D'var Torah

As I often tell my Bar and Bat Mitzvah students, thank goodness we no longer keep all 613 commandments found in the Torah! After all, the vast majority have to do with the bloody and detailed work of sacrificing animals to God at the Temple in Jerusalem. Since that same Temple was destroyed in the year 70 CE, we no longer sacrifice animals to appeal to our God, but rather make Korbanot Halev (sacrifices of the heart). 

But we still are faced with this week’s Torah portion as it comes around each year — Vayikra — which provides to us, in great detail, what kind of animal offerings are due when and for what. This is one of those times when it can be quite a challenge to make the teachings of the Torah relevant in the modern day. For instance, we are told about the olah (standard burnt offering). We learn of the mincha offering of flour that is partially burnt and fed to the priests, and the zevach sh’lamim (an animal freely given upon the fulfillment of a vow). I could go on!

While we are no longer required to make animal sacrifices, we are called to make korbanot, or offerings of other kinds, to God. The Hebrew word for sacrifice, Korban, comes from the root kuf-reish-beit, or to bring near. By offering up sacred, precious pieces of ourselves we draw ourselves nearer to the Divine. This can be through prayer, acts of loving-kindness, or giving tzedakah. 

This past week I spent time with our confirmation class to discuss prayer. Students had such insightful things to say about when and why they pray. There was a common thread that wove itself throughout our discussion — the idea that prayer brings us close. Perhaps to inner thoughts and hopes, perhaps to our community, perhaps to God. 

By taking a moment to allow prayer to enter our daily lives, we bring ourselves closer to connection with the gift of our lives. 

Shabbat shalom, 

Cantor Rachel Rhodes