Should we be forced to retire at fifty? From thirty years old up till fifty years old, all who come to the army to do the task in the Tent of Meeting. This is the work of the Kohathites. Only in the desert, writes Maimonides (Kli HaMikdash III), were the Levites forced to retire. And this was

You shall count fifty days, and you shall bring forward a new grain offering to the LORD. From your dwelling places you shall bring two loaves of bread set aside...On Passover, we temporarily banished bread from our homes. Exactly fifty days later is Shavuot when we receive the Torah, an occasion that calls for bringing

You shall not take advance interest or accrued interest, and you shall fear your God. Why does the Torah prohibit charging interest? No business venture, explains the Ktav Sofer, is a sure thing. Each brings with it a measure of trust in God. When a person is guaranteed interest, then that element of trusting in God

This week's parasha opens by severely restricting kohanim, the priests, from coming into contact with death and the impurity that it imparts: only for their closest relatives, may the kohanim interact with death. Last week'sparasha ends with a warning against any involvement with the occult, which is traditionally understood as communication with the dead. The Hizkuni sees a message in this juxtaposition. We all