Parshat Shemini; Leviticus 9:1-11:47 By: Rabbi Denise L. Eger

Parshat Shemini introduces us to the beginnings of the dietary laws of Judaism. This week’s Torah portion describes the basic rules for keeping kosher. The portion outlines those animals that are permitted to be ritually slaughtered and eaten. Those animals are “those with true hoofs, clefts through the hoof and chews the cud” (Lev. 11:3). Fish “that have fins and scales” (Lev. 11:9) are permitted. But they must have both features. There are several listing of those animals, birds and fish that are not permitted and are seen as unclean including those animals without hoofs: camel rabbits, pigs, and sea creatures with out fins and scales and a variety of birds including the eagle, raven, ostrich, herons, owls and pelicans. Also most insects with the exception of locust, crickets and grasshoppers are forbidden by the Torah.

The laws of kashrut get further developed in the rabbinic literature and codes to the complete separation of meat and milk and having separate dishes and cookware. But the initial restrictions come from this week’s portion.

These laws of kashrut help us understand that what we put into our bodies matter and that even something as basic to life as eating can be framed through the lens of holiness. When we restrict what we eat and control our diet we have a different kind of awareness of our lives and the animals whose lives are sacrificed to provide human beings with food. This is alluded to in verse 44 of chapter 11 of the portion which calls upon Israel to sanctify itself and be holy. Midrash Rabba says about this portion, specifically, verse 2 of chapter 11,
““These are the living things which you may eat among all of the beasts that are on the earth.” This is alluded to in what is written, “Every word of God is pure (Prov. 30:5).” Rab said: This means the precepts were given for the express purpose of purifying humanity.”

The laws of kashrut are to help us reshape our approach to food create a spiritual template to elevate our baser instincts. The laws of kashrut help us spiritually center our eating to know that we are bound to God and community even through the food we eat.

Certainly as the headlines in recent months have screamed at us with alarm as the food supply has been often tainted with impurities and as there have been so many problems from e coli in our spinach to chemicals in our imported foods from China, to diseased cows and sheep being slaughtered for meat, we can’t take anything for granted. The suppliers of our food have put the public at risk. Thus awareness about our food and what we eat has become a critical part of our daily lives. While the laws of kashrut do not guarantee protection from these impurities in our food chain and food delivery systems, the laws of kashrut remind us that we have a responsibility to ourselves, the animals that we eat, and ultimately that the food we consume is a blessing from God.

There are several movements in Judaism today to update the laws of kashrut to include the notion that how the animals are handled at the slaughterhouse and the workers treated, how agribusiness operates are as much a part of the laws of kashrut as the actual lists of forbidden and permitted animals. The eco-kosher movement is growing in popularity so that efforts to use organic farming for kosher products and earth friendly policies are seen as an extension of the spiritual framework inherent in the laws of kashrut, or keeping kosher. Also part of this renewed understanding of the laws of kosher is the hekhsher tzedek approval or seal of justice approval. Started by Rabbi Morris Allen, a conservative rabbi, Rabbi Allen began teaching his congregation that the laws of kashrut could not be divorced from the many ethical concerns about production and food processing. This additional seal of approval on food products tells the consumer that company producing the food item has met certain standards of ethical behavior that meets with Jewish law in its growth, production and processing. This seal of approval is now a program of the Rabbinical Assembly, the Conservative Rabbinic organization. For more information on hekhsher tzedek check out the website, www.hekshertzedek.org.

Parshat Tzav; Leviticus 6:1- 8:36 By: Rabbi Denise L. Eger

Our Parsha, Tzav continues the explanation of various sacrifices that were introduced in last week’s portion Vayikra. The details of the burnt offering, sin offering, well-being offering, grain offering and atonement offerings are presented and at first glance seem like nothing but a repetition of material we saw last week. But last week’s portion is aimed at the Israelites and what kinds of offerings they bring and for what circumstances, while these instructions in Tzav are directed to the priests about the offerings and what their tasks are in receiving the offering and making the sacrifice on the altar itself.

Remember this is all new to the Israelites. This is a group of former slaves and forced labor. They were never the priests of Egypt. They didn’t have a system of offerings in a regular fashion. Thus this portion helps the family of Aaron who has been designated for the priesthood understand their sacred duties in the newly built Tabernacle. The priests are taught what to do with the sacrifices, how to keep the altar burning and even what they must do to remove the ashes that accumulate on the altar. This week’s portion, Tzav becomes the priests “how-to” book of sacrifices and their role in the upkeep of the Tabernacle’s sacrificial service.

