The Torah also known as the Five Books of Moses or the Pentateuch was entrusted to a particular people and culture—Israel—who was given this task to spread HaShem’s light throughout the world. The Torah portion (also phonetically spelled parashat hashavuah) serves as the focal point for learning the mind of HaShem and applying His Mitzvolts to our lives.

This is accomplished by many different means including: individual study, informal discussion groups, and sermons. The Torah is divided into 54 separate portions, each one named for the first word or words of the passage — and each linked to a specific week with two portions being doubled up to account for the 52 weeks in a year. These portions are read weekly from the Torah scroll during the Torah service in synagogue on Shabbat (Saturday) morning.

The Torah is part of the Tanach, known in Christianity as the Old Testament. Tanach is an acronym for Torah, Nevi’im (Prophets), and Ketuvim (Writings).

The origin of The Haftarah reading has truly been lost to history, yet several theories are proposed to explain its role in practice, suggesting it arose in response to the persecution of the Jews under Antiochus IV Epiphanes which preceded the Maccabean Revolt, wherein Torah reading was prohibited, or that it was instituted against the Samaritans, who denied the canonicity of the Prophets (except for Joshua), and later against the Sadducees. Another theory is that it was instituted after some act of persecution or other disaster in which the synagogue Torah scrolls were destroyed or ruined - it was forbidden to read the Torah portion from any but a ritually fit parchment scroll, but there was no such requirement about a reading from Prophets, which was then substituted as a temporary expedient and then remained.

The Brit Chadasha (New Testament) makes several references suggesting this custom was in place during that era.

In a desire to universalize the Scriptures and make them more personally relevant, the traditional Church had divorced the Scriptures from their original Hebraic context, and outside of this proper context, people mistakenly felt free to interpret it as they saw fit. This resulted and continues to result in nothing but confusion and misunderstanding.

The teachings of Y’shua and the entire Brit Hadasha (New Testament) are the fulfilled (completed explanation) message of HaShem for His people. Unfortunately, most neglect the message’s foundation of the law, the prophets, and the writings of the Tanach (Old Testament). You see, reading the scriptures in such a way only produces a lopsided understanding of HaShem’s mind and His plan for His people’s lives.

By restoring the message to its historical, cultural, and linguistic context, and by giving proper attention to the scripture’s own foundation and complete message, the people of Elohim will see correction and healing as we now walk in the likeness of His son Messiah Y’shua.