This week we are reading two Torah portions, Acharei-Mot and Kedoshim. The opening verses of the former one, Acharei-Mot, discuss the appropriate way in which Aaron should comport himself as he enters the Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle. After the Temple in Jerusalem was built, these verses served as an instruction describing how the […]
Disease, Death and Divine Punishment
Thoughts on Parashat Tzariah-Metzorah In this week’s Torah portion we find an extensive overview of the issue of leprosy, including detailed instructions on how to deal with people suffering from this disease, how long such persons should be isolated from the community and what role is to be played in all these by the spiritual […]
Remembrance and Responsibility
A large part of this week’s Torah portion, parashat Tazria-Metzora, deals with ways of diagnosing tzaraat, a disease which makes people, garments and houses ritually unclean. I have a hard time linking this section of the Torah to our modern-day life – at times it seems as though one was leafing through an ancient atlas […]
Sacrificial Offerings: a Contemporary View
Thoughts on Parashat Shemini This week’s Torah portion dedicates much attention to the sacrificial offerings offered to the Eternal in the Tabernacle in the desert. There were essentially six categories of sacrificial offerings made to God, but we are not going to analyze them here. Instead, we will focus on the different roles which the […]
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