Lead Tidbit
Remember the Past; Plan the Future
Each of the four special Shabbatot (all during Adar Sheni this year - Say, this month not only has five Shabbatot [see Month box, page 2], but in Jerusalem, every one is a multiple-Torah Shabbat - this happens whenever there is a Purim M'shulash), has an element of looking back and one of looking forward.

Certainly, ZACHOR is a "Remembering Parsha", but it also looks to the future when the war against Amalek throughout the generations will finally be won. Sh'kalim commemorates the collection of the silver half-shekels from the very beginning of nationhood through the tenure of the Beit HaMikdashes (i.e. Batei Mikdash). But without a strong element of hopeful anticipation for the restoration of the Mikdash and the mitzvot dependent upon it, the commemorative is hollow.

This is not just an idea related to the Four Parshiyot; it permeates all of Judaism. The "In every generation a person should see himself as coming out of Egypt" idea, and the "Every day one should feel as if he received the Torah today" concept, brings the past into the present. We must take the next step and add the element of Future to the equation.

As this is so with Sh'kalim, so it is so with Para Aduma and the quest for purity that needs our forward-looking attitude in order to become a reality. As significant as the nine Parot Adumot in Jewish History are, it is the tenth one we anticipate that symbolizes our striving for sanctity and spirituality.

And so it is with next week's HaChodesh that we view the sacred Jewish calendar as something that predates the Exodus, something that has accompanied us throughout Jewish History, be it in times of Sanhedrin or with our "alternate" plan for the Jewish Calendar, something that we are acutely aware of in our own time, and something that is part of the longing for the Geula Sh'leima.

This longing must be accompanied by action in spreading Torah, mitzvot, and values to our fellow Jews, building up the Jewish population of Eretz Yisrael (and NOT dismantling Jewish communities and displacing Jews from their homes). Past must show us the way to the future.