Emor - May 2, 2026 / 8 Iyar 5786
This week’s parsha of Emor begins as Moses is commanded to speak to