
One of the red heifer candidates raised by the Temple Institute.
The red heifer (Hebrew: פָרָה אֲדֻמָּה; para adumma), also known as the red cow, was a cow brought to the priests as a sacrifice according to the Torah, and its ashes were used for the ritual purification of Tum'at HaMet ("the impurity of the dead"), that is, an Israelite who had come into contact with a corpse.
While the breed of beef cattle Red Angus is quite plentiful, a red heifer that conforms with all of the rigid requirements imposed by halakha as set forth in the Bible's Book of Numbers is a biological anomaly. For example, the animal must be entirely of one color, with no other patches of color whatsoever. Nor can a red cow have been previously yoked or milked. Given the rigid standards imposed, Jewish tradition holds that only nine red heifers were actually slaughtered in the period extending from Moses to the destruction of the Second Temple.
Because the state of ritual purity obtained through the ashes of a red heifer is a necessary prerequisite for participating in Temple service, efforts have been made in modern times by Jews wishing for biblical ritual purity and in anticipation of the building of the Third Temple to locate a red heifer and recreate the ritual. However, multiple candidates have been disqualified. In September 2022, five perfect unblemished red heifers were brought to Israel from the USA and found to meet the qualifications after being inspected by rabbis. The heifers will be fed and cared for by an entity called the Temple Institute until the time that they can be slaughtered and used to create the necessary ashes for purification.
Red heifer in Alpha and Omega[]
The Reconstruction Alliance of Israel had heard of the birth of a red heifer in Arkansas, USA. They investigated Bill Henderson's farm, determining it was never an Indian burial ground and so not ritually polluted. After a thorough investigation, they sent Yitzhak Avigad to examine the animal. He determined Rosie was completely red, without any white patches and so agreed to buy the cow.[1]
References[]
- ↑ Alpha and Omega, pgs. 11-15, hc.
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