Reading: Scripture.

NAKH YOMI - STEINSALTZ CYCLE: I SAMUEL 1 - 3.
The Book of Samuel opens with the story of Hannah, the childless wife of Elkanah. She visits the shrine at Shilo and prays; the priest Eli, who at first thinks she is drunk, blesses Hannah, although he does not know the content of her prayer. Hannah's prayer is fulfilled, and she consecrates her firstborn son, Samuel, to Divine service in the sanctuary at Shilo (where he grows up in the household of Eli and the priest's unworthy sons). Hannah in turn is blessed with five more children, whom she raises in her own household.

Modern-day American mothers who willingly raise five or more children are the subject of the book "Hannah's Children" by Catherine Pakaluk: "women who see children as their contribution, their purpose, and their greatest blessing." [138]

Reading: Scripture.

WEEKLY TORAH READING - SHOFTIM, ALIYAH 2.

Deut. 17:16 - "[The king] shall not gather many horses to himself, nor shall he return the people to Egypt in order to gather horses." Steinsaltz and Alter note that Egypt was a famed equestrian power, and a major exporter of horses; so any king who desired a large cavalry force would need to maintain good relations with Egypt. The dangers to Israel of being dependent on a foreign power for weapons are evident in our own day as well. [87]

Reading.

HARRY POTTER 5 - ORDER OF THE PHOENIX: to Chapter 12. Harry's world is changing. First, an encounter with a Dementor on the streets of Little Whinging puts Harry on notice that the old boundaries between the magical world and the mundane one have begun to fall. Then (with the Dursleys safely distracted), he is spirited away, not to Hogwarts directly but to the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix - a secret organization founded to fight the resurgent Voldemort, in defiance of official denials of the Voldemort threat. Harry, returning to classes at Hogwarts, narrowly escapes politically-motivated prosecution for defending himself against the Dementor, but does not escape his classmates' distrust and suspicion following the deadly events of last year.

The mood of the book is distinctly somber and menacing. Fear and isolation are taking a toll on Harry, and his lines of dialog are often abrupt and irritable. He has gone from rock star to pariah among his classmates at Hogwarts, and the arrival of hostile meddling from the Ministry - in the person of Dolores Umbridge - bodes ill for Harry's relations with the leadership there.

The Deep State takeover of Hogwarts has an eerily familiar feel to it. Students of the Defense Against Dark Arts class are now confined to studying theory only - and not practice - because "Who do you imagine wants to attack children like yourselves?" It is insolence bordering on treason to acknowledge the existence of any threat from Voldemort - who, after all, may not even be named. [258]