similar to the process
of counting the seven weeks between
Passover and Shavuot (otherwise
known as the Feast of Weeks). Shavuot
is therefore like the Jubilee.
In the same way that the emancipa-
tion of the servants is liberation for
all the people of the land, so, too, the
giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai was
also liberation not only for the Jewish
people but for the entire world. Indeed,
the values that the Torah has imparted
to mankind have changed the world
In downtown SAVIOAM-6PM
Birmingham's SUN,10AM-5PM
Sh ah Park
www.ArtBirmingham.org
f In association ]Guild
with
many times over and the Jewish
people have been the vanguards of the
Torah.
As American scholar Thomas Cahill
wrote in his 1998 book The Gifts of the
Jews: How a Tribe of Desert Nomads
Changed the Way Everyone Thinks and
Feels:
"The Jews started it all — and by
`it' I mean so many of the things we
care about, the underlying values
that make all of us, Jew and gentile,
believer and atheist, tick.
Without the Jews, we would
see the world through
different eyes, hear with
different ears, even feel
with different feelings ... we
would think with a differ-
ent mind, interpret all our
experience differently, draw
different conclusions from
the things that befall us.
And we would set a differ-
ent course for our lives!'
It is little wonder, there-
fore, that the sages of the Talmud
viewed Shavuot, beginning the eve
of May 26, as a celebration that tran-
scends that of all other festivals. The
freedom of Passover released the
people from oppression, but Shavuot
gave us a hallowed identity and a gift
for all mankind.
WindowPRO
Thanks to our sponsors:
4inity
Oak Park.
Conversations
• What are the Ten Commandments?
• What values of modern society
come from Judaism?
• What words are written on Liberty
Bell?
DETRCir
JEWISH NEW
Renewal
''Andersen.i
41.D.Or
C113.•,
art Anstcrsen Cyrrt,r
petrottorre Press
I* C14 of anniyam
1732690
DETROIT
JEWISH NEWS
turns
❑
Michael Cohen is rabbi of Young Israel of
With special thanks to:
■
Place an ad in the
June 14th
commemorative
Anniversary issue
celebrating the Jewish
News turning 70!
ISSUE DATE:
June 14th, 2012
AD DEADLINE:
June 8th; 20i:_
We want to celebrate not just the JN
turning 70 but we want you to be
a part of the celebration by sending
a special message to the JN, all our
readers that have made this possible
as well as all the advertsisers that
continue to support us
Call your sales
representative for
special pricing or
contact Keith Farber at
248-351-5107.
Log on to JNonIine.us
giveaways • forums • calendars
VISIT JNonline.us
May 17 • 2012
33