Vayyikra - Zachor

Hello,

This week we read Vayyikra as our main portion, and we also read the additional portion of Zachor, which is read annually on the Shabbat preceding Purim.

Outline of Vayyikra
This portion, which starts the book of Vayyikra (Leviticus), begins right after the Jews completed construction of the Mishkan (Tabernacle), in which to worship Gd. Now that the Jews had built the building, they needed to learn about the service which would take place inside.

Vayyikra is essentially a list of various types of offerings; next week's portion (Tzav) will detail the specifics of each offering's service.

The portion begins with an Olat Nedavah, an offering which a person brings as a voluntary donation, in order to publicly affirm his relationship with Gd. Such offerings were entirely burnt on the altar. They could be brought from cattle, sheep, birds or flour.

The portion continues to discuss the Shelamim, a celebration offering. These offerings were brought to mark great occasions, and people ate parts of these offerings.

Finally, the portion presents a list of sin-offerings to be brought in the event of different types of violations of Torah law. Some offerings were linked to the person’s status; for example, the Kohen Gadol (Head Kohen) had a special offering in the event that he sinned. Other offerings were linked to the type of sin; for example, a person who withheld testimony for a trial had his own special offering. In addition, there was a special type of offering, Asham Talui, for a person who wasn't sure if he had sinned.

Outline of Zachor
Every year, Jews worldwide read the portion of "Zachor" on the Shabbat preceding Purim. This section records the story of the war the nation of Amalek launched against the Jews right after the Jews came through the Red Sea. We are biblically instructed to read this and remember it always.

We read this on the Shabbat before Purim because Haman, the villain of Purim, descended from Agag, who was a king of Amalek.

Have a great day,
Mordechai