Kedoshim - Orthodox

Leviticus 19:1-20:27

By Rabbi Avraham Fischer, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

Constructive Criticism

The commandment to rebuke one another teaches the importance of mutual responsibility.

Morality is not enough. As important as it is to build an ethical society in which no harm is tolerated, the Torah sets a higher standard: to create a holy society.

Among the many mitzvot (commandments) in this part of Vayikra [Leviticus], the book of the sanctified society, we find:

You shall not hate your brother in your heart; you shall surely rebuke your friend, and you shall not bear sin upon him (Vayikra 19:17).

Here, we are taught about the importance of mutual responsibility. In the sanctified society, each individual has a personal interest that everyone aspires to holiness. This sometimes requires constructive criticism.

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Ahare Mot - Orthodox

Leviticus 16:1-18:30

The Limits Of Spirituality

Nadav and Avihu died in an act of sanctification; our goal should be to sanctify God through our lives, not our deaths.

By Rabbi Moshe Morduchowitz, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

Nadav and Avihu, two of Aaron‘s four sons, were killed, the Torah states, "when they came close before God." The Torah then goes on to describe the service performed by Aaron on Yom Kippur.

Who were Nadav and Avihu, and what do their deaths have to do with Yom Kippur?

Furthermore, why were they killed? Is it not the duty of every Jew to strive to come close to God?

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Acharon Shel Pesach, Deuteronomy 14:22-16:17; Numbers 28:19-25

By Rabbi Howard Stein for the Greater Pittsburgh Rabbinic Asssociation

The regular Torah reading for the eighth day of Passover discusses the consecration of all firstborn animals to God and the festival calendar, clearly connecting to the observance of the holiday.

However, because the last day of Passover falls on the Sabbath this year, we also read the preceding section, which describes the annual tithe and the shmita year, the seventh year when all debts were cancelled and (more significantly for Passover) all Hebrew slaves were freed. While we might think that this section is added on to give a longer Torah reading for the Sabbath, this section has its own connection to the themes of Passover.

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Yom Rishon shel Pesach - 1st Day of Passover

Exodus 12:37-42, 13:3-10

Rabbi Weinreb’s Parsha Column, Shabbat and First Day of Pesach: “Imagine That!”

Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb, OU

There was a time when I would only go out of my way to listen to speakers who were older and more experienced than I. Recently, however, I have changed my preferences and have begun to seek out speakers, rabbis and teachers, who are young and relatively inexperienced. I find their ideas fresh and often very much on the mark. After all, they are in much better touch with our fast changing world than I am.

Last year, during a visit to Israel, I sat in on a series of lectures which were designed to prepare the audience for the upcoming Passover holiday. The speaker, a brilliant young rabbi, focused upon the Seder night, and particularly upon the text of the Haggadah. He spent most of his opening lecture elaborating upon what he considered the most difficult task with which we are all confronted on the first night of Passover. The task is described in the following famous passage:

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Shabbat HaGadol/The Great Sabbath: Metzora - Orthodox

Leviticus 14:1-15:33

By Rabbi Avraham Fischer, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

The Subtleties Of One Letter

We can learn numerous lessons from the statement of the owner of a house that appears to be afflicted with spiritual defilement.

The first signs of tzaraat [a disease often translated as leprosy] must be examined carefully. Tzara’atis the collective name for afflictions that attack the body, clothing or house; the usual translation of “leprosy” is inaccurate. Tzara’at is a source of tum’ah (a hard word to translate as well; the best we might say is “spiritual defilement” determined by physical conditions), and requires purification (taharah).

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Shabbat HaChodesh: Tazria-Orthodox

Leviticus 12:1−13:59

By Rabbi Joseph Ozarowski, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

Parental Sacrifice

The burnt offering and the sin offering that a woman brings after childbirth symbolize the dual nature of parenting.

The opening verses of Tazria deal with the various rituals a woman undergoes after childbirth. After the birth of a child she brings two offerings: a year-old lamb or a turtledove or a pigeon as an olah, a burnt offering; and a turtledove or a pigeon as a chatas, a sin offering.

The Talmud questions the order of the offerings as they are described in the Torah, pointing out that when these two offerings are brought as a pair, the chatas is always offered first. Yet in these verses about childbirth, the olah is listed first.

Raba maintains that, in fact, the chatas is brought first. Why, then, is it listed second?

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Shemini, Parshat Parah - Orthodox

Leviticus 9:1-11:47

By Rabbi Avraham Fischer, provided by the Orthodox Union, the central coordinating agency for North American Orthodox Congregations for MyJewishLearning.com

The Role Of The Elders

Several commentators discuss the relationship of the elders to the priests, the people, Moses, and God.

The great day has finally arrived! All that preceded this day–the Exodus from Egypt, the Revelation at Sinai, and the building and dedication of the Mishkan (Tabernacle)–was a process designed to bring Hashem’s uninterrupted Presence into the camp of Israel. The shameful sin of the golden calf nearly brought about the destruction of the people of Israel.

However, after much painful soul-searching, Hashem and His people are reconciled. For seven days, Aaron and his sons have trained to serve as the Kohanim (priests); now, on the eighth day, nearly one year since the Exodus on the first of the month of Nisan, the moment of Divine union is here:

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