Heave offering

A heave offering ( _he. terumah), is a type of Korban (Biblical sacrifice), specifically a sacrifice which was a tithe. The term "heave offering" refers to the fact that such offerings were "heaved" (lifted) above the altar, as opposed to being waved around it, during their ritual. "Heave offerings" were the possession of the priests, and, if edible, could be eaten by their families, as well as the priests themselves if they were ritually pure [Jewish Encyclopedia] .

Originally the term was not directly connected with sarifices, simply referring to taxes and gifts made to superiors (etymologically, "terumah" simply refers to the "lifting apart" of a quantity from a larger quantity), but as most of these taxes and gifts, in Jewish law, ended up at sanctuaries, the term came to have the sacrificial meaning; a transitional phase between these two meanings is observable in the Book of Ezekiel ["Jewish Encyclopedia"] .

There were two groups of "heave offerings":
*Sacrifice/redemption of the firstborn:
**Redemption of firstborn male children (Pidyon HaBen. Note that Pidyon HaBen redemption-monies are still given to Kohanim, and the Kohen still customarily lifts the redemption coins up as part of the contemporary Pidyon Haben ceremony, but the "heave" element is not a requirement for a valid Pidyon HaBen to occur in the absence of a Temple in Jerusalem under contemporary Jewish law.)
**Tithe of First fruits ("heave-offering of the Priests" - "terumat haKohanim" in Hebrew) (Not done in the absence of a Temple in Jerusalem).
*General tithes:
**Tithe of dough ("Challah") (Contemporary practice is to burn rather than give to Kohen).
**Portion of gift offerings, of slaughter offerings, which were allocated to the Priests.
**Portion of the Terumat hamaaser (Levite Tithe - Applies only to produce grown in the Land of Israel. Contemporary practice is to set aside but to redeem with a nominal coin).

In the Talmud and Rabbinic Literature

The Mishnah, Tosefta, and Gemara, include a tract entitled "Terumot", which deals with the laws regulating "heave offerings". According to these, the tithed material could only be separated from the non-tithed material by its owner, or someone appointed on their behalf; minors, deafmutes, the mentally ill, and non-Jews were not permitted to perform such separation] ["Jewish Encyclopedia"] .

The Talmud opens with a discussion of when the Shema Yisrael ("Hear O Israel") prayer should be recited. The Mishnah states that it should be recited when Kohanim (Jewish priests) who were Tamei (ritually impure) are able to enter the Temple to eat their Terumah (heave-offerings) )"Brachot 2a). This passage is one many which intimately connect the daily rituals of Orthodox Judaism with details of the rhythm of the life of the Temple in Jerusalem.

Biblical Criticism Perspectives

The "heave offering of the tithe", though mentioned by the Priestly code is not mentioned in the Deuteronomic code; biblical criticism scholars believe that this is because the deuteronomist regarded all Levites as being able to become priests, and not just Aaronids, hence this "tithe" of a tithe would be meaningless ["Jewish Encyclopedia"] .

Notes and Citations