Also described in this week’s portion is the ordination of this family as the priests of the Israelites. As part of their ordination ceremony they are instructed to remain in the Tabernacle for seven days, “You shall not go outside the entrance of the Tent of Meeting for seven days, until the day that your period of ordination is completed For your ordination will require seven days….You shall remain at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting day and night for seven days, keeping God’s charge that you may not die for so I have been commanded (Lev. 8: 33, 35).”

After Moses offers special offerings for the Cohanim, the priests, after they were robed in special garments, after Moses anointed them with oil and with the blood of the sacrifice and after they ate a ceremonial meal, the priests evidently had to be sequestered for a week in the Tabernacle. Why should they be separated from the rest of the Israelites? Why should they dwell in the Mishkan since that was the dwelling place of the Divine?

In truth the Cohanim now had different responsibilities and obligations and requirements than the rest of the Israelites. They were holy to God in a different way than the entire people and the High Priest himself wore a crown that had the words “Holy to God” inscribed upon it! Thus in one way the separation for seven days helps this new batch of priests understand the sacred nature not just of their work but of their being. They can dwell in the holy precincts even though it is the dwelling place of the Divine. But our tradition is divided about whether they stayed in the Mishkan for the entire period or not. Rashi says they stayed the whole time while others say they could not sleep in the Mishkan and went elsewhere to sleep. While yet other commentators say they only stayed in the Mishkan during the seven days for the periods of instruction and when they were making the sacrifices of ordination.

Tradition connects this time in the Mishkan to a week of shiva or mourning when mourners for seven days withdraw from community or the seven days the Torah teaches a menstruating woman must withdraw from community or a person isolated for skin disease withdraws from the community. In each of these the withdrawl and re-entry is about a change in status. The status of the mourner, keeps him or her from certain religious obligations, the menstruating woman and one with skin afflictions must repurify spiritually to re-enter the community and the new priest has new and special obligations.

Today moments of reflection and quiet and withdrawl can help us adjust to a new status. Even the newly married couple following their ceremony of kiddushin has a period of time they sequester themselves from their celebration to acknowledge the change in their status from single to married. So too even as the ordination of the priests is celebrated, they have this time of seclusion to show their change in status.

Parshat Vayikra; Leviticus 1:1-5:26 By: Rabbi Denise L.Eger

We begin this week with the opening chapters of the book of Leviticus, the third book of the Bible. The narrative of the Exodus from Egypt is interrupted to discuss the many kinds of sacrifices that the Children of Israel were to offer in their new Mishkan, their tabernacle. The outlines of various sacrifices are detailed in this week’s portion, Vaykira.

The sacrifices helped the individual draw close to God and holiness. The word for sacrifice in Hebrew contains the root k.r.v, from the word korban. It does mean offering but these sacrifices, of cattle, sheep or goats, grain or wine helped to bring the individual nearer to God and to holiness. The opening chapters talk about offerings/sacrifices in a general way and are described simply an olah. But our portion also outlines specific offerings including the zevach shlemim, the chatat, and the asham: the offering of well-being or wholeness, the sin offering and the guilt offering.

The offering of well-being sometimes called a peace offering is described in chapter 3 of Leviticus. However it is not clear exactly what it is for. Scholars speculate that this offering might be to restore peace or well-being between individuals. Others speculate that it might be offered to restore the relationship between an individual and God. While yet others teach that it was offered as a repayment of a vow.

The Chatat and Asham offerings, Sin and Guilt offerings are described in chapters 4 and 5 of Leviticus. These offering were for atonement of accidental or unintentional sins or penalty offerings. Sometimes they would be offered together. Sometimes the asham offering would be for those who misappropriate or steal property. These offerings are brought forward for the individual expiation of sins. Thus the individuals could once again be in communion with God and God’s holiness and be rid of their guilt, shame and offense. These offerings to God allowed people to move on in their lives from their sins and rebalance the holiness equations of their lives.

Is there a modern equivalent of these kinds of sacrifices? In Jewish tradition with the destruction of the Temple in the year 70 and the birth of Rabbinic Judaism we have substituted prayer for actual physical sacrifices. Many of the prayers of our daily worship correspond to the ancient sacrificial service. Even our afternoon prayers, Mincha is named after the daily grain offering. Certainly too, sometimes our use of tzedakah, charity is a kind of sacrifice. We are taught that one antidote to violations of certain mitzvot like lashon ha-rah, gossip, is to give charity to try to help make a tikkun, a healing or repair in the fabric of the universe.
As it is taught in the Talmud Sukkah 49b: Rabbi Eleazar stated: Greater is one who performs tzedakah than one who offers all the sacrifices, for it is said, “To do Tzedakah and justice is more acceptable to God than sacrifice.” (Proverbs 21, 3)

And as Rabbi Eliezer ben Avraham of Smyrna writes in the 17th century,. “when a person gives tzedakah, this tzedkah has the power to forgive him or her for all their sins… Even when a person has many sins, when one gives tzedakah properly they are forgiven. (Sefer Meil Tzedakah 1271).

