Parshat Kedoshim
Monday, April 28, 2014
Parshat Kedoshim
Leviticus (Vayikra) Leviticus 19:1 – 20:27
By: Jason Bright
This weeks annual Torah portion is called Kedoshim קדשים, which comes from the root word kadosh קדוש meaning holy or set-apart in the English language. The opening (2nd p’sukim) of our parsha states:
“You shall be Holy because I, the Lord your God, am Holy” (Lev. 19:2).
This one p’suk (verse) defines the intent and purpose of the entire Torah which is to set-apart a people who have been called out from the mundane and into a Covenant with their Creator. The Hebrew word for being holy indicates that the object of this verb is to be different. It is evident when looking at history that the Jews have always been different with our own unique customs, clothing, language and perspectives. The question should be asked though: How is living a life different from the rest of the mundane advantageous? An explanation can be found within the insight of another Hebrew word related to kadosh קדוש , namely the word kadasha. A principle in Hebrew is that all Hebrew words are related through their spelling – different words using the very same letters have connections in meanings. We find a very interesting connection based on the story of Judah, the son of Jacob, who saw his daughter-in-law wearing a veil, disguised as a harlot. The Torah relates that he thought that she was a “kadasha” (See Genesis 38:21). The word for a harlot in Hebrew is “kadasha” and the word for holiness is “kadusha“.
This is a difficult thing to understand. How can the same letters (which in Hebrew convey similar meanings) be used for such completely opposite meanings – holiness and prostitution?
But the concept can be understood simply. A “kadasha” was not a prostitute, but merely a woman who was living with out the bounds of the normal worldly conveniences of marriage. She lived without regards to the worldly laws of conduct. Her conduct was in effect oblivious to the normal rules and boundaries. Her life was not bounded.
With this understanding of the meaning of the word kadasha we more aptly understand the significance of kadosh (holy) and to live a life of kadusha (holiness). To be holy is to not be bound by the constraints of the physical. This is not to say that Jews don’t care about physical life becasue the whole Torah instructs us how to work within the physical world. Rather the Torah teaches us how to elevate ourselves and the world to a ‘level of holiness’ and a ‘way of holiness’ which trancends the normal rules and boundaries of life.
As Jews, we must occupy ourselves in the betterment of the world through carrying out the Torah’s directives. This means living in this world, marrying, procreating, working and at the same time not to be affected by the daily worldly occurrences.
That is the holiness of the Jew in this world. We do not separate ourselves from the world. We must involve ourselves in the betterment of the world. Yet through this entanglement in the mundane we will see the hand of God effecting the changes that we strive to achieve.
The Jewish people who uphold the Torah elevate the whole of existence as it is our mandate as a people, the marriage covenant of our relationship with the Creator as His chosen “kingdom of priests and holy nation.”
In the words of the Midrash:
“God made a condition with the work of creation: if the people of Israel accept the Torah, you will exist; if not, you will revert to chaos and nothingness.”
The Zohar states:
“God looked into the Torah and created the world. The Jew looks into the Torah, and sustains the world.”
Leviticus (Vayikra) Leviticus 19:1 – 20:27
By: Jason Bright
This weeks annual Torah portion is called Kedoshim קדשים, which comes from the root word kadosh קדוש meaning holy or set-apart in the English language. The opening (2nd p’sukim) of our parsha states:
“You shall be Holy because I, the Lord your God, am Holy” (Lev. 19:2).
This one p’suk (verse) defines the intent and purpose of the entire Torah which is to set-apart a people who have been called out from the mundane and into a Covenant with their Creator. The Hebrew word for being holy indicates that the object of this verb is to be different. It is evident when looking at history that the Jews have always been different with our own unique customs, clothing, language and perspectives. The question should be asked though: How is living a life different from the rest of the mundane advantageous? An explanation can be found within the insight of another Hebrew word related to kadosh קדוש , namely the word kadasha. A principle in Hebrew is that all Hebrew words are related through their spelling – different words using the very same letters have connections in meanings. We find a very interesting connection based on the story of Judah, the son of Jacob, who saw his daughter-in-law wearing a veil, disguised as a harlot. The Torah relates that he thought that she was a “kadasha” (See Genesis 38:21). The word for a harlot in Hebrew is “kadasha” and the word for holiness is “kadusha“.
This is a difficult thing to understand. How can the same letters (which in Hebrew convey similar meanings) be used for such completely opposite meanings – holiness and prostitution?
But the concept can be understood simply. A “kadasha” was not a prostitute, but merely a woman who was living with out the bounds of the normal worldly conveniences of marriage. She lived without regards to the worldly laws of conduct. Her conduct was in effect oblivious to the normal rules and boundaries. Her life was not bounded.
With this understanding of the meaning of the word kadasha we more aptly understand the significance of kadosh (holy) and to live a life of kadusha (holiness). To be holy is to not be bound by the constraints of the physical. This is not to say that Jews don’t care about physical life becasue the whole Torah instructs us how to work within the physical world. Rather the Torah teaches us how to elevate ourselves and the world to a ‘level of holiness’ and a ‘way of holiness’ which trancends the normal rules and boundaries of life.
As Jews, we must occupy ourselves in the betterment of the world through carrying out the Torah’s directives. This means living in this world, marrying, procreating, working and at the same time not to be affected by the daily worldly occurrences.
That is the holiness of the Jew in this world. We do not separate ourselves from the world. We must involve ourselves in the betterment of the world. Yet through this entanglement in the mundane we will see the hand of God effecting the changes that we strive to achieve.
The Jewish people who uphold the Torah elevate the whole of existence as it is our mandate as a people, the marriage covenant of our relationship with the Creator as His chosen “kingdom of priests and holy nation.”
In the words of the Midrash:
“God made a condition with the work of creation: if the people of Israel accept the Torah, you will exist; if not, you will revert to chaos and nothingness.”
The Zohar states:
“God looked into the Torah and created the world. The Jew looks into the Torah, and sustains the world.”
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