What can one say after that surprisingly thrilling World Cup final? A great champion, Argentina's Messi -- who lost in 2014 -- has achieved his goal, while passing the torch to the only man to score more goals, France's Mbappe.
Well -- now, perhaps, Argentina can tackle inflation, which the country's labor minister said it would not do until after the country won the World Cup. Maybe things can finally turn around in that country -- and in ours? Who knows.
One thing is for sure: we are facing a crisis at the border, with the imminent end of Title 42, the only enforcement mechanism the Biden administration hadn't canceled. Amazingly, the media are blaming Republicans for the crisis.
We'll discuss the border, and some troubling news about suicide, but we'll also leave room for happiness and celebration -- discussing a new book about Sesame Street in Russia, and enjoying a live lighting of the Chanukah menorah.
Special guests:
- John Binder - Breitbart News immigration reporter (and fashion consultant)
- Natasha Rogoff - television producer and author of "Muppets in Moscow"
- John Wordin - CEO of LifeScore, on preventing veteran suicides
- Brandon Darby - Breitbart Texas editor and chief border reporter
Tune in: SiriusXM Patriot 125 7-10 p.m. ET, 4-7 p.m. PT
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This week'd portion begins the book of Numbers. Interestingly, the Hebrew name for the book is "In the Desert," not "Numbers." The portion, which happens to be my bar mitzvah portion, focuses almost as much on the names of the princes of each tribe as the number of soldiers it fielded. It also focuses on the configuration of the tribal camps around the central Tabernacle and the Levites.
So why "Numbers" instead of "Names" or "Places"? The numbers are, to be sure, a unique feature of the opening of this Biblical book -- but they are not the focus of the rest of the narrative. The Hebrew focuses on the place where the events in the book take place, because essentially this is the narrative of the Israelites' wanderings from Egypt to Israel, across 40 years. We move from the giving of the Torah and the construction of the Tabernacle in Exodus and Leviticus, to the final valediction of Moses in Deuteronomy -- Bamidbar is the story of wandering that happened in between.
The question of ...
This week's portion begins with the laws of the Sabbath and the Sabbatical year, and the Jubilee year that restores all land to its original (tribal) owners. It also explores laws of property and labor that will apply in the Land of Israel, and the laws of vows and inheritance.
The Israelites are presented -- not for the last time -- with the essential moral choice that they must face, and the rewards for choosing well, along with the consequences for choosing poorly.
We learn that doing good things will earn God's protection from enemies. That does not mean that victims of terror, God forbid, were sinful. But it does mean that we can respond to evil by committing ourselves to a higher path.
This week's portion describes the major sacrifices that are to be offered by the Jewish people, including those that are offered only by the priestly Kohen class, and physical requirements of the people (men) who serve in that role.
Inter alia, there are interesting commandments -- such as an injection to treat animals with respect and care, first, by letting a mother animal nurse her offspring for a week before being offered in any sacrifice; and second, by refraining from slaughtering an animal and its offspring on the same day.
The commandments regarding animals remind us of the purpose of those regarding human beings: to uphold a divine connection, through ritual.
https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/111878/jewish/Rabbi-Isaac-Luria-The-Ari-Hakodosh.htm
