Why do people advocate the Ten Commandments to solve societal woes? A passage from the Torah Portion Behar-Bechukotai explains. “And you shall do my laws and observe my judgments and do them, so you will live on the land in security.” Leviticus 25:18. It is about having a good life. Decalogue compliance arguably includes theContinue reading “Behar-Bechukotai: The Good Life?”
Category Archives: biblical literacy
Acharei-Mot Kidushim: Of Holiness
While the Torah Portion Acharei-Mot Kidushim contains large parts of the Ten Commandments, it differs from the Ten Commandments. Leviticus 19:2 commands that “You shall be holy, because I, the Lord, your God, am holy.” In contrast, the Decalogue’s first mention of holiness pertains to the Sabbath. In making this assertion, the Tetragrammaton, the fourContinue reading “Acharei-Mot Kidushim: Of Holiness”
Tazria: Beyond Comprehension?
Are there matters beyond comprehension? The Torah Portion Tazria’s Circumcision Commandment, when viewed in context, may be one of them. Appearing in Leviticus, the commandment was promulgated post-Exodus and pre-entry into the Promised Land. In a general biblical perspective, a circumcision commandment should be something benign. The instruction was: “[a]nd on the eighth day theContinue reading “Tazria: Beyond Comprehension?”
Shemini: A High Standard?
I grew up in an intoxicated world known as Los Angeles. More likely than not, my contemporaries used drugs and alcohol. Junior High School was when the abuse originated. I recall one classmate having a cornucopia of drugs stored a tin which was then housed in her locker. For another, I recall that even hisContinue reading “Shemini: A High Standard?”
Welcome to The Inner Circle? Tzav
For Kohens-Priestly descendants- the Torah Portion Tzav may be riveting. For commoners, Tzav, a section full of priestly sacrificial instructions and intricacies, is less so. Many find it a painful read. For millennia, the Book of Leviticus- which includes Tzav- has exposed outsiders to the Israelite cult’s affairs. Tzav even takes readers to the innerContinue reading “Welcome to The Inner Circle? Tzav”
Punishment: Vayikra’s Ten Commandments’ Moment
Punishments are mysteriously absent from the Ten Commandments. The “shall not’s” are not accompanied by prescribed penalties. The Torah Portion Vayikra, however, begins to address commandment violation punishments. The remedies for sin, per Vayikra, are in the form of animal sacrifice and grain offerings. According to Richard Elliott Friedman, the sacrifice’s purpose was to recognizeContinue reading “Punishment: Vayikra’s Ten Commandments’ Moment”
Pedukei’s Ten Commandments’ Moment
Geography shapes both politics and religion. The Children of Israel’s wilderness wandering and their Promised Land permanence created a division between religion and politics. This division manifested in Judaism’s portability. The Torah Portion Pedukei addresses aspects of Tabernacle. This central portable structure served as a place for worship and sacrifice during the post Exodus wildernessContinue reading “Pedukei’s Ten Commandments’ Moment”
Speculation on Fire: Vayakhel’s Ten Commandments’ Moment
On a neighborhood walk, my wife and I smelled smoke. Opposite the sunset, I viewed an ominous purple sky. My mind percolated with thoughts of another apocalyptic wildfire. An elbow to my ribs evaporated my mental state. My wife, who had been looking in the other direction, pointed to our neighbor’s bellowing chimney. Scholars, forContinue reading “Speculation on Fire: Vayakhel’s Ten Commandments’ Moment”
The Politics of Breaking Bread: A Second Chronicles’ Ten Commandments’ Moment
Is it possible both religion and politics can be discussed at dinner? Can there be such a thing as “breaking bread” diplomacy? King Hezekiah, in the Second Book of Chronicles, masterfully engineered such a meal. This meal, for the purposes of this blog, amounts to a Ten Commandments’ moment. While it is intimately related toContinue reading “The Politics of Breaking Bread: A Second Chronicles’ Ten Commandments’ Moment”
Prostrate Trouble: Esther’s Ten Commandments’ Moment
Prostration is central to Esther’s story. Mordechai’s refusal to bow and prostrate himself before Haman served as the inspiration of Haman’s genocidal plot against the Jews. Was Mordechai’s refusal a Ten Commandments’ moment? Early in Esther’s story, Haman is promoted by King Ahasuerus to a top position. Haman’s seat was to be above all theContinue reading “Prostrate Trouble: Esther’s Ten Commandments’ Moment”
The Ten Commandments Project 