Vayikra – Ultimate Dedication

Rabbi Ezra Friedman

This week we begin the third book of the five books of the Torah. Sefer Vayikra deals with many different issues. The beginning of Vayikra deals with sacrifices and the laws of kosher animals. The latter part of Vayikra discusses all aspects of and laws pertaining to purity. What is the general message of Vayikra? What is the common denominator behind all the laws and lessons from this Sefer? The answer can be learned from the teachings of our Sages (Vayikra Rabba 7, 3):

אמר רבי אסי מפני מה מתחילין לתנוקות בתורת כהנים ואין מתחילין בבראשית, אלא שהתנוקות טהורין והקרבנות טהורין יבואו טהורין ויתעסקו בטהורים.

.”Rebbi Asi would say, Why do we start teaching children Chumash from Torat Kohanim (Another name for Sefer Vayikra) and not from Breishit? Because children are pure and Sacrfices are pure. Let the pure occupy themselves with the pure.”

Our Sages teach us that there was a custom to start teaching children Torah beginning with Vayikra. The logic is that the sacrifices and other laws discussed in the book are pure, just as young children have a sincere and pure sense of innocence. This is why the teachings of Vayikra are appropriate for this age. This message can be taken further. A child has a heightened sense of emotion. Whenever a child feels happy or sad, it is usually expressed in the strongest degree. Vayikra‘s purity is meant to utilize that heightened sense of emotion and develop it into love for and service to Hashem.

Why purity? What is so unique about Sefer Vayikra that it is considered pure? Sefer Vayikra takes human behavior to a higher level. The entire book is filled with laws and lessons of holiness. It is not enough for Jews to keep the very basics. Rather, Sefer Vayikra demands that Jews go beyond the call of duty. We must keep ourselves pure from contamination both spiritually and physically. We must also be extremely careful about what enters our mouths, as the Ramban claims that our nourishment effects our souls. The lessons of charity, Chesed, and slander are enumerated in Sefer Vayikra to teach us that we must devote ourselves to Hashem through our words and even our earnings.

Sacrifices, as well, are brought to teach purity, for the Torah teaches that one who sacrifices should see himself as if he himself was being burnt on the altar in order to atone for sin. Sacrifices come to teach Jews to internalize that they have to give their entire selves to Hashem and his Torah. The common factor in all of Vayikra is the theme that we must have complete and utter dedication. In order to truly serve Hashem we must go beyond a basic sense of service. The Jewish religion requires a Jew to aspire to the highest levels of devotion. That level is the definition of purity and it is taught repeatedly in Sefer Vayikra.

The most optimal stage at which to infuse someone with this lesson, is when one is a child. A child has the pure traits necessary for internalizing the lessons of dedication, the lesson of purity. However, this lesson is not exclusively for the younger generation. Adults can as well can learn the importance of complete dedication from Sefer Vayikra. Every Jew has the power and strength to reach this level of purity, the unblemished service to Hashem and the Torah.

This lesson was taught by the Rambam in his Mishnei Torah. The Rambam‘s first volume in his Mishnei Torah is called “the Foundations of Torah”. The Rambam begins with the foundations of believing in Hashem, loving Hashem, and being in awe of his greatness. The Rambam then discusses the commandment to sanctify Hashem‘s name and the prohibition against desecrating his name. The commandment to sanctify and never desecrate takes many forms. For example, in the event that one is threatened by a non-Jew that he must kill another human being or that he himself will be killed, a Jew must give his life rather than kill another person. That act of self-sacrifice is a form of sanctifying Hashem‘s name.

Why does the Rambam mention this Mitzvah as a foundation of Torah? Perhaps, the laws of Shabbat or learning Torah would be more appropriate to be taught immediately after the commandment of faith. The answer is that sanctification of Hashem‘s name and the prohibition against desecrating it are a representation of a very important foundation in Torah. This commandment teaches that when Jews have complete dedication and pursue holiness, they represent what Hashem and his Torah stand for. Not just represented by the extreme of giving one’s his life, but if a person lives a pure life and is a true role model for the rest of society, then Hashem‘s name is glorified and the power of Jewish tradition is revealed to the whole world. However, if a Jew brings himself down to the level of contamination and immoral behavior, he is desecrating Hashem‘s name and causing a “Chilul Hashem“.

When we sit in synagogue and listen to the beautiful verses of Sefer Vayikra, we should focus not only on the commandments themselves, but also on the themes they are trying to convey. If we all focus on going above the call of duty, if we try to really purify ourselves, and go beyond what the outside world teaches us, we take Judaism to its ultimate level. Just as our Sages felt that children must start from Vayikra, let us all open a new page and reap from the words of Hashem.