Shabbat comes in 5.55pm: goes out 6.59pm
The laws concerning sacrifices always seem dry or not pertinent to today’s world. Yet the rabbis always find lessons in them that are eternal. Take the ”shelamim,” peace-offering or offering of well-being — it teaches a lesson that actually is important for me with regards to my children. My three lovely children frequently invoke the phrase: “That’s not fair, why do you give to him (or her) and not me!?” I try to be clear that everyone gets something.
Unlike the burnt offering which was completely consumed on the altar, the peace-offering was a sacred meal, shared by donors and priests.
Rashi explains the origin of the term for peace-offering (“shelamim”) “it has the spiritual capacity for increasing peace in the world… and they are called shlamim because through them there is “peace” and harmony for the altar, the priests, and the owners since all three receive a portion of the offering.”
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Paul Arberman
