Sefer Vayikra Archives | Page 10 of 15 | Academy for Jewish Religion

3 03, 2014

Parashat VaYikra

By ahsilver|2014-03-03T23:15:39-05:00March 3, 2014|

Give it up!

Harold Ramis, the actor/director/screenwriter of Ghostbusters and Groundhog Day, just died. May his memory be for a blessing. His movies treat the absurd with earnest seriousness. They are works of comic genius. While discussing Groundhog Day he likened the experience of watching the movie with reading Torah.

The film is the film; It does not change…. But we are different each year, each time we see it…. It’s like Torah. Every year, every Jew all over the world reads the Torah. We start it on the same day, we read the exact same section each week as every Jew around the world. But it’s different each year. I mean, the Torah is the Torah. It hasn’t changed. But we’ve changed.

This week we begin the book of Vayikra, the central book of the Torah. Most of this book depicts a world that simply doesn’t exist anymore, a world of Read More >

3 05, 2013

Parashot Behar-Behukotai

By ahsilver|2013-05-03T10:10:56-04:00May 3, 2013|

Texts that Call for Faith
By Rabbi Judith Edelstein

This year, as in many, these two Torah portions are combined into one reading in order to accommodate the idiosyncrasies of the lunar calendar. Behar iterates the laws of the Sabbatical and Jubilee years, to occur every seventh and fiftieth year respectively. At these times the fields and vineyards of the Israelites are to remain untouched, except for gathering produce from past years, which could be shared with others and eaten, but could not be sold for profit. All land is to be returned to its previous owner; this requires adjustments in payments as the Jubilee year approaches. One is prohibited from charging interest on a loan to an indigent Israelite. Hebrew slaves are to be treated with respect and can be redeemed by a relative. Finally, Hebrew slaves can go free, although gentile slaves are to remain captive, and possessions are to be passed Read More >

18 04, 2013

Parashat Aharei Mot-Kedoshim

By Rabbi Len Levin|2013-04-18T11:15:29-04:00April 18, 2013|

Yearning for Wholeness
By Rabbi Len Levin

Chapter 19 of Leviticus is one of the most sublime-and one of the most puzzling-in the entire Bible. Imitate God through being “holy”; honor your parents; keep the Sabbath; do not put a stumbling-block before the blind; love your neighbor as yourself-what could be more ennobling and uplifting? But then there are the puzzling parts: don’t desecrate your sacrifice by keeping it till the third day; avoid mixtures in plowing, seeding, and clothing; don’t eat the fruit of immature trees. What does the one set of rules have to do with the other?

The seemingly indiscriminate mixture of ethical and ritual precepts is quite characteristic of the vision of the author of this section of Leviticus (dubbed “the Holiness Code” by modern Biblical scholars). The late Jacob Milgrom suggested, appropriately, that this author had heard the prophet Isaiah’s denunciation of those who observe priestly rituals and neglect ethics, Read More >

11 04, 2013

Parashat Tazria-Metzora

By ahsilver|2013-04-11T10:36:37-04:00April 11, 2013|

By Rabbi Dorit Edut

Great joy resounded in the halls of modern science when the long-sought after “God particle”, the Higgs-boson element, was recently confirmed in the special, underground, womb-like fission testing chamber in Switzerland. While it is entirely wonderful to think that we can now have measurable evidence of how matter begins to be formed at the level of the smallest perceivable particles, yet there is nothing here emotionally or spiritually that can compare to the experience of giving birth to a child, a truly unforgettable spiritual event in our lives. Personally, I recall the birth of my children as a physically exhausting, but emotionally exhilarating time, where closeness of life AND death were tangibly experienced. During and immediately following my daughters’ births, I experienced a closeness to God like never before and which is hard to express in words. Because we are unable to remember our own birth or Read More >

4 04, 2013

Parashat Shemini

By ahsilver|2013-04-04T10:26:24-04:00April 4, 2013|

By Rabba Kaya Stern-Kaufman

Parashat Shemini begins with the ‘grand opening’ of the Tabernacle. Aaron and his sons have been properly garbed and consecrated for their task of serving as priests. Aaron offers the very first sacrifices upon the altar, and to the astonishment of all those gathered, God responds by sending forth a fire that consumes the offering on the altar. “Fire came forth from before the Lord and consumed the burnt offering.” (Lev. 9:24) The people are overwhelmed by this display of God’s presence. The text relates “all the people saw and shouted and fell on their faces.” (Lev. 9:24) The sacrificial relationship between the people and God, that has been meticulously instructed, designed and carried out to perfection, has been consummated. The people have put forth their offerings for expiation from the sin of the Golden Calf and God has responded with acceptance. One might see this event as a second Read More >

21 03, 2013

Parashat Tzav-Shabbat Ha-Gadol

By ahsilver|2013-03-21T10:21:35-04:00March 21, 2013|

By Rabbi Judith Edelstein

Shabbat Hagadol

This “Great Shabbat,” which falls before Pesah, can be viewed as a paradigm for Judaism itself, as well as for the changing role of the rabbi over the centuries. There are a variety of explanations for the nomenclature and unique customs associated with this unique Shabbat.

