Parashat Ha Shavua Commentaries

In any five-book anthology, the third book always forms the center of that collection. So it is that Va-Yikra (Leviticus) is the center of the Torah. At the center of Va-Yikra is Kedoshim, the Holiness Code. This parashah central in more than just location. A pinnacle of spirit and morality, it embodies the high water mark of all religious writing, in any period. Read more...

In any five-book anthology, the third book always forms the center of that collection. So it is that Va-Yikra (Leviticus) is the center of the Torah. At the center of Va-Yikra is Kedoshim, the Holiness Code. This parashah central in more than just location. A pinnacle of spirit and morality, it embodies the high water mark of all religious writing, in any period. Read more...

Our ancestors, like others in the ancient Near East, suffered from frequent eruptions of a variety of skin diseases, called 'tzara'at.' Many of these 'leprosies' were quite severe, and they carried a severe social stigma in every culture in the ancient world. Countless stories in the Bible and the Talmud attest to the dread consequences of this illness and the devastation it could bring into the lives of individuals, families and communities. Read more...

Traditionally, the Book of Va-Yikra (Leviticus) was known as Torah Kohanim, "the Teachings of the Priests." Its contents are directed to people who would be ministering in the TempleinJerusalemand its topics pertain to priestly sacrifice, ritual and purity. Read more...

Sefer Vayikra, the Book of Leviticus, is at the center of the Torah, not only spatially, but also spiritually. More than any other single book, Vayikra sets the tone and establishes the central themes of biblical and rabbinic Judaism throughout the ages. Read more...