A Home For G-d

I have not had much occasion to reflect upon the book of Vayikra this year, as many or most of my addresses have reflected on Israel and issues that we face as a people. Of course, those matters are treated in the parsha as well. Nonetheless, we did not have the opportunity to meet Vayikra on its own terms.

I would like, then, to devote a few minutes to this book before we depart from it. One of my rabbinic colleagues noted that the book of Vayikra, a book appropriately called Leviticus or, more exactly, the book of the kohanim by the Sages, is mostly about the offerings. This is true, so far as it goes. Indeed, the Ramban opens his introduction to this book with that comment:

This book is the law of the priests and the Levites.⁠In it G-d explains matters concerned with all the offerings and watching over the Tabernacle [that it should not become defiled].â

However, in order to understand this book, we must read a little further in the Ramban’s words. He continues:

This is because one book [i.e., the second book of the Torah] was dedicated to the Egyptian exile and the redemption therefrom, and He completed it with an account of the building of the Tent of Meeting and the Glory of G-d which filled the Tabernacle.⁠Therefore, He now commanded Moses about the offerings and about watching over the Tabernacle, in order that the offerings effect atonement for [the children of] Israel, and that their sins should not bring about the removal of the Divine Glory.

That is to say, the real theme of this book is how to live so that G-d will plant His presence among us, so that G-d will be with us and among us. This is what we read at the beginning of Bechukotai:

If you walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them then… I will set my tent among you; and my soul won’t abhor you. I will walk among you, and will be your G-d, and you will be my people.

To say that Vayikra is a book about offerings mostly misses the point. Actually, it is a book about creating a society that can be an appropriate home for G-d. This is why so much of the book focuses on the Mishkan and what goes on therein. A Jewish society is built around a space such as our own, a space of worship and a relationship with G-d, a space where Torah is studied and taught.

But a Jewish society, a home for G-d, must also have within it many other commandments that we find in our book. In Vayikra, we read of the holidays, of charities and looking out for the less fortunate, of giving honest and good advice, of sexual morality, of kashrut, of kindness and giving towards the other. There is a reason that You shall love your fellow as yourself appears in this book. This is the book that teaches us to create a society of kedusha, holiness.

So, what must we do?

1. It should be obvious that we must work very hard to be a society of Ve’ahavta l’reacha kamocha, a society that treats each person with dignity and kindness, that looks out for the financial wellbeing of the other, that seeks to promote healthy relationships and a strong family life. Jewish unity is a major component of this. We must seek the wellbeing of every Jew. We must welcome each and every Jew into our communities and homes, and we must not look to see that they observe the mitzvot or share our ideological or political views. Each Jew must be treated as family. For that is what we are.
2. We must strengthen our observance and study of Torah. A perusal of this book makes clear just how important the observance of rituals and laws are to the Jewish life. This means that it is not only essential to welcome each and every Jew, regardless of ideology or observance. It is also vital that we raise our own standards if we wish to house the presence of G-d. We must set this as our guiding goal. Let us ask this question again and again: what do I need to do in order to host the presence of G-d in my home and in my community? What do I need to know, study, and love in order for Him to wish to be with me and spend time with me? What do I need to do in order to make this world and society more perfect for Him? And here it is, in a clear form, in our favorite book: we must love others as we love ourselves, giving to them and caring for them; and we must make worship of G-d central to our intellectual and practical lives.

Let me make a promise. Divine providence is complex, far too complex for me to tell you that a righteous person does not suffer. Obviously, this is not true. Yaakov Avinu suffered, Moshe suffered, the prophet Samuel, King David, Rabbi Akiva, and the list goes on to our own days. But the righteous do make this life more pleasant for themselves and others. Their wisdom, kindness, and character are a source of blessing each and every day that overflows upon all of those who know them. Following the Torah – loving it, studying it, observing its precepts and loving people, helping them, giving to the, advising them, and making a better world with them and for them – these are blessings.

These are blessings that lead to a home in this world for G-d. And that is actually what this book is about.

Regenerate means to restore or renew something that has been damaged or depleted. It can refer to physical regeneration, such as the regrowth of tissue or cells, or to the renewal of energy or vitality. In a broader sense, it can also refer to the process of revitalizing or reinvigorating something that has become worn out or stagnant.

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