As we saw in Parshat Tazria, the Sages identify tzara’at – the condition that affects human skin, the fabric of garments, and the walls of a house – not as an illness but as a punishment, and not for any sin but for one specific sin, that of lashon hara, evil speech. This prompts the obvious question: Why evil speech…
…when we most want and need community, we are being deprived of it by social distancing, by self-isolation, by quarantine. And it feels not so much like the parshiyot of Vayakhel-Pekudei as the parshiyot of Tazria and Metzora, where we read, badad yeisheiv mi’chutz lamachaneh moshavo, “He shall dwell alone in self-imposed isolation outside the camp.” (Vayikra 13:46) In New…
…by its alignment with the will and word of its Creator. Vayikra Tzav Shemini Tazria Metzora Acharei Mot Kedoshim Emor Behar Bechukotai Bamidbar (Numbers) The central theme of Bamidbar, the book of Numbers, is the second stage of the Israelites’ journey: physically from Egypt to the Promised Land, mentally from slavery to freedom. It is among the most searching, self-critical…
…responsibility to reflect those values – to react appropriately to lashon hara and create environments in which malicious speech is not tolerated. Tazria: The Price of Free Speech Praise, and how we administer it, is a fundamental element in leadership of any kind. Recognising the good in people and saying so, we help bring people’s potential to fruition. Metzora: How…
I believe we need the laws of lashon hara now more than almost ever before. Social media is awash with hate. The language of politics has become ad hominem and vile. We seem to have forgotten the messages that Tazria and Metzora teach: that evil speech is a plague. It destroys relationships, rides roughshod over people’s feelings, debases the public…
A Weekly Reading of the Jewish Bible I Believe is a personal and intimate demonstration of how Rabbi Sacks came to see the world through listening attentively to the Torah and its message for the present and all times. This is the latest book in the Covenant & Conversation series of themed books, written by Rabbi Sacks on the weekly Torah portion. The…
…Yellin College and taught at Keren Ohr and Chavat HaNoar HaTzioni. He moved to Perth in 2007, where he completed a Master’s in Special Education. He and wife, Judith, have two children. < Back to The Sacks Scholars More from Simon Lawrence Tazria: The Plague of Evil Speech – Family Edition What is True Freedom? Tikkun Leil Resource for Teenagers…
Koren Publishers have launched a new Magerman edition of the Koren Tanach featuring, for the first time, the complete translation of Chumash by Rabbi Sacks zt”l. You can order your copy here and view the opening pages below. Peek Inside…
Praise, and how we administer it, is a fundamental element in leadership of any kind. Recognising the good in people and saying so, we help bring people’s potential to fruition. Praising their efforts rather than their innate gifts helps encourage growth, about which Hillel used to say: “He who does not increase his knowledge, loses it” (Mishnah Avot 1:13). The…