Parsha Talk: Acharai Mot-Kedoshim 5781

Join Rabbis Eliot Malomet, Jeremy Kalmanofsky and Barry Chesler for Parsha Talk! Parashat Acharai Mot-Kedoshim [Leviticus 16-20] is the subject of Parashah Talk this week. According to the rabbis, this is not only the center of Leviticus, but of the Torah as well. Leviticus 19:18, ואהבת לרעך כמוך, “love your neighbor as yourself”, is the basis for the Golden Rule. According to Rabbi Aqiva, it is the great principle of the Torah. We touch on this as well as the general theme of holiness [suggested by “Kedoshim”, the name of the 2nd parashah, meaning in context “be holy”] and the Yom Kippur ritual [Lev. 16], which is rather different in the Torah than it is in modern-day observance. There should be something here for everyone. Shabbat Shalom!