Defiling the Nation

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1. The Deeds of the People in the Temple

   Part 2

   Dr. Tova Ganzel

   The consequence foretold in Sefer Devarim for idolatry is exile. Along with this message, Yehezkel’s prophecy again emphasizes that these acts by the people have caused the defilement of the nation, the land, and the Temple – a result not mentioned in Sefer Devarim but in Sefer Vayikra. However, there is a quantitative difference: in Vayikra, only two verses speak of idolatry as causing defilement of the people and of the Temple, while in Sefer Yehezkel this issue appears in no less than thirty verses. The necessity of repeatedly emphasizing this matter during Yehezkel’s time is understandable bearing in mind the constant presence of false prophets, who continued to insist that the Temple would not be destroyed.

    

   Yehezkel’s descriptions of the varieties of idolatry committed by the people deliberately follows the style employed in Sefer Devarim in the commands and warnings not to follow the deeds of the nations and not to serve their gods. This technique lends additional validity to Yehezkel’s prophecies about the sins – particularly about the punishment that God will bring. In addition, the nation’s sin is amplified through a broad generalization of all the different types of idolatry and their enumeration together in Chapter 8. In this way the prophet underlines the prophetic message that he is conveying: the sins of the people have included idolatry, and this represents justification for the imminent destruction and exile.

2. Vayikra 16-20: From Sanctuary to Sanctity

   Rabbi Dr. Avraham Walfish | Hour and 12 minutes

   The book of Vayikra is best known for its lengthy discussion of ritual matters involving the Sanctuary, including the laws of sacrifices and of impurity. However, the latter part of the book has little to say on these matters, focusing instead on the ramifications of the Torah's injunction to "be holy". In this lecture we will examine the ways in which Chapters 16-20 of Vayikra serve as a bridge between these two topics. The issues discussed and their arrangement, as well as the use of keywords, verbal echoes, and imagery, serve to highlight both the differences and the interaction between sanctity focused on the Sanctuary and sanctity focused on everyday life.