JBD – Jews of the Melbourne CBD is now on LinkedIn. Follow us here.

Shabbat starts on Friday at 7:33pm and ends on Saturday at 8:29pm. The weekly Torah portion is Tetzaveh and Parshat Zachor. Footy season starts with a whimper tonight. Ta’anis Esther is on Thursday; fast begins at 5:57am and ends at 8:14pm. Purim is Thurs night / Friday.

Mincha is now in recess for the summer and will resume after DST ends. Join the WhatsApp group for any updates.

Weekly sushi & shiur continues on Wed at 1.20pm at A-P GF/459 Collins – and via zoom. Current topic: hazards in public spaces. Details here and on the WhatsApp group.

Thought of the Week with thanks to Avi Gordon.

In general, Judaism is sceptical about appearances. In contrast, other religions feature monumental and luxurious palaces and temples, ornate and priceless crowns and regalia.

And yet, we see in this week’s Torah reading, how specific the Torah is in respect of the clothes to be worn by the Kohanim and the Kohen Gadol…How does it fit?

The Rambam explains, it was specifically to impress the average man, who is naturally taken by beauty and aesthetics. But the question remains, isn’t that still just the same as all other religions then how is our approach different?

Rabbi Sacks explains, the difference is nuanced but the implications vast. Where others (like the Greeks) believe in the holiness of beauty, Jews believe in hadras kodesh, the beauty of holiness.

Both may create beauty and admire the beautiful, but is that the end goal or just the means to serve G-d. It may look the same to the outsider, but they couldn’t be further apart.

May we all be blessed to fulfil the verse of “Zeh Keili ve-anvehu” – “this is my G-d and I will exalt Him” using the physical and the aesthetic for the service of G-d.