Chevre, this week’s parsha is בְּמִדְבַּר (Bamidbar) and today is Yom Yerushalayim. So today is the day in 1967 that Jerusalem was reunified after 19 years of being split. We have a more holiday like atmosphere including Hallel and special meals. In my community, this holiday atmosphere will continue throughout Shabbat. 

Bamidbar - 2023 starts off where Sefer Shemot left off. The Mishkan was built for the first time and then the pillar of a cloud entered the Mishkan symbolizing G-ds taking up “residence”. The parsha starts with a count of the people, who camps where and then we have the Levites replacing the first born as helpers to the priests. This is less of a “throwing it over the wall” between the Dev Team and Operations and more of a warm handoff. I think of this as the First Born were holding onto a rope to keep things working and moving and then handing off the task to the Levites. To this day, the Levites are called up second to the Torah (after the Cohanim, priests). By the way, Cohanim are also Levites, since Aharon (who all Cohanim come from) is the brother of Moshe (a Levite). After Israel entered the land they did not have a part in the land other than the cities of refuge. They were educators within the nation.

May we all send and receive good handoffs and work to help educate each other and learn from each other. Shabbat Shalom and Moadim LeSimcha LeGuela Shlemah