Shabbat Commentary - Kedoshim

This week's Torah Portion, Kedoshim, gets right to the point. In the second line, God tells Moses, "Speak to the whole Israelite community and say to them: You shall be holy, for I, the Eternal your God, am holy." (Leviticus 19:2)*

This powerful directive is immediately followed by a multitude of commandments, many of which we've encountered in previous Portions. These commandments pertain to a variety of human behaviors and relationships - from "revering" parents and observing Shabbat (Leviticus 19:3) to dealing fairly with neighbors, employees, and the disabled (Leviticus 19:13-14) to not "mixing" animal species, seeds, or fabrics (Leviticus 19:19).
Twicw more in Kedoshim the children of Israel are reminded that they (and we) are holy because God is holy and that their (and our) holiness derives from following the laws of God who freed us from Egypt. (Leviticus 19:36, 20:7-8, 20:26).

Of course, we know this. Every time we say a Bracha before doing a mitzvah, the Bracha includes the phrase, "...kidshanu b'mitzvotav..." - God makes us holy by God's commandments. So familiar is this affirmation of our connection with God, that we may forget how unique this connection is. The legendary multiple gods of the Egyptian, Greek, Roman, and Norse peoples, for example, did not share their sacred status with their worshippers (with the exception of rulers who claimed to be descendents of the gods). But, our One God as revealed in the Torah, has chosen us to share God's holiness by following God's laws. To become holy as God is holy, we are commanded throughout our lives to learn, understand, and fulfill mitzvot which shape every aspect of our existence. Judaism commits us to a lifelong striving for holiness. Our cumulative efforts to be holy as God is holy give meaning and purpose to our lives and represent the legacy we leave to our children and our children's children.

In the coming weeks, ask yourself, "What have I done to be holy?" After studying Kedoshim, the answer in my case is , "Not enough!"

Shabbat Shalom Rest and Renew

*From The Torah: A Modern Commentary edited by W. Gunther Plaut