Two Is Better Than One

Or More Specifically: One Can Not Function Without The Other

Mrs. Perl is always telling Sharon something that cannot be stressed more that summarizes what one must keep in mind when reading the this post: "You cannot learn Judaism from Jews!" Why does Mrs. Perl say this? Its simple: just because you think you're religious doesn't mean you necessarily are. Therefore, if you see somebody who claims that they are really religious but they steal, lie, and cheat- guess what?- they aren't actually religious! It's that simple! They aren't as religious as they think they are. Therefore, when we learn about the concept of "Religiousness" and "Morals" needing to exist as one entity in order for us really to be 'kadosh' don't try to relate this to people you know or have heard of that don't fit the bill!

Perek 19 exemplifies what it means for religiousness and holiness to be intertwined. At the end of segments, the Torah ends with either אני ה' אלקכם or just אני ה' . One interpretation of the distinction between these two endings is that אני ה' אלקכם is written when the mitzvoth are more man-God oriented, when the mitzvoth are religious oriented. אני ה' , on the other hand, signifies ethical or moral mitzvoth. Though there are many mitzvoth that fit perfectly into this patter, there are some mitzvoth that divert a little from what we see as the 'main purpose' of אני ה' אלקכם or אני ה' . For instance, under אני ה' אלקכם we have chukim such as not being able to mistreat women sexually or being nice to strangers because we were once strangers in Egypt. These mitzvoth would usually be thought of as more ethical/moral than religious. Additionally, we have not being able to eat blood or excessively mourn put under אני ה' - wouldn't those usually be thought of as religious?

The answer, in my opinion, is both useful and meaningful. First of all, yes, there are good explanations for why each individual mitzvah was placed under their specific category. But, once you have that figured out, you are left with the big picture- put everything into perspective.The big idea is that Hashem is kadosh and we should try to emulate him in being Kadosh also. We should be a mamlechet kohanim and a goy kadosh and a light onto the other nations. We also need to be separate from other nations. There are actions that we need to carry and things that we aren't allowed to do in order for this to become a reality. True, there are both religious and moral things that we need to carry out, but at the end, they too are combined. You cannot be religious without being moral and you cannot be moral without religious. Because, in order to be a model for other people, we need to behave in an exemplary way. And in order to make sure we're separate, we have to do other things- and we especially cannot do things that they do (hedonistic).

Although we all were kind've disappointed in having to learn Vayikra, it really does teach us many life lessons that we can take away with us for our futures!