Acharei Mot-Kedoshim
Leviticus 16:1-:20:27
Précis: Acharei Mot
begins with Adonai speaking to Moses after the death (acharei mot) of Aaron’s sons. It describes the rituals for Yom
Kippur, including the prescribed sacrifices. There are specific details about
the purification of the Sanctuary, vessels, and the priests. Following this
descriptions, rules for the slaughter of meat (including the prohibition
against eating blood) are reiterated. The parasha concludes with a listing of
prohibited marriages.
The opening words of Kedoshim
are “You shall be holy” (kedoshim tihyu),
and it continues with various descriptions of how the People are to strive for
holiness. Included are fundamental laws, such as fearing one’s parents and
observing Shabbat. Consideration of the poor through the commandments to leave
the corners of fields for gleaners is included, as are mandates which
complement the ethical principles of the Ten Commandments (being honest,
avoiding vengeance). Specific bans against magicians, soothsaying, witchcraft
and defiling the dead follow, as are reminders to avoid human sacrifice. This
parasha is often viewed as the very core of moral teaching for the Jewish
People.
Leviticus 19:18 – “You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against members of your people. Love your fellow as yourself: I am the Eternal.”
Kedoshim marks a major change of trajectory in Leviticus. Up to now (and especially in the last several weeks), the focus has been on rituals and sacrifices. We now move to statements of individual actions, and a reiteration of portions of the Ten Commandments with a special focus on ethical and moral mandates. As Rabbi Hertz has noted, these disparate parts of Leviticus (ritual and ethics) are united by an underlying theme: both are explanations for how human beings are to achieve “holiness.” The verse cited here is an attempt to command “love” for one another.
Reversing the emphasis of this verse, Hillel famously stated, “What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor.” (Shabbat 31a). We see at the very center of Judaism an emphasis on avoiding harm to “the other.”
The Torah text demands that we love one another. But how are we to learn to love the other? The sages over the centuries tried to illuminate this mandate. Maimonides suggests that we show our love through the fulfillment of other mitzvot: visiting the sick, comforting the mourner, clothing the naked, feeding the hungry. But do we achieve the emotional state the Torah demands through such actions?
There is an old aphorism that states, “Actions speak louder than words.” We show love by acting as if we love. I would add, from personal experience, that when one engages in one of the actions suggested by Maimonides, one can experience true emotional satisfaction. Is this the kind of “love” the Torah demands? If it isn’t, it may just have to do.