In the world today we might also understand carbon offsets as a modern kind of sacrifice. One that draws us nearer to God and holiness as we fulfill the mitzvah outlined in the book of Genesis to avodah v’shomrah, to tend and guard our planet. While we must be ever vigilant in our own lives to reduce our own carbon footprints by recycling, energy and water saving reductions in our homes and workplaces, driving less, and perhaps changing our light bulbs to CFLs, buying carbon offset certificates from one of the many non-profit companies asks us to sacrifice dollars that in turn would help reduce or offset or mitigate our own carbon footprints.

Estimates are that the average American produces 50,000 pounds of carbon dioxide a year! By offsetting your own footprint through the purchase of carbon certificates (which takes the money and reinvests in renewable energy sources, reducing carbon output or reforestation to name a few kinds of projects) you sacrifice your money to help restore the delicate balance of our planet and reduce the effects of global warming. In truth one must be careful in the purchase of carbon offset certificates because there are unscrupulous dealers but there are several organizations that have a reliable track record in reinvesting the money raised through the purchase of carbon offset certificates in legitimate energy saving, carbon reducing projects.

Carbon offset certificates do not substitute for changing our lifestyles so as to consider the effects of our day to day lives on our planet . But they do help to create more opportunities to switch our society from the carbon dioxide producing lives we live that have created the increase in global warming toward the goal of carbon free or carbon neutral living.

The realities of Global warming are not a joke. Nor is it pseudo – science. Global warming and the harsh realities of its effects are increasingly apparent in our world as weather patterns change, oceans are dying, forests are clear cut, and the ice caps melt at more frequent rate. Our guilt and shame offerings for how we have treated our planet must be more than words on a page. We must take some action. Perhaps buying carbon offset certificates might be one way we do so. For more information on carbon offset certificates you might check out www.carbonfund.org. or www.rainforest2reef.org or www.liveneutral.org .

Parshat Pekude; Exodus 38:21 -40:38 By: Rabbi Denise L. Eger

Our Torah portion Pekude is the last portion of the book of Exodus. With the reading on this Shabbat we conclude the first part of our narrative of freedom. The beginning of the portion is a summation of the building of the Tabernacle. This section records in detail the amounts of gold, silver and copper used in the construction of the various sections of the Tent of Meeting and the instruments of worship. Next it describes the dress of the Priests in detail and when the work was completed our portion says: “Moses blessed them (Ex. 39:43).” Even before the Tabernacle was erected and dedicated, a blessing completed their sacred work. This reminds the craftsmen and builders that their work is more than just executing details of an architectural plan. They have completed a Divine plan! This blessing by Moses also completes a different cycle. Once at the foot of Sinai, the Children of Israel urged Aaron to build a god for them. They brought their jewelry forward and a molten calf was made. They worship before it and broke the covenant they had made with the Eternal. Their sin was grievous. But now they have dedicated their many gifts of gold and silver and copper, yarns and linens and created sacred place for the Shekinah to dwell. Their holy work transformed the Israelites from sinners to partners once again with the Holy One. Thus Moses blessed their work and blessed them.

Throughout most of the description in the book of Exodus the word for the work or labor that is used to create the Ohel Moed, the Tabernacle is the Hebrew word, melacha. In fact it appears in as such in verse 38:24 and through the portion. But in verse Ex. 39:42 a different word is used, for completing the work. Here the word avodah is used—this Hebrew word means work but also it is the word for sacred service or worship of God executed by the priests. The work to build the tabernacle was not merely building, designing, carving, weaving, sewing and smelting metals. The work of building God’s dwelling place amid the people Israel is Divine service—no less important than the sacred service and worship that will eventually be offered by the priesthood at the altar in the Tabernacle! This group of former slaves who built the garrison cities and palaces of Egypt have now built a different kind of building. They have built a place for the Divine Presence to dwell and the work of their hands has brought the Glory of God, to descend upon the Tabernacle.

Indeed as our portion closes the Cloud or Glory of God does fill the Tabernacle. These builders are not builders but it is as if they too are priests who can through their unity and common work bring the Divine Presence near. They help to fulfill the idea expressed earlier in Exodus, “You shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation (Ex. 19:6).”

It is still our inheritance to be builders of holy, sacred space and to strive to be that kingdom of priest and a holy nation. May we be inspired by this week’s parasha to achieve that goal.

As we end a book of the Torah, we say the words, Chazak, Chazak v’nitchazek... Be Strong, Be Strong and we shall be strengthened. May the work of building sacred space and studying Torah give the Jewish people, strength.