Thursday, March 18, 2010

Daily Aliya for Vayikra, Shishi (6th Aliya)

Shishi discusses the fourth and final type of sin offering, that of a person who is guilty of sinning unintentionally (it’s important to note that unintentional sinning is still wrong, and requires atonement, which is why the Rabbis place further restrictions, to keep us further away from sinning). Also discussed is the "vacillating" sin offering (Oleh Viyored), brought by an individual guilty of certain specific sins (making an oath, not testifying about something they saw, touching something spiritually unclean, swearing to do harm or good). The offering varies depending on what the person can afford.

This vacillating offering is interesting. Imagine filling out a form where all the answers are true/false, and suddenly you see a multiple choice answer. It certainly draws your attention to it, as does this. Looking at the list of transgressions for this category, they all seem to be deliberate actions, as opposed to unintentional acts. So if someone decides to accept an oath, for example, they must keep their oath, but also bring an offering. So why would a person consciously decide to accept an oath, or touch a carcass? Once again, the answer could be the allowance of the human element. Maybe there was no one else to care for the dead, and maybe an oath was required to give someone hope or comfort. I’m not justifying sinning, just pointing out that just as the circumstances behind each scenario is different, the offering is also varied based on affordability. This was probably the most widely-brought offering, so it’s nice to know that it was adjustable.

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