Category: Evil Phenomena – Witchcraft
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The Jewish-American Perspective On Witchcraft
This week we read the Torah portion called “Mishpatim,” or laws,” Exodus 21:1-24:18. Within the portion verse 22:17 tells us that witches and warlocks must be hunted down–here is the origin of the term “witch hunt”–and executed. “מְכַשֵּׁפָ֖ה לֹ֥א תְחַיֶּֽה” – “You shall not allow a sorceress to live.” Exodus 22:17 The authoritative commentator Rashi…
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Passover & The Need To Disengage From Evil
This week in synagogue we read about the first Passover. There is an extended discussion describing how God saved the Jewish people. The thing to remember is that the Jews were not just slaves. They were slaves who really, really, really got into the Egyptian lifestyle. They were also essentially domestic violence victims, caught in…