5101 US-42 • LOUISVILLE, KY 40241 • (502) 423-1818

Tag Archive for: Sh’mini

Sh’mini (Leviticus 9:1-11:47)

/in

This Week’s Torah Portion: Sh’mini (Leviticus 9:1-11:47)

“You are what you eat.”
“So on Passover, I am a matzah? Flat, dry, and crumbly?”
“No, give this a chance.”
“You are what you eat.”
“Ok. On Passover, I am a matzah? A remembrance of our Exodus from Egypt.”
“And who are you on Hanukkah?”
“I am a latke, cooked in oil, to remember the miracle of the oil that lasted for eight days.”
“Good, so when this week’s portion teaches us what is fit and unfit to eat, we should learn?”
“You are what you eat.”
“So Parashat Sh’mini teaches us…”
“That we should eat to be fit.”
“Not exactly what I meant, but I think you are getting the idea.”

Sh’mini Summary:

Aaron and his sons follow Moses’ instructions and offer sacrifices so that God will forgive the people. (9:1-24) Two of Aaron’s sons, Nadab and Abihu, offer “alien fire” to God. God punishes these two priests by killing them immediately. (10:1-3) God forbids Moses, Aaron, and his surviving sons from mourning but commands the rest of the people to do so. Priests are told not to drink alcohol before entering the sacred Tabernacle and are further instructed about making sacrifices. (10:4-20) Laws are given to distinguish between pure and impure animals, birds, fish, and insects. (11:1-47)

Sh’mini (Leviticus 9:1−11:47)

/in

This Week’s Torah Portion: Sh’mini (Leviticus 9:1−11:47)

There are 304,805 letters in the Torah and according to the Talmud the middle letter of the Torah is found in this week’s Portion Sh’mini. That middle letter is the letter “vav” which seems appropriate because the shape of the letter is barely more than a straight line, a dividing line between the beginning of the Torah and its end. The letter “vav” standing in the middle of Leviticus 11:42 is called the “heart” of the Torah.

The Torah is our guide for becoming just and righteous people and building together a just and righteous society. Are we halfway there in learning these lessons from the Torah? Are we halfway there in living these lessons and making them real in our lives and our world? And if not, maybe we need to pick up the pace a little bit. In the words of our teacher Hillel: “If I am not for myself, who will be for me? If I am for myself alone, what am I? And if not now when?”