Parasha Aharei Mot - Leviticus 16:1-18:30: (April 29)

Summary:

In our Torah portion the duties that the head priests must perform on Yom Kippur are delineated and the ceremony of the scapegoat is outlined. Moses then instructs Aaron about the Yom Kippur laws for fasting and atonement.

Warnings are issued against the offering of sacrifices outside the Sanctuary and the consumption of blood. Finally, Moses condemns the sexual practices of some neighboring people and certain forms of sexual relations are prohibited.

Lessons from our Haftarah – Ezekiel 22:1-19:

When I was studying to become a rabbi, my Bible professor, H.M. Orlinsky wrote: ``If one reads the book of Ezekiel, one gathers that the government and the people of Judah were on the greatest sinning binge in the history of Judah and Israel, if not in all of history.” Both our Torah portion and our haftarah portion focus on sexual impropriety.

During Ezekiel’s visit to Jerusalem, the prophet was horror-struck by what he saw. He denounced the leadership and the people for their moral depravity. He calls Jerusalem a city of blood.

Eight times Jerusalem and its people are accused of violating the strict Torah laws dealing with blood. Why does Ezekiel use the image of blood? Blood is Ezekiel’s metaphor for total corruption. Ezekiel knew that his audience in Jerusalem understood the metaphor. Blood is equivalent to life itself. For Ezekiel, who rails against the corruption of the people and the leadership, blood is the vehicle for his message. For Ezekiel extortion, dishonesty, and other moral depravities is akin to bloodsucking. We learn that maltreatment of the poor and the needy is an act of bloodshed. He even mentions slander. For Ezekiel the slanderer is killing the reputation of another person thus the sin is equivalent to murder.

Ezekiel returned to Jerusalem from Babylon, hoping to enjoy the sanctity of the holy city. Instead, he encounters sin and wickedness among the people and the leadership. Only in the last verse of the haftarah is there a glimmer of hope. Yes, for Ezekiel there is the possibility of the triumph of hope over despair.

Shabbat Shalom

Rabbi Don Goor