“In Tosafot (Shabbat 87), in accordance with the Midrash we read: And therefore we call it Shabbat Hagadol because a great miracle was performed on that day” (Eliyahu Kitov, The Book of Our Heritage, p. 150).

Early sources describe the first Shabbat Hagadol being celebrated on the 10^th of Nisan, Saturday, five days before the Israelites escaped from Egypt. “On the tenth day of the month…each man shall take a lamb for a household…” (Exodus 12:3) It was believed that a miracle enabled the Israelites to select the lamb for sacrifice on that Shabbat, because the Egyptians, who normally would not have permitted them to do this Read More >

17 05, 2012

Parashat Behar-Behukotai

By Rabbi Ariann Weitzman|2012-05-17T19:42:24-04:00May 17, 2012|

By Rabbi Ariann Weitzman

“It should not be believed that all the beings exist for the sake of the existence of humanity. On the contrary, all the other beings too have been intended for their own sakes, and not for the sake of something else” (Maimonides, Guide for the Perplexed, 3:13).

This week’s double portion elaborates on the laws of the sabbatical and Jubilee years, detailing the extreme punishment Israel will suffer if the sabbatical years are not strictly kept. The parashah opens with the reminder that these laws were given on Sinai, orienting the reader to the centrality and importance of what is to follow. Indeed, these laws must be central to the Torah’s concern, as the texts reminds us we will be removed from our land as a result of failing to abide by them, as it is written in Leviticus 26:43, “The land will be bereft of [the Israelites] and it Read More >

9 05, 2012

Parashat Emor

By ahsilver|2012-05-09T13:53:07-04:00May 9, 2012|

Mitzvah, Not Magic

By Rabbi Allen Darnov

Parashat Emor begins with laws restricting the priests, the sons of Aaron, from contact with the dead: “The Lord said to Moses: Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them: None shall defile himself for any (dead) person among his kin” (Lev 21:1). Hizkuni (Rabbi Hezekiah ben Manoah, 13^th century, France) comments that this passage appears here by design. It follows immediately upon the last verse of Parashat Kedoshim which condemns to death anybody who summons or communicates with the dead: “A man or a woman who has a ghost or a familiar spirit shall be put to death; they shall be pelted with stones…” (20:27). Hizkuni states, “…one must stone the necromancer, because Israel has no use for them; but were you to have need of an oracle, ‘speak to the priests’ and they will inquire for you through (the Read More >

3 05, 2012

Parashat Aharei Mot-Kedoshim

By ahsilver|2012-05-03T21:12:10-04:00May 3, 2012|

By Rabbi Ziona Zelazo

Turning Mundane Holiness into Sacred Holiness

I often wonder how an esoteric term like “holy” entered our lexicon. People use terms like “Holier than Thou”, “Holy Smokes” or “Holy Cow” all the time. These terms probably have no real meaning to those who use them, other than being a figure of speech. For me, however, holiness has a spiritual and divine quality, which ideally should be experienced in a serene environment. The reality is that I live in a busy and “noisy” culture. I ask myself; “Do I even recognize the difference between what is holy and what is not? How am I supposed to feel when I encounter a holy moment or a sacred experience right here, in my own back yard”?

This week’s double portion allows us to grasp what holiness is and how to achieve it in our lives. There are three concepts presented Read More >

26 04, 2012

Parashat Tazria-Metzora

By ahsilver|2012-04-26T23:02:50-04:00April 26, 2012|

By Rabbi Eric Milgrim

Our Torah is divided into 54 regular parashiyot. In a leap year (7 times in every 19 year cycle) each parashah is read on a separate Shabbat so that the annual cycle of Torah readings are able to come at its proper time. In a “common” year certain parashyot are combined like Tazria and Metzora so that the annual cycle of Torah readings will happen in its proper time. (Since Parashat “Tzav” is supposed to be read on a Shabbat prior to Passover, therefore, Tazria and Metzora are combined.) Read More >

All shall unite to do God's will with an open heart.

All shall unite to do God's will with an open heart.

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