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News
Concerts in California
Rachel Hyman, continues her concert in
California. She will be at the Divine service

Parasha
at the Vallejo Central SDA Church on Shabbat
June 21 at 11:00 AM. Their address is:
1111 Colusa St
Vallejo, CA 94590

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Newsletter n° 325
The table of Content gives an introduction to
this book.
Section I. Experiencing Jewish Thinking
• Jesus the Jew, Bertil Wiklander
• Continuity and Discontinuity Between the Church
On Shabbat evening, she will be giving a and Israel, Gunnar Pedersen
concert at The Village Seventh-day Adventist • Jewish and Adventist Issues, Reinaldo Siqueira
• The Argument For Messianic Prophecies, Jacques
Church. Their address is: Doukhan
1777 Howell Mountain Rd. • The Place of Israel in Jewish Thinking, David
Angwin, CA. 94508 Bateman
Section II. Experiencing Jewish Life
Comfort, Comfort my People • Jerusalem and the Gospel, Gary Krause
• Life in a Jewish Home, Josée-Marie Penner and
We have just edited a book that everybody Richard Elofer
who is interested in or working on the Adventist- • The Synagogue and Jewish-Adventist Liturgy,
Jewish ministry should get and should read. Its Jacques Doukhan
cost is US$20 + Shipment. • Christian Calling: It Began Among Jews, Jean-
The full title is Comfort, Comfort My Claude Verrecchia
• Contextualization in Adventist Relations with Jews,
People; Towards a Growing Adventist-Jewish Bertil Wiklander
Friendship. This book is the result of a • Comforting Jews, Practical Methods and Tools,
Conference we organized in Jerusalem in 2006 Richard Elofer
with many scholars who came from all over • Work Among Jews: A Small Group Ministry,
the world. There were about 150 participants Richard Elofer
to this conference with Adventist leaders from Section III. Experiencing Jewish Suffering
• Survey of the History of Anti-Semitism, David
the General Conference, the three European Penner
Divisions, the three American Divisions and • Reading the Bible After the Holocaust, Laurence
from the South Pacific Division. Here is a copy Turner
of the cover of this book. • Consensus Statement
 the Jewish people that He will give them the land of
Overview Israel, the people demanded that Moshe send spies
to evaluate the land and report back. With G-d’s
Shelach-Lecha permission, Moshe sent the spies to scout the land of
Canaan (Israel).
Numbers 13:1-15:41

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The Torah states “And the L-rd spoke to Moshe,
t the insistence of Bnei Yisrael, and
saying, ‘Send to you men that they may spy the land
with G-d’s permission, Moshe sends 12
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of Canaan which I give to the children of Israel...”

scouts, one from each tribe, to investigate
(Num 13:1-2). Moshe chose twelve men—one from
Canaan.
Anticipating trouble, Moshe changes Hoshea’s each tribe—to go forth and check out the promised
name to Yehoshua, expressing a prayer that G-d land. Moshe instructed them, “...See the land what
not let him fail in his mission. They return 40 it is and the people that dwell there whether they
days later, carrying unusually large fruit. When 10 are strong or weak, are they few or many. Is the
of the 12 state that the people in Canaan are as land good or bad; what are the cities in which they
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formidable as the fruit, the men are discouraged. dwell in... Is the land fat or lean...” (Num 13:17-19).
Calev and Yehoshua, the only two scouts still in Moshe instructs them to bring back of the fruits of
Newsletter

favor of the invasion, try to bolster the people’s the land.

