THE TEMPLE AS AN ECONOMIC CENTER, part 4 -- THE WOMAN'S ROLE IN THE RED HEIFER

In a previous article, on the Temple expenses, I wrote that women, who brought up their children in order to participate in the red heifer, received their payment from the contribution of the Temple Chamber. The heifer itself was also purchased from the contribution of the Temple Chamber, despite it not being sacrificed on the altar. This article will explain the matter.

What is the red heifer?

In order to be purified from defilement caused by contact with the dead, ritual immersion is not enough. For all the other forms of defilement it is enough to immerse oneself in a mikveh (ritual bath), or, in the unique case of a person suffering from VD, to immerse oneself in spring water in order to be purified.

In order to be purified from defilement by the dead, it is necessary to spray, on the defiled person, water containing the ashes of a red heifer. However, there are types of defilement by the dead in which it is sufficient to be immersed in order to be purified from them. This red heifer is not specifically what we now call red, but refers to a brown heifer. The Sages said that, if not specified otherwise, horses are red. They meant that the specifically what we now call red, but refers to a brown heifer. The Sages said that, if not specified otherwise, horses are red. They meant that the majority of horses are brown.

The heifer must be red all over. If there are only two hairs which are, for example, black or white, the heifer is rejected. Similarly, there are other conditions: it is forbidden that a yoke be placed on it, its minimum age is three years, etc.

Such a heifer was very valuable. The Sages relate the story of a gentile, Dama the son of Netina, in Ashkelon. They came to him to buy a precious stone for the breastplate of the High Priest. However, his father was asleep and his legs were lying on the chest which contained the precious stone. He relinquished the deal rather than wake his father. The Almighty repaid him by causing, in the following year, a red heifer to be born in his herd. When the wise men came to buy it, he said to them that all he was requesting was the amount he had lost in the previous year.

It is also related about a gentile, in whose herd a red heifer was born. The gentile wanted to deceive the wise men and placed a yoke on it, but presented it to the wise men as a red heifer on which a yoke had never been placed. However, the wise men discovered that a yoke had been placed on the presented it to the wise men as a red heifer on which a yoke had never been placed. However, the wise men discovered that a yoke had been placed on the heifer and did not buy it. Because of the great loss, the gentile committed suicide.

The Temple Institute in the Old City of Jerusalem, headed by the Rav Israel Ariel, has made contact with experts in genetic engineering and cow breeders, with the aim of breeding fit red heifers, using genetic engineering.

This heifer is slaughtered by the High Priest on the Mount of Olives, facing the Holy of Holies, in a special ceremony. The heads of the Sanhedrin, the heads of the Cohen and Levy shifts, and prominent persons in Israel are present at the ceremony. The heifer is then burnt, together with bundles of wood of various kinds, in order to increase the quantity of the ashes. After burning, the ashes are well ground and divided into three parts. One part is preserved in the Temple, a second part is given to the Cohanim, and the third part is kept in the Mount of Olives, so that anyone from Israel who wished to purify himself could take some of it.

It should be remembered that the ashes themselves were not sprinkled, but water containing them. It was possible to put a very small amount of ashes It should be remembered that the ashes themselves were not sprinkled, but water containing them. It was possible to put a very small amount of ashes in a tremendous quantity of water, and all the water could be used for sprinkling. In this way a minute quantity of ashes could be used to purify tens of thousands of people.

It is obvious that, after the destruction of the Temple, when no more ashes of a red heifer were made, purification from the defilement by the dead became more and more rare. However, up till the end of the period of the Amoraim, there were still "Chaverim" in Eretz Israel. This was the name given to those who were very strict about avoiding defilement and who purified themselves from defilement by the dead. With the complete destruction of the Jewish settlement in the country, at the beginning of the Arab period, purification from defilement from the dead completely ceased.

The merits of the women

The Sages said, in many places, that women filled key positions in variousstages of the redemption of Israel. Women brought up children in Egypt in conditions of slavery. Without their great devotion, the people of Israel would have perished.

Women refused to give their ornaments for the golden calf, while the men would have perished.

Women refused to give their ornaments for the golden calf, while the men gave their gold for the calf. Women wanted a part of the country of Israel at a time when the men despised it. It appears that the purification of the people of Israel from defilement from the dead also depends on the readiness of women to take this burden on themselves.

