The book of Vayikra draws to a close by outlining the blessings that will follow if the people are faithful to their covenant with God. Then it describes the curses that will befall them if they are not. The general principle is clear. In biblical times, the fate of the nation mirrored the conduct of the nation. If people behaved…
…give us hope? The Core Idea The book of Vayikra ends with blessings and curses. The blessings will be the result if the people keep their covenant with God. The curses will happen to them if they break their promises. The general principle is clear. If people behave well, the nation will do well. If they behave badly, eventually bad…
…Covenant and Conversation for the double parsha of Acharei Mot – Kedoshim, it was the Priests who taught the people the specific ethic of holiness. The key text of the holiness ethic is Vayikra 19: “Be holy for I, the Lord your God, am holy.” It is this chapter that teaches the two great commands of interpersonal love, of the…
…was their decision whether or not to change their behaviour. The Sages had a completely different approach. First, they understood the task of remonstrating as belonging to everyone, not just Prophets. That is how they understood the verse, “You shall surely rebuke your neighbour so you will not share in their guilt” (Vayikra 19:17). Second, they held that it should…
…are willing to serve as leaders. It does not matter that we think ourselves inadequate. Moses did. So did Aaron. What matters is the willingness, when challenge calls, to say, Hineni, “Here I am.” [1] As described in Exodus 40. [2] Rashi to Lev. 9:7, quoting Sifra. [3] Vayikra Rabbah 12:1; Ramban to Lev. 10:9. [4] Vayikra Rabbah 20:10. [5]…
…refutation. Judaism is a religion of love, three loves: loving God with all our heart, our soul, and our might (Devarim 6:5); loving our neighbour as ourselves (Vayikra 19:18); and loving the stranger because we know what it feels like to be a stranger (Devarim 10:19). Judaism is, from beginning to end, the story of a love: God’s love for…
…eternal people. How is it that these supreme Prophets of doom also became supreme Prophets of hope? Because they relied on God’s promise in parshat Bechukotai that “even when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not so despise them as to destroy them, thus invalidating My covenant with them.” (Vayikra 26:44) God says ‘I will keep…
…gave their mirrors for the bronze washbasin. Most of the narrative reads as if it belongs to Sefer Vayikra, the book of holiness, rather than Sefer Shemot, the book of freedom. Questions to Ponder 1. Have you previously heard any answers to this question, or do you have your own answer? 2. If the main actors in the story are…
…likeness of God.” (Bereishit 5:1). Ben Zoma preferred, “Shema Yisrael – Listen, Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.” (Devarim 6:4) Ben Nannas said “Love your neighbour as yourself” (Vayikra 19:18) was even more fundamental to Judaism. Then Ben Pazzi came up with a verse from this week’s parsha. He quoted the passuk, “One sheep shall be offered…
…for their diligent work on converting Rabbi Sacks’ wise words into the Arabic language, we are excited that this endeavour will bring the weekly Torah essays to a whole new audience. Vayikra and Tzav essays from the Spirituality series of Covenant & Conversation were the first Arabic PDFs to appear on the respective C&C pages, with more to follow very…