This Parsha describes the complex and ornate procedure that took place on Yom Kipur to atone for the Jewish people. There were two goats. One was sacrificed in the Tabernacle or after it was built, in the Temple. The other was sent out into the wilderness to wander or meet its end. That goat was what the Christian Bible called…
Parsha Aharei Mot
Atonement
It is part of our tradition that we may atone for sins all the time. Whether they are sins against human beings or against God. Teshuva, repentance, is open to us constantly. So why do we need one special day of the year, Yom Kipur? One answer is that Yom Kipur is for the really serious sins, whereas the rest…
Imitation
“Do not imitate the behavior of the Egyptians amongst who you lived and do not behave in the same way as the Canaanites do, in whose land you are going to live” (18.3). For more than three thousand years this has been the major challenge that has faced the Jewish people. However, many of us have been killed by those…
Sexual Sins
All forbidden sex falls under the general rubric of “Erva.” Literally nakedness, revealing, uncovering what should be covered. There are no subdivisions, like incest, everything, from adultery to homosexuality comes under this term. And yet there are a lot of other words used in the Torah to express disapproval. In this chapter alone you have in addition to Ervah, Zima,…