Vayikra
Leviticus 1:1-5:26
Isaiah 43:21-44:23
In this week’s Torah portion we read of an unwitting trespass. When a person commits a trespass, being unwittingly remiss about any of the Lord’s sacred things, he shall bring as his penalty to the Lord a ram without blemish from the flock, convertible into payment in silver by the sanctuary weight.
And when a person, without knowing it, sins in regard to any of the Lord’s commandments, and then realizes his guilt, he shall be subject to punishment. He shall bring to the priest a ram without blemish from the flock, or the equivalent, as a guilt offering. The priest shall make expiation on his behalf for the error that he committed unwittingly, and he shall be forgiven. It is a guilt offering; he has incurred guilt before the Lord.
The above seems to cover two possible scenarios: You do something you do not know to be incorrect, then discover later that it is indeed incorrect; or you do something unthinkingly, and even perhaps with intent to do it, but without thinking carefully.
In both cases, one has transgressed. The trespass offering was provided for these transgressions committed through ignorance, or where one afterward voluntarily confessed guilt. You know it’s not the right thing to do, and while you may do it anyway, when you realize your guilt — you get to the point of knowing you have done wrong, and you admit it. At that point, you are required to make your expiation.
That does not undo the damages that you might have caused in being remiss in your actions, but it does set you right with the Divine relationship. There is something about the act of admission that is crucial to the acceptance of the offering.
In Horayot 12a (Babylonian Talmud), there is a lovely story about Moses and Aaron and the way that concern can cause mercy. Taking its text from Psalm 133, this story tells us how Moses has just done his best job of anointing Aaron with oil, yet he is concerned that he’s done it wrong by using so much oil that it dripped down Aaron’s beard.
“Have I, God forbid, made an improper use of the anointing oil?” an anxious Moses said. A Heavenly voice came forth and called out, “Like the precious oil… like the dew of Hermon; as the law of improper use of holy objects is not applicable to the dew of Hermon, so also is it not applicable to the anointing oil on the beard of Aaron.”
Aaron, however, was still anxious. He said, “It is possible that Moses did not trespass, but I may have trespassed?” A Heavenly voice bellowed: “Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity; as Moses is not guilty of trespass, so are you not guilty of trespass.”
Thus, we learn that there should be harmony between them — that it is more important to do something together than to do something perfectly.
In addition, the Heavenly voice responded only once the concern had been made apparent — indicating it’s the moment of self-realization that transforms the potential acceptance of the plea into an actual change.
And were the Temple standing, it would then require the animal to complete the cycle. Nowadays, we turn to one another and say “oops” or “sorry.” We restore things as best we can, for this halachah, like ultimately everything we are taught, is brought to us to sweeten the relationships between sisters and brothers of all sorts.
May it be that our Passover holidays only serve to remind us of our relatedness and joy in one another’s company — and that this year the dew falls in holiness and abundance upon a receptive, greening earth.
Jewish theology does not admit that there is an unpardonable sin. The Mishnah says that sins are expiated by sacrifice; by repentance at death or on Yom Kippur; or, for lighter transgressions of the positive or negative precepts, by repentance at any time.
If one persists in sinning, banking upon receiving pardon through subsequent repentance (i.e. at Yom Kippur), his sins are not forgiven.
At Yom Kippur, only sins between man and God — not sins between man and his neighbor — are expiated (Yoma viii. 8, 9).
Rabbi Elisheva Salamo is the spiritual leader of Keddem Congregation in Palo Alto.