TORAH READINGS: Deuteronomy 2020

DEUTERONOMY READINGS, SPECIAL EVENTS AND FESTIVALS IN AUGUST, SEPTEMBER, OCTOBER and NOVEMBER 2020

Contents

Special Events Before the End of the Hebrew Year

Make your own prayer to mention the new month on the EVENING BEFORE the day listed below:

Note: read Eloowwem, Shehmaa and El, names of the Almighty.

Samaritans count the beginning of the year from the entrance of the People of Israel to the Sacred Land. This took place in the sixth month of the Hebrew calendar.

Please Note the Beginnings of the Following Months:

Sixth Month 3659 – Wednesday Evening, 16 September 2020

Seventh Month 3659 – Friday Evening, 16 October 2020

Eighth Month 3659 – Saturday Evening, 14 November 2020

Ninth Month 3659 – Monday Evening, 14 December 2020

Tenth Month 3659 – Tuesday Evening, 12 January 2021

Eleventh Month 3659 – Thursday Evening, 11 February 2021

Twelfth Month 3659 – Friday Evening, 12 March 2021

First Month 3659 – Sunday Evening, 11 April 2021

Please find all the prayers for Shabbat and weekdays here: Prayers

Before the Friday evening meal read Poem “C” by Abraham ben Marchiv Tsedaka Hassafari (1852-1928) on the Prayers page

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The Reading Schedule for the Portions of Deuteronomy

1st Reading

29 August 2020

Deuteronomy 1:1 – 4:4

After reading the portion please read aloud together:
Deuteronomy 5:12-15

Then, say aloud together:

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2nd Reading

5 September 2020

Deuteronomy 4:5 – 6:25

A Special Shabbat to remember the transfer of the priesthood from Aaron to Elazar and the donation of one half-shekel to the worship of the Almighty. Read the portion including the Ten Commandments [5:6-18+] aloud, together, while standing. (The verse numbers refer to the Samaritan Torah – not all Samaritan verses exist in the Masoretic version, and not all verses have the same numbering).

At the end of the reading please read aloud together:
Numbers 20:23-29 and Exodus 30:11-16

Then read the last verses of the portion:
Deuteronomy 6:24-25 aloud, together, while sitting.

Then, say aloud together:

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3rd Reading

12 September 2020

Deuteronomy 7:1-11:30

After the portion please read aloud together:
Deuteronomy 33:28-29

Then, say aloud together:

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4th and 5th Readings

19 September 2020

Deuteronomy 11:31 – 16:17
After the portion please read aloud together:
Deuteronomy 33:28-29

Then, say aloud together:

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6th Reading

26 September 2020

Deuteronomy 16:18 – 22:12

After the portion please read aloud together:
Deuteronomy 33:28-29

Then read the passage Deuteronomy 28:1-11 aloud, together.

Then, say aloud together:

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7th Reading

3 October 2020

Deuteronomy 22:13 – 26:15

After the portion please read aloud together:
Deuteronomy 33:28-29

Then read the passage Deuteronomy 28:1-11 aloud, together.

At the end of this portion, the end of the Torah, say aloud together:

(There is a special poem and prayer to read then. For this prayer, and others related to the reading of the portions please see the Prayers page

8th and 9th Readings

10 October 2020

Deuteronomy 26:16 – 34:12

The last portion of the Torah.

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SPECIAL EVENTS AND FESTIVALS

The Festival of the Seventh Month

Friday17 October 2020

Special Event

The Festival of the Seventh Month begins the Fallow Year. The first day of this month begins the cycle of the seventh fallow year. Likewise, the Jubilee Year, the fiftieth year, begins and ends on the first day of the seventh month, after which we calculate the next cycle of the seventh fallow year.
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The Sabbath of Ten Days of Forgiveness

Saturday 24 October 2020

Special Sabbath

We recommend reading the entire Book of Deuteronomy, followed by a family discussion about the value of Atonement and forgiveness between one person and another. There is no special portion for this Sabbath.

On the days between the Festival of the Seventh Month and the Day of Atonement, the congregation is sanctified with special prayers every evening and morning, and its members prepare themselves for the atonement of their guilt. These are the days of mercy, forgiveness, atonement, grace and favour. We have an opportunity for salvation and escape from sin.
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The Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur

Monday 26 October 2020 (Starts on Sunday 25 October 2020)

Special Event

We bestow the highest praise on the Day of Atonement. It is the ultimate Sabbath and festival, the crowning festival of grace. Samaritans consider a person who afflicts their soul with total resolve to be reborn. On this day, the whole congregation stands from one evening to the next in prayer, and reads God’s Torah. On this day the shofar (the ram’s horn) sounds for Israel, and freedom will be attained in the struggle with sin. So for us this day is the king of festivals, and the day on which forgiveness radiates.
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The Sukkot Festival

Saturday 31 October 2020

The Third Pilgrimage of the Year

There are no better days for the Samaritans of Israel than the days of the Harvest Festival. Following the fast of the Day of Atonement, the tradition of our sages encourages the sense of having been born again. Consequently, each member of the congregation feels renewed strength and vigour for the building of the sukkah (booth).
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The Feast of Shemini Atseret (The Eighth Day of Sukkot)

Saturday 7 November 2020

Special Event

For Samaritans the day of Shemini Atseret (the Eighth Day of Sukkot) represents the culmination of all the festivals of the year. It is the last, but not the least of the annual festivals. At the end of the festival prayer service, we rejoice with the joy of Simchat Torah (the Rejoicing of the Torah) and then depart for the very sumptuous festive meal.

Benyamim Tsedaka

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Please note: on Sabbaths and Festivals the worship is the same, from sunset the evening before until sunset the evening after. Adjust to the time of the sunset in your time zone, wherever you are.

Photography: Ori Orhof