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“And divest Aharon of his garments and enrobe Elazar his son with them, and Aharon shall be gathered up and die there.” (20:6)

The Ramban mentions the Midrash which states that various miracles occurred in connection with these garments. This is obvious from the apparent unfeasibility of Moshe divesting Aharon’s garments in their proper order. Were not the outer garments over the inner ones? Thus Moshe put Aharon upon the rock and removed his priestly garments, and celestial garments clothed themselves upon him underneath. Thus Elazar upon taking over the mantle of priesthood was able to immeaditly put on the garments in their proper order. What was the urgency for this miracle? Could not Elazar have momentarily waited for Aharon to remove his…

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“A completely red heifer which is unblemished upon which never came a yoke.” (19:2)

After studying the various  laws that apply to the Parah Adumah, we can perceive the difficult path which lies before a person who desires to purify himself. The Torah insists that a red  heifer, which is a very rare and expensive animal, be used for the purification process. We may derive from the Parah Adumah that in  all  areas  of  purification, the defiled individual is not cleansed until he has undergone much toil and sacrifice. Only after a person seeks purity and holiness as he would search for gold and precious  jewels, that he achieves a clear perception of the…

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“This is the fundamental law of the Torah… and they take unto you a completely red heifer.” (19:2)

The law of the Parah Adumah serves as the paradigm of commitment to Hashem and His mitzvos. So strange is the law of the Parah Adumah that it baffled the minds of the wisest. Shlomo Hamelech says in Koheles (7:13) “I applied all my wisdom, but it remained beyond me.” What makes this law even more puzzling is the paradox that the ashes of the heifer in the spring water despite cleansing the unclean, defiled the priest who performed the ritual. Here is the purest example of a complete obedience to the laws of Hashem. When every attempt to explain…

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“This is the fundamental law of the Torah… and they take unto you a completely red heifer.” (19:2)

The Midrash relates that when Moshe ascended to the Heavens, he heard the voice of Hashem teaching the angels the parsha of Parah Adumah. Why does this mitzvah assume such an exalted place before Hashem. The following may be suggested. chukim (Divine ordinances whose purposes or meaning are not necessarily understood by human intelligence) and mishpatim (civil laws that promulgate the safety and survival of society whose rationale may be grasped by human intelligence), are two distinct sets of mitzvos. Just as there are two forms of mitzvos, so too are there contrasting situations in life. There are moments in…

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