Saturday, May 6th, 2000 1 Iyyar, 5760
Focus Passage: Leviticus 19:1-37
The Sanctity of Human Behavior
The centrality of this chapter for human behavior is reflected in Leviticus 19:17-19.Such exhortation to appropriate human behavior is grounded in one's relationship to the teachings of the Tanach, and to G-d. "You shall be holy; for I, the L-rd your G-d am holy" (v.2). The root meaning of "holy" is to be set apart. For Israel, and indeed, mankind today, to be holy has the fundamental meaning of belonging to G-d. Quite early in both Babylon and in Israel, a temple prostitute was know as a "holy one," in the sense that the person served the deity. But when the concept of holiness was associated with G-d, who was and is, ethical and moral, the word came to have ethical connotations, especially in the eighth century BCE. So in this instance, to be holy as G-d is holy has ethical implications. If one uniquely belongs to G-d, one will manifest the quality of that relationship through his/her behavior according to the Torah.
Although each behavioral category cannot be examined in detail in this post, consider the wide range of human behavior which flow out of one's relationship with G-d: honoring parents, leaving a part of a field for the poor and the sojourner, refusing to steal, to deal falsely, or to lie, equity toward hired persons, as toward one's neighbors; practicing justice, loving other persons, sexual restraint, refusing to make one's daughter a prostitute, honoring one's elders, consideration for strangers, and honesty in business practices.
To these were added also faithfulness toward the L-rd by revering the Sabbath and maintaining fidelity to the L-rd of revelation, sacrificing appropriately, observing ritual prescriptions for cattle breeding and horticulture, and fidelity toward ritual practices. Such positive aspects of human behavior grew out of the relationship that Israel maintained with G-d: "You shall be holy; for I the L-rd your G-d am holy" (v.2). So in every generation, the people of G-d manifest the quality of their dedication by the quality of their behavior, not the content of their words.
Shalom U"Vracha,
Thomas
