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Parashat Vayikra

Leviticus 1:1-5:26

God calls to Moshe from the Tent of Meeting, initiating a detailed system of offerings that structure Israel’s relationship with the divine. The various sacrifices — voluntary and obligatory — express gratitude, atonement, and the yearning to restore connection. The parashah presents worship not as spontaneous emotion alone, but as disciplined, meaningful practice.

  • Parashat VaYikra: The Trouble with Sacrifices

    In Baruch Spinoza, Parashat HaShavua and Parashat Vayikra

    We need to ask ourselves a pertinent question: Is our aversion to sacrifices the result of our supreme spiritual sophistication, which caused us to leave the world of sacrifices behind us? Or, have we sunk so low that we aren’t even able to reach the level of idol worshipers who, however primitive we believe them to have been, possessed a higher spiritual level than some of us who call ourselves monotheists?