On Erev Purim, we have the custom of giving what is called machtzis hashekel, the half shekel. The source of this minhag is in this week’s Parsha. The Parsha discusses the requirement to give Terumah, which in this case refers to a donation to the Bais HaMikdash. Nowadays, in which there is no Bais HaMikdash, there is no requirement to give. Nonetheless, as a remembrance of this mitzvah, we give it before Purim, which was the same time it was given when the Bais HaMikdash stood.
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Rabbi Aharon Dovid Singer
Rosh Kollel, NMB Kollel
Director, South Florida Torah Initiative