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HOUSMAIL HM007 19
October 1998 THE TENTH RED HEIFER From
time to time, I have run across reports which wax eloquent about the alleged
birth of a new Red Heifer in Israel sometime in late 1996. It is claimed that
this is the first Red Heifer to be born in Israel in nearly 2000 years. If
this is indeed a genuine Red heifer, then for the first time since the
destruction of the Second Temple in AD70, the Jews have the ability to
recommence an ancient ritual, instituted by Moses. Purification of the Temple
Site by this ritual, would be an essential prerequisite for building a Third
Temple in Jerusalem. If
all has gone well, this animal would have become ready for sacrifice, any
time following 8 October this year. As
might be expected, this event has fuelled a lot of speculation about the
possibility of the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem, in the immediate
future. However,
be warned! There is a LOT of conflicting information out there, which is
clearly not all as reliable as we might hope. It is not easy to decide just
how much is useful and profitable, compared with other material which might
have been given an "adjusted" emphasis to advance the cause of
particular "vested interests". The
information which does appear here has been prayerfully sifted, in an attempt
to provide a low-key summary of what is happening, without getting too
excited about some of the more sensational claims. But
first some background ..... THE
BIBLICAL SIGNIFICANCE OF THE RED HEIFER. The
sacrifice of the Red Heifer has its origin in a ritual instituted by Moses in
the Wilderness. (Numbers 19) A
Red Heifer was to be selected which was free from defect or blemish, and
"upon which a yoke had never come". (verse
2) It was to be burnt to ashes, together with
cedarwood, hyssop and "scarlet stuff". (verse 6 RSV) The ashes were
to be kept in a clean place outside the camp for "the water of impurity,
for the removal of sin". (verse 9) As
described by Moses, they were to be used by the people of Israel for the
ritual cleansing of those who came in contact with dead bodies. They were
also to be used for the ritual cleansing of the tent in which a death had
taken place. Any people who had been in the tent, as well as open vessels and
furnishings in the tent, were also subject to cleansing. (verses 14-19) The
requirement was very strict. Those who had not gone through the ritual of
purification, were to be excluded from the congregation. (verse 20) It
is important to notice that this law is a perpetual obligation which began in
the wilderness ..... NOT in the promised land. And it predates the Temple by
centuries. There is nothing at all in what Moses said, to suggest that it was
intended as a special Temple service. However, the requirement for cleansing
after contact with the dead, applied to the whole of the area occupied by the
Jews. Thus, a death on the Temple site would create a need for cleansing of
the Temple itself; and any who were ritually unclean through contact with the
dead, could never enter the Temple without undergoing a personal purification
ceremony. THE
RED HEIFER IN RABBINIC TRADITION In
later Jewish Rabbinic TRADITION, the Red Heifer did become closely associated
with the Temple services. And although Moses said that the ashes were to be
stored "outside the camp", it became more convenient to store them
in stone jars in the Temple precincts. The
catalogue of possible causes of "corpse defilement" grew to be
massive. The list came to include entering tombs, stepping on graves, or even
casting one's shadow across a corpse or a grave. Towards the end of the
Second Temple era, cities such as Tiberias were declared "off
limits" to Jews, because they contained UNMARKED graves which would
contaminate those who unwittingly stepped on them! One
source I found says that after the Babylonian destruction of the First
Temple, every land outside Israel was declared "corpse
contaminated". And after the destruction of the Second Temple, even
Israel was declared unclean! If enforced today in a strict Jewish culture,
this would mean that virtually EVERYONE, anywhere in the world, would require
a "Red Heifer cleansing" to become ritually pure. No Temple could
be built, and no one, Priest or layman, could ever serve or worship in the
Temple, without a prior Red Heifer ceremony. THE
TENTH RED HEIFER According
to Rabbinic tradition, since Moses first instituted the ritual described
below, only NINE such Red Heifers have been sacrificed in Israel. (all prior
to the destruction of the second Temple) This new Red Heifer is being
claimed, by some fundamentalist Jews, to be the fulfilment of a century’s old
prophecy by the Jewish Rabbi Maimonides, that the TENTH Red Heifer will
herald the appearance of the Jewish Messiah. Her
name is Melody! She
is a reddish-brown heifer. She was born from a black and white Holstein
mother, living in Northern Israel, artificially inseminated with sperm from
an anonymous dun bull, living in Switzerland. This unlikely colouring for a
calf from such parents, has been hailed by some religious Jews as a miracle. But
..... is she really the TENTH genuine Red Heifer? Based
on information available at this time, it would be impossible to confirm
this, one way or the other. On
the one hand, it is said that some rabbis have confirmed that Melody is a
genuine Red Heifer in the Biblical and Talmudic tradition. However,
on the other hand, this is by no means certain! Like most things religious,
there is more than one opinion around! There are others who have noticed
possible flaws which cause them to reserve judgement. It seems there are some
white hairs on Melody's tail, some partially black eyelashes, and a couple of
other marks, which may be potential sources of disqualification. Alas,
we simple laymen who observe from the other side of the world, must simply
wait and see! 20TH
CENTURY SIGNIFICANCE A.