spirit. The nation, however, decides that the Land Moshe chose pious and righteous men for this
is not worth the potentially fatal risks, and instead important mission. They came back after forty days,
demands a return to Egypt. Moshe’s fervent prayers carrying huge pieces of fruit. Sadly, ten of the spies
save the nation from Heavenly annihilation. spoke negatively and discouraged the people from
However, G-d declares that they must remain in conquering the land.
the desert for 40 years until the men who wept They said, “We will not be able to go up against the
at the scouts’ false report pass away. A remorseful people for they are stronger than we” (Num 13:31).
group rashly begins an invasion of the Land Only Joshua and Kalev encouraged the people to
based on G-d’s original command. Moshe warns have complete faith in G-d “for we will conquer the
them not to proceed, but they ignore this and are land.”
massacred by the Amalekites and Canaanites. The Torah tells us that the children of Israel listened
G-d instructs Moshe concerning the offerings to the ten spies and “they wept that night,” (Num
to be made when Bnei Yisrael will finally enter 14:1). refusing to enter the promised land; “And all
the Land. The people are commanded to remove the congregation of Israel murmured against Moshe
challa, a gift for the kohanim, from their dough. and Aaron and they said to them, ‘We would have
The laws for an offering after an inadvertent sin, for preferred to have died in the land of Egypt or in this
an individual or a group, are explained. However, wilderness. Why does G-d bring us into this land to
should someone blaspheme against G-d and be fall by the sword... were it not better for us to return
unrepentant, he will be cut off spiritually from to Egypt...” (Num 14:2-3).
his people. One man is found gathering wood on As a result of this tragic event, the Jewish people
public property in violation of the laws of Shabbat remained in the desert for forty years (one year for
and he is executed. The laws of tzitzit are taught. each day the spies were in Israel). Only their children
We recite the section about the tzitzit twice a day eventually entered the land of Israel under Joshua’s
to remind ourselves of the Exodus. leadership.
The Midrash calls the spies’ ability to cover the entire
Our Faith in G-d land of Israel in forty days miraculous. According to

P
arshat Shelach begins with the story of the the Midrash, G-d knew that they were preparing to
“Meraglim”—the “spies” which Moshe sent come back with a negative report. Therefore, “G-d
to scout the land of Israel. Although G-d hastened their mission so that the Israelites will not
promised Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, as well as to have to stay in the desert more than forty years.”
 The Chofetz Chaim tells us why the 10 spies feel Tzitzit

T
they weren’t strong enough to enter the land? He he Torah states: “Speak to the Israelites, and
says that the evil inclination tries in every possible
tell them to make fringes on the corners of
way to prevent a person from doing good deeds.
their garments throughout their generations
At times, a person is arrogant and feels that he is
and to put a blue cord on the fringe at each corner.
already on the highest level and need not do more.
You have the fringe so that, when you see it, you will
At other times, when a person tries to do something
remember all the commandments of the LORD and

Parasha
good, he starts feeling sad and guilt-ridden. He tells
himself that the good thing he wants to do is only do them, and not follow the lust of your own heart
possible to accomplish for people on a much higher and your own eyes” (Num 15:38-39)
spiritual level that he has attained. He immediately We perform this mitzvah by wearing the Tallit
remembers all the bad things he has done in his life. (prayer shawl), a four cornered garment, during prayer.
Even though he might have already regretted those Many wear a Tallit Katan (small Tallit) all day so
things and repented, he forgets this and starts feeling they can have the mitzvah all the time The numerical

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so inferior that he loses all desire to accomplish value of the Hebrew word Tzitzit (90+10+90+10+400)
anything positive. is 600. Each Tzitzah has 8 strings and 5 knots. These

Newsletter
Parshat Shelach-Lecha reminds us the importance numbers add up to 613 which is the total amount of
of faith in G-d and the consequences for the lack of it. mitzvot. By looking at the Tzitzit, we remember to
Our faith in G-d is put to a test continuously. During perform all the mitzvot.
the course of a day, one is faced with situations where Tzitizit are the fringes which hang on the four
they may calculate that behaving contrary to G-d’s corners of the Tallit (prayer shawl). The Torah tells us
will and moral standards will bring them success. that each fringe should have one string colored blue.
Our faith in G-d may at times be tested to its limits. The blue dye was extracted from a special fish-worm
Yet, one must always remember that in the end it is called Chilazon. The identity of that particular fish-
G-d’s will which will prevail.
worm has been lost and as a result all eight strings
When it comes to fulfilling G-d’s commandments
are white. Some people today wear Tzitzit with a blue
and our mission in life, we must not let any obstacles
string in it. However, most rabbis do not accept it.
discourage us, no matter how difficult they may be.
The number of times that the longer Tzitzah is wound
We must remember that G-d never asks of us more
than we can handle. If He did command, He gave us around the other strings totals 39 (7+8+11+13=39).
the strength and ability to accomplish our spiritual This number is the same numerical value as the
mission in life. That is a great lesson Rabbi Shaul two Hebrew words of the Shema - Hashem Echad
wanted to give us in one of his letter: “No testing (G-d is One). Thus, the mitzvah of Tzitzit reminds
has overtaken you that is not common to everyone. us of the unity and omnipresence of G-d and of His
God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested mitzvot.
beyond your strength, but with the testing he will Jewish love and appreciation for this mitzvah is best
also provide the way out so that you may be able to expressed in the fact that when reciting the “Shema”
endure it.” (1 Cor 10:13). in their daily morning prayer they kiss the Tzitzit
numerous times.
Moses’ Great Love The Tallit accompanies a Jew even after death when

