Times: Shabbat starts on Friday at 5:23pm and ends on Saturday night at 6:20pm. The weekly Torah portion is Tazria-Metzora.

Mincha in the CBD: With in-person minyanim now no longer operating, mincha is now virtual. That means we all daven at an agreed time, which is 1.00pm. Details at the WhatsApp group.

Study: Weekly Shiur is now online using zoom – URL and notes are here. Shiur continues on Wednesday at 1:10pmvia zoom, following mincha at 1.00pm. BYO lunch.

Thought of the Week with thanks to Michelle Coleman. In speaking of what must be done with the person afflicted with tzarat, the Torah says, “He should be brought to Aharon the Kohen or to one of his sons the Kohanim (Lev 13:2).

Surely it would suffice were the verse to simply say that he should be brought to a kohen? Why mention both Aharon and the other Kohanim, his sons?

Aharon epitomised the value of peace, not only in his own behaviour but also in the enormous effort he exerted to bring peace among his fellow Jews.
The spiritual plague of tzarat, on the other hand, was inflicted on one who spoke lashon hara (bad about others). How fitting it is, then, that Aharon is mentioned in the verse speaking of the remedy for tzarat. The Torah is shining a light on the ways of Aharon, which one must imitate in order to repent and be cured.

Covid-19 may not be a spiritual plague but emulating Aharon will no doubt bring untold benefits to us, our families and our community.