FOR JEWS For
many non-religious Jews, the new Red Heifer is the source of great political
embarrassment. To
clear space for the building of a Third Temple would require the demolishing
of the Dome Of The Rock. Any Jewish attempt to demolish this THIRD HOLIEST
Muslim site, has the potential to start World War 3! This uncomfortable
prospect has even led to serious suggestions that the Israeli government
should intervene to destroy Melody before a war is precipitated! However,
for strictly religious Jews, there would be great significance in the
appearance of a genuine Red heifer. For them the rebuilding of the Temple is
a binding obligation. When
it was destroyed in AD70, the Temple site was the scene of many deaths. It
has never yet been "ritually purified" from the defilement caused
by those deaths. Rabbinical tradition would require cleansing of the site by
the Red Heifer ritual, as an essential prerequisite to restoration of Temple
services. That requirement for cleansing would extend to all prospective
Priests and worshippers, who might somehow have become defiled. A
Red Heifer is essential for the rebuilding and dedication of a new Temple. B.
FOR CHRISTIANS There
is a maze of confusion to negotiate! There
are many whose imprudent credulity has caused them to throw proper caution to
the winds. And there are others who have jumped on the bandwagon, with
various enthusiastic claims of their own. There are "expositors of
prophecy" who are making extravagant, and largely unbiblical,
predictions for the short-term future. There are "evangelists" who
are using it in a "scare campaign", which attempts to frighten
people into the Church. There are some commercially minded people who have
things to sell. (books, or tapes and videos, or T-shirts imprinted with
"Red Heifer" logos, etc.) There are some with a diverse range of
other "financial interests" at stake. And to cater for the
"globe trotters", there are even some enterprising souls who are
now conducting tours for the faithful to see (and even be photographed with)
the new Red Heifer! However,
there are certainly also many genuine souls longing for the return of Jesus,
and the appearance of Kingdom of God, who will quietly and CAUTIOUSLY watch
to see what, if anything, develops from this significant event. These
cautious disciples will understand the need for prudence in choosing the
good, refusing the bad, and waiting until till they have enough reliable
information to do that. For
the present, it should certainly be regarded as something which has the
potential to develop into events which would affect the already unstable
Middle East "peace", and touch all of us in uncomfortable ways. As
to whether there MUST be a Third Temple Built before Jesus returns, there are
diverse opinions. The Futurist school of prophecy says, "definitely
yes". The Historicists, by and large, say "probably no". It
is certainly not impossible that there could be some future Jewish attempt to
demolish the Dome of the Rock, with the construction of a Temple in view. Indeed,
that would not be surprising at all. There have ALREADY been several abortive
attempts by extremists to do just that! And there are several organisations
who are making active preparations, such as production of architectural
plans, training Priests, or making clothing and vessels for the Temple
service. On 7 October last, there was even a token attempt to lay a
foundation stone on the site. However,
even if those plans do come to fruition, my personal leaning is towards the
view that it is unlikely that Temple services will ever be restored this side
of the Kingdom. God
willing, this vexed question, will be discussed in the next HOUSMAIL. CONCLUSION? There
are too many unanswered questions to venture a final informed opinion about
Melody, the Red Heifer. The
important thing is that we must not allow a Red Heifer to become a "RED
HERRING" which distracts our attention from our real goals as
Christians. For those who look forward with hope to the return of the MESSIAH
to establish His Kingdom, there are other much more important priorities. There
is a SPIRITUAL CLEANSING from the defilement of SIN which is foreshadowed in
the meaning behind that Old Testament Red Heifer ritual. (Hebrews 9:13) This
cleansing is essential for all who want to become living stones in that REAL
New Temple, in which JESUS is the chief cornerstone (Ephesians 2:20) and in which
spiritual sacrifices are ALREADY being offered by a new Royal Priesthood. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20, 2 Corinthians 6:16-18, & 1 Peter 2:2-5) "Since we have these promises, beloved,
let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, and make
HOLINESS PERFECT in the fear of God." (2 Corinthians 7:1) Allon |