W
hen the spies convinced the people that every Jewish man is buried in a Tallit.
they will not be able to conquer the You have certainly noticed that many Jews keep
promised land, the Jewish people rebelled their Tzitzit on the outside? The reason is to make
against Moshe. G-d wanted to kill them immediately sure that the Tzitzit are always visible, for the Torah
and reestablish the Jewish people from Moshe. It was states, “so that you may look upon it and remember
only through Moshe’s efforts and prayers that G-d all the commandments of the L-rd”. By exposing the
forgave the people and they lived another forty years Tzitzit, one can “look upon it” and thus “remember”
in the desert. all the mitzvot.
 Complete cleaning

O
Tzitsit and Mitzvot n the lighter side: Before the High Holidays,

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Mr. Goldberg took his Tallit to the same dry
wealthy diamond merchant once went to
cleaners as he did for the past twenty years.
the fair far from his home, to purchase
Not knowing that the cleaners had recently changed
diamonds. He would then bring them
hands, he was a bit surprised when he was greeted by
back to his city and make a handsome profit. After
the new owner - a recently arrived Chinese immigrant
making his purchases and preparing to make the
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who bought the cleaners from its Jewish owner.

trip back to his city, someone approached him and
Noticing that the customer was a bit hesitant to leave
said, “I have some wonderful diamonds which I
the garment, the new owner tried his best to assure Mr.
must sell immediately. I am willing to sell it for
Goldberg, “I promise to do as good a job as the previous
a fraction of their cost if you pay for them in cash
owner.”
right now.” After examining the merchandise, he
Two days later he came to pick up the Tallit and was
realized that this was indeed a great deal. But he
shocked to see the bill for $25.
had already spent all the money. All he had left
4

“Why so expensive?” gasped Mr. Goldberg. “I gave

was to cover the expenses for the way home, but he
this Tallit to clean for many years and I was charged
felt that he couldn’t pass up a deal like this.
Newsletter

only $5?”
“Instead of staying in luxury hotels and eating “How can you compare his work to mine,” replied the
good meals, I will buy these diamonds and make new owner. “Did he spend three hours on your garment
do with very little on the way,” he thought to as I did untying every knot in the garment!”
himself. He bought the diamonds and traveled
back to his home like a poor beggar. He slept on
the floor in run down hotels and ate lousy meals Why so Many Mitzvot?

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together with other poor travelers. Chassid once complained to his Rebbe that, due
One of his friends met him entering one of the to his widespread business activities, he had very
dingy hotels. “Why do you suffer in such conditions, little time to perform mitzvot.
when you can afford good accommodations and The Rebbe replied, “The Mishna says that G-d wanted
delicious foods?” asked the friend. He told his to merit the Jewish people so He gave them mitzvot in
friend how he spent all his money to purchase abundance. When one builds a house, there are mitzvot
the diamonds from which he stands to make an associated with it. When a person works in the fields
enormous profit. or in business, there are many mitzvot to perform there
“But knowing the life style which you are used too. G-d spread out His mitzvot in every area so we can
to, I don’t understand how you can tolerate to live connect with Him each day of our lives no matter what
in such terrible accommodations and eat such our occupation is.”
cheap food,” asked the friend.
“You are right. Many times during this trip, I
thought that I could not go on like this any more,” EditoR
replied the diamond merchant. “Every time I felt A newsletter published by the
like this, I would look at the diamonds which I World Jewish Adventist Friendship Center
bought and realizing the potential profit awaiting
Under the umbrella of the
me, I would become very happy!”
General Conference —Global Mission Office
The same is with the mitzvah of Tzitzit. G-d
gave us this mitzvah as a daily reminder of “all”
the mitzvot. Thus, like the diamond merchant,
Richard-Amram Elofer Tel. +972 504 535 121
by looking at the Tzitzit, we remember all the
4, Abraham Lincoln Fax +972 2625 1319
mitzvot and the great benefit and reward we stand 94186 Jerusalem email: [email protected]
to receive for observing them. This makes it easier Israel web: jewishadventist.org
for us to overcome all hardships and obstacles and
perform the mitzvot to their fullest..
 Haftara Besorat Yeshua
Joshua 2 Mark 4:35-5:8
Parasha: In the text of the parasha the L-rd Parasha: In the parasha the spies had
commanded Moses to send spies to the Land of to go to the other side of the border to get
Canaan: “And the L-rd spoke to Moshe, saying, ‘Send Canaan and to scout the country in order to

