Sacrificing for Torah

This week's reading contains one of the more famous cases of a Medrashic teaching that clearly departs from the plain meaning of the words. Discussing the laws of purity and impurity, the Torah says, "This is the teaching: when a man dies in a tent, all who come into...
We Cannot Outsmart our G-d

We Cannot Outsmart our G-d

In this week's reading, the spies were sent out to investigate the Land of Israel, to see how to enter and minimize risk. They returned with a bad report: "indeed, it is a land flowing with milk and honey," they said, even bringing back samples of the oversized fruit...

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Unseen Influence

Unseen Influence

Our reading this week juxtaposes two very different things: the Sotah and the Nazir. A Sotah was a woman suspected of being unfaithful to her marital vows. If, instead of admitting what she had done, she agreed to a Divine test in the Holy Temple, then if she had not...

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By a Higher Standard

By a Higher Standard

In between instructing us regarding Kosher food and forbidden relationships, Hashem, in our reading this week, gives us a more general instruction: "According to the behavior of the land of Egypt, in which you dwelled, you shall not do, and like the behavior of the...

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Purity is Personal

Purity is Personal

Our combined reading this week, of the portions Tazria and Metzorah, speaks a great deal about types of purity and impurity. Even something as beautiful as childbirth means that the mother is no longer carrying the baby, and that brings with it impurity. But there is...

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Running Away from Honor

Running Away from Honor

Our reading begins, “And He [G-d] called to Moshe, and Hashem spoke to him from the Tent of Meeting, saying...” [1:1] The first word of this book, that which identifies the Sefer as “Vayikra,” is traditionally written with an unusally small letter Aleph at the end of...

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Ups and Downs

Ups and Downs

We learn this week that after all of the instructions, and all of the work done to build the Tabernacle and its holy vessels, the Tabernacle was finally erected and put into service on the first day of Nissan in the year following the Exodus from Egypt. The Medrash...

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