Behar

Hi,

This week's portion is Behar (pronounced Bi-har).

The previous Torah portions expressed holiness-centered themes – the holiness of the people, and the holiness of the Kohanim and Temple service. B’har teaches about the holiness of the land of Israel.

Behar instructs the Jews to let the land rest every seventh year, a year which is called "Sh'mitah" in Hebrew, Sabbatical in English. Further, in every fiftieth year the Jews should return ancestral fields to their families; this year is called "Yovel" in Hebrew, Jubilee in English.

The Jews are also instructed that if an impoverished person sells his ancestral land, his family must be allowed to buy back that field at the rate paid for it initially. One who sells a home in a walled, established city, must be allowed to buy it back by refunding the purchase price within the first year after the sale.

Once the Torah discusses poverty and the possibility of selling an ancestral plot, the Torah discusses other situations in which people get into financial trouble and need to be helped out. The portion thus instructs us to extend interest-free loans, and to treat slaves well. If a Jew is sold to a non-Jew as a slave, other Jews should redeem him.

The portion sums up the issues of sanctity by tying it back to Gd as the root of all holiness – of individuals, of communities, and of land.

Have a great day,
Mordechai