Times: Shabbat starts tonight with candle lighting at 7:01 pm, and ends Saturday night at 7:56 pm. The weekly Torah portion is Shemini, Parshat Parah and Shabbat Mevarchim Nissan. Rosh Chodesh is next Shabbat.

Events Update The Quest for Jewish Identity: You can listen to the recording of our Pre-Purim lecture here.

Mincha in the CBD: Mincha has resumed Monday-Friday (currently 1.55pm) and is using a WhatsApp group for one more week until the end of DST. Message 0412-389-389 to join.

Study: The Wednesday shiur and lunch has resumed and continues at 1.30 pm.

Thought of the Week with thanks to David Prins. There are three special Shabbatot between Purim and Pesach: Parah, HaChodesh, and HaGadol. These three Shabbatot are critical to prepare us for Pesach.

This week, Parshat Parah is about getting ourselves into a state of spiritual purity. We prepare to celebrate our redemption from Egypt. This requires more than cleaning our homes of chametz. It requires more than thinking about seder, yom tov, guest lists, menus, shopping, changing dishes etc. It requires us to focus on our real priorities in life. And how we will ensure that we follow the spiritually correct path.
Parshat HaChodesh helps us on the journey. It gives us our own calendar that we can use to plan our own lives. It prioritises what is important to us. It frees us from the unimportant, trivial matters that surround us and chase us.

Shabbat HaGadol will prepare us for the Pesach redemption from Egypt. It will also prepare us for the final redemption that we have not yet merited to see.