Parasha
to you men that they may spy the land of Canaan give back a report to Israel and Moses.
which I give to the children of Israel...” Moshe chose “Moses sent them to spy out the land of
twelve men — one from each tribe (Num. 8:10-12). Canaan, and said to them, “Go up there into
Haftara: In our haftara it is Joshua who send the Negev, and go up into the hill country, ”
spies to the Land of Canaan. “Then Joshua bin Nun (Numbers 13:17).
sent two men secretly from Shittim as spies, saying, Haftara: In Our haftara it is Joshua who
“Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” (Joshua 2:1). send spies to go to the other side of the

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Thirty eight years before the people of Israel were Jordan River to scout the Land of Canaan.
not ready to trust the L-rd, but now they are. They “Then Joshua bin Nun sent two men secretly

Newsletter
want to leave the wilderness and to taste this land from Shittim as spies, saying, “Go, view the
land, especially Jericho.” (Joshua 2:1)
of honey and milk.
Besorah: In our Besorah it is Yeshua who
The Canaanites heard what the L-rd has done for
send his disciples to the other side “On that
Israel since they left the land of Egypt. They are day, when evening had come, he said to them,
afraid of them. Some of the Canaanites have gotten “Let us go across to the other side.”” (Mark
faith in the G-d of Israel and are ready to help them. 4:35).
It is the case of Rahab the prostitute of Jericho. “So In Numbers 13, a real storm of discourage-
they went, and entered the house of a prostitute ment felt on Israel who did not believe in G-d,
whose name was Rahab, and spent the night there.” that he will give them the land of Canaan and
(Joshua 2:1). Rahab said to the spies that she knows they died in the wilderness.
what the L-rd has done for them, “I know that the In the Besorah a real storm felt on the
LORD has given you the land, and that dread of you disciples but they did not believe that Yeshua
has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the could save them, they cried to him: “A great
land melt in fear before you. For we have heard windstorm arose, and the waves beat into
how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea the boat, so that the boat was already being
before you when you came out of Egypt, and what swamped. But he was in the stern, asleep on
you did to the two kings of the Amorites that were the cushion; and they woke him up and said
beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are
utterly destroyed. (Joshua. 2:9-10). She asks them perishing?” (Mark 4:37-38). But Yeshua was
to remember her and her family when they will there. “He woke up and rebuked the wind,
come back. “Now then, since I have dealt kindly with and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” Then the
you, swear to me by the L-RD that you in turn will wind ceased, and there was a dead calm. He
deal kindly with my family. Give me a sign of good said to them, “Why are you afraid? Have you
still no faith?” (Mark 4:39-40). The example
faith that you will spare my father and mother, my
of Rahab will be followed by the disciples
brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them,
and they will get a strong faith in G-d and
and deliver our lives from death.” (Josh. 2:12-13) in the Mashiach. “And they were filled with
Rahab become an example of faith “By faith Rahab great awe and said to one another, “Who
the prostitute did not perish with those who were then is this, that even the wind and the sea
disobedient, because she had received the spies in obey him?” (Mark 4:41). Then in the pagan
peace.” (Heb. 11:31). She deserved to become one of province of the Gerasenes, Yeshua continues
the ancestors of King David and the Mashiach, Son to strengthen the faith of his disciples in
of David. (Matt. 1:5) performing many miracles.