Difference between revisions of "Shabbat Table Topics – Parashat Tazria/0/en"
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<h1>Shabbat Table Topics – Parashat Tazria</h1> | <h1>Shabbat Table Topics – Parashat Tazria</h1> | ||
<category><i>Tzara'at</i>: Natural Disease or Divine Punishment? | <category><i>Tzara'at</i>: Natural Disease or Divine Punishment? | ||
| − | <p>Among the many mysteries of Tanakh, <i>tzara'at</i> ranks high on the list of unknowns. What is this malady? Why does a person get afflicted? Is it a natural disease that anyone can contract, or is it a Divinely sent, supernatural phenomenon, meant as punishment for sin?  Contrast the understandings of Chazal <fn>See, for example, <multilink><a href="VayikraRabbah17-3" data-aht="source">Vayikra Rabbah</a><a href="VayikraRabbah17-3" data-aht="source">17:3</a><a href="Vayikra Rabbah" data-aht="parshan">About Vayikra Rabbah</a></multilink> and  <multilink><a href="BemidbarRabbah7-5" data-aht="source">Bemidbar Rabbah</a><a href="BemidbarRabbah7-5" data-aht="source">7:5</a><a href="Bemidbar Rabbah" data-aht="parshan">About Bemidbar Rabbah</a></multilink>.</fn>and Ralbag in the topic of <a href="Tzara'at" data-aht="page">Tzara'at</a>, and debate each position at your Shabbat Table.</p> | + | <p>Among the many mysteries of Tanakh, <i>tzara'at</i> ranks high on the list of unknowns. What is this malady? Why does a person get afflicted? Is it a natural disease that anyone can contract, or is it a Divinely sent, supernatural phenomenon, meant as punishment for sin?  Contrast the understandings of Chazal<fn>See, for example, <multilink><a href="VayikraRabbah17-3" data-aht="source">Vayikra Rabbah</a><a href="VayikraRabbah17-3" data-aht="source">17:3</a><a href="Vayikra Rabbah" data-aht="parshan">About Vayikra Rabbah</a></multilink> and  <multilink><a href="BemidbarRabbah7-5" data-aht="source">Bemidbar Rabbah</a><a href="BemidbarRabbah7-5" data-aht="source">7:5</a><a href="Bemidbar Rabbah" data-aht="parshan">About Bemidbar Rabbah</a></multilink>.</fn> and Ralbag in the topic of <a href="Tzara'at" data-aht="page">Tzara'at</a>, and debate each position at your Shabbat Table.</p> |
<ul> | <ul> | ||
<li>Examine all of the instances in Tanakh in which someone is plagued by <i>tzara'at</i>. Can you find a common offense perpetrated by each of those afflicted?  If the malady is indeed a punishment, what seems to be the crime?</li> | <li>Examine all of the instances in Tanakh in which someone is plagued by <i>tzara'at</i>. Can you find a common offense perpetrated by each of those afflicted?  If the malady is indeed a punishment, what seems to be the crime?</li> | ||
Version as of 01:36, 22 August 2019
Shabbat Table Topics – Parashat Tazria
Tzara'at: Natural Disease or Divine Punishment?
Among the many mysteries of Tanakh, tzara'at ranks high on the list of unknowns. What is this malady? Why does a person get afflicted? Is it a natural disease that anyone can contract, or is it a Divinely sent, supernatural phenomenon, meant as punishment for sin? Contrast the understandings of Chazal1 and Ralbag in the topic of Tzara'at, and debate each position at your Shabbat Table.
- Examine all of the instances in Tanakh in which someone is plagued by tzara'at. Can you find a common offense perpetrated by each of those afflicted? If the malady is indeed a punishment, what seems to be the crime?
- Why does tzara'at cause impurity? Compare the various cases of impurity in Torah. Is there any common denominator which might explain why specifically these conditions defile a person?
More...
For more, see: Parashat Tazria Topics.
