NEWS YOU CAN USE IMPORTANT INFORMATION TIME SENSITIVE RESPONSE REQUIRED PARASHAT BEHAR-BECHUKOTAI Leviticus 25:1 – 27:34 Parashat Behar-Bechukkotai opens on Mount Sinai. At the introduction to this parasha, we find the detailed laws related to sh'mitah, the sabbatical year as well as the yovel, the jubilee year. While sh'mitah involves a seven–year cycle of letting the land lay fallow and the remission of loans, the yovel reflects a fifty-year cycle involving the emancipation of slaves and the return of property to their original owners. Abarbanel; the medieval exegete, (1437-1508, Spain, Italy) suggests that sh'mitah and yovel were emblematic of two of God's expressions of kindness: creation as in the first Shabbat after the creation of the world and revelation as in the giving of Torah fifty days after the Israelites flight from Egypt. For Abarbanel, the cyclical pattern of seven reflected in sh'mitah is part of the larger, existential order of God's creation of the world; similarly, yovel, the jubilee year connects us directly back to the moment of revelation at Sinai through recalling the number fifty. Creation and revelation become bound in two sacred moments in the Jewish calendar. During the seventh year, one is compelled to remember God created the land that we cultivate. Moreover, God is the ultimate loan officer as all blessings emanate from this source. The jubilee year reminds us explicitly of the moment in which God declares unequivocally that we are God's servants — not the servants of humans. Therefore, it is not surprising that slaves are emancipated; they return to the master of the universe. Ultimately, sh'mitah and yovel are humbling experiences. They remind us of our role in creation and revelation. More importantly, by dwelling on the themes of these observances and taking them to heart, we bring the third significant historical moment in Judaism closer — redemption. Shabbat Shalom, Silvia Eilath .