The women's role

In order to be purified from defilement from the dead, the person sprinklingon the unclean person must be himself pure. If so, how can we, today, when all of us are defiled from the dead, to various degrees, become purified if there is no-one who is pure to sprinkle on the defiled? This is not a new problem. In the Tosefta, Rabbi Yehuda says that when the Jews returned to Israel from the Babylonian Captivity at the beginning of the period of the second Temple, there was no-one amongst them who was pure of defilement from the dead. If so, how did they break the vicious circle where the sprinkler must be pure and it is impossible to purified without a pure person?

They constructed buildings whose foundations were built in a special manner, pure person?

They constructed buildings whose foundations were built in a special manner, so that, if there was a grave underneath the buildings, the tenants of the house would not be defiled by the defilement from the dead. They brought pregnant women to the house and they gave birth there. The babies were pure of the defilement from the dead and the women brought up their children until they could make red heifer ashes in purity and sprinkle them. However, Rabbi Shim'eon disputes the matter with Rabbi Yehuda and says that, even amongst the Jews returning from the Babylonian Captivity, there were pure people. This is because only during the period of the Hashmonaim did the Sages decree that foreign countries, called by the Sages the countries of the peoples, were unclean with the defilement from the dead. Therefore, those returning from the Babylonian Captivity, in whose time the decree has not been made, could take ashes of the Red Heifer to Babylon and purify themselves there. They also did this when they returned to the country of Israel, so that there were pure people amongst them.

However, even Rabbi Shim'eon admits that those returning from the Babylonian Captivity, used, for the purpose of making the ashes, children who had never became defiled.

Captivity, used, for the purpose of making the ashes, children who had never became defiled.

This is the place to remark, that there is no need to say, that in Rabbi Yehuda's opinion, the decree that foreign countries are defiled with the defilement from the dead, preceded the destruction of the First Temple. He could think that the decree was later, but that, following the destruction of the Temple and the events associated with this, everyone was made impure from defilement from the dead, with no connection to the question of the countries of the peoples.

Anyway, whether, at the beginning of the period of the Second Temple, pure babies were needed because everyone was impure from defilement from the dead, or whether there were, in fact, some pure people amongst them, in practice at all times they brought up children who had never became impure. This was done during the entire period of the Second Temple in order to make red heifer ashes, despite that fact that, formally, they were not required to do so. This was because of the importance of the matter of purification from defilement from the dead and the great precautions taken concerning it. These women, who brought up their children in order to make red heifer ashes, were supported by the Temple Treasury. It is clear that the role of These women, who brought up their children in order to make red heifer ashes, were supported by the Temple Treasury. It is clear that the role of the Temple Treasury did not only include giving a salary to the women.

It was necessary to build an entire complex of buildings in the appropriate matter - courtyards, as the Sages called them. It was necessary to bring the women there before they gave birth and to provide them with the appropriate medical treatment. The unfortunate possibility of death occurring during birth, and the precautions necessary to prevent the whole system being defiled, with the consequent destruction of all the efforts of many years. There was need for a large number of children in order that they would grow up in company, not alone. The number of children would have to be sufficient to cover cases of illness or even death, G-d forbid. There was, of course, need to provide educational and health services.

Not only the children were prohibited from leaving the area, but restrictions also applied to their mothers and families. This was because of the need to prevent the children becoming impure in ways that would require the use of red heifer ashes to purify them, in which case all the tremendous investment would be wasted. Of course, there was need to compensate the family for the loss of income resulting from these unusual restrictions. investment would be wasted. Of course, there was need to compensate the family for the loss of income resulting from these unusual restrictions.

When the children grew older, the time arrived to pump water in purity for the ashes of the red heifer. They brought oxen because their bellies are broad, and on the oxen they placed a smooth wooden board - doors in the words of the Sages. The small children sat on it in a way that no part of their bodies projected from the oxen. The ox then formed a partition from the ground, so that, if there was a grave in the ground, it would not defile the child sitting on it. They went down to the spring of Shiloah. At the spring, the children dismounted from the oxen and filled with water stone containers, which do not absorb defilement.

(The widespread use of stone containers has been authenticated by impressive archeological findings. The Society for Nature Preservation has published a book called The stone vessels industry in Jerusalem in the period of the Second Temple. It should, however, be emphasized that in the period of the First Temple, the stone vessel industry was well developed, as researchers mention on many occasions. However, they were not aware of the connection between the stone vessels industry during the period of the first Temple and the laws of defilement and purity. This was because they were enslaved by a between the stone vessels industry during the period of the first Temple and the laws of defilement and purity. This was because they were enslaved by a concept that they developed that the Oral Law was produced only in the period of the Second Temple).

After filling the vessels, the children remounted the oxen and rode upon them to the Temple Mount. On the Temple Mount itself, the children could dismount from the oxen, since it also was built like the courtyards in which the children were brought up. It was hollow underneath, so that impurity could not rise from below.

They then took some of the ashes that were kept there and sanctified the sin-offering water. It was now possible for people who had never been defiled to sprinkle on those who had become defiled.

However, at the present time, as at the beginning of the period of the Second Temple, in order to prepare the first red heifer, it will be necessary to make a change to the regular procedure for making ashes from the red heifer. The children must be Cohanim, since the slaughter of the red heifer is work that must be performed by Cohanim, specifically in purity. It is therefore necessary that these children also do the red heifer, since they are the only pure people in the people of Israel. There is no one else, is therefore necessary that these children also do the red heifer, since they are the only pure people in the people of Israel. There is no one else, so they must do the red heifer. However, when there were ashes of the red heifer, even without the children who were kept for this purpose, they did not prepare the red heifer. They only sprinkled the water of the existing red heifer ashes on the High Priest, in order to verify that he was pure, and he did the red heifer. The work of the red heifer is valid whichever Cohen does it, but the High Priests were strict about doing this work themselves, and did not let other Cohanim do it. However, the sprinkling is valid if any pure person does it, and therefore the children did not have to be specifically Cohanim, but could also be from Israel.

There is no doubt that the purchase of the red heifer, keeping it, building the complex for the children with all that is involved, cost a tremendous amount of money. However, as I have already written, the Temple Treasury had at its disposal a budget of $50 million at today's prices, so that it could stand the expense.

However, in the final analysis, this is not a question of money. There is the need for tremendous desire and devotion over a period of years in order to purify the people of Israel from defilement from the dead. This was the merit of many women at the time of the Temple.

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IN THE NEWS

(Arutz Sheva News Service Elul 12, 5758)

WORSHIPPER FOUND INNOCENT

Jerusalem court judges have, over the past week, found two Chai Vekayam members innocent of charges related to their desire to pray on the Temple Mount. Chai Vekayam is an organization dedicated to ensuring Jewish prayer rights on the Mount, and its members have often been arrested for their attempts to pray there. In one case this week, the judge ruled that the police used unnecessary force against a would-be worshipper - Shmuel Sackett - and consequently found Sackett innocent of attacking a policeman. The judge noted that demanding to pray on the Temple Mount is not a crime. The Chai Vekayam movement said today that the struggle to pray on the holy Jewish site will continue both in and out of the courtrooms.

(Judean Voice 12 Elul 5758)

ELDERLY ITALIAN GENTILES PLOT TROUBLE ON TEMPLE MOUNT?

According to Yediot Achronot Sept. 2, two elderly Italian tourists were deported back to Italy upon arrival at Ben Gurion airprot after being suspected of plotting a suicidal provocation against Moslems on the Temple Mount.

Police say that they preferred not arresting the two because they feared an international incident would have exploded if they would have detained two elderly Gentiles without having any concrete evidence against them. The two suspects denied the allegations, however did conceded that they were lovers of Israel.

(Arutz Sheva News Service Sunday, September 6, 1998 / Elul 15, 5758)

PA TAKING OVER FROM WAQF

The Palestinian Authority is slowly but surely taking over Waqf properties in eastern Jerusalem. Correspondent Kobi Finkler, reporting in the weekly Makor Rishon, says that a General Security Service representative reported that the PA has taken over not only Waqf funds, but also lands, homes, and buildings. Other reports claim that the PA usurping of authorities on the Temple Mount formerly held by pro- Jordanian elements bodes ill not only for Jordanian interests, but also for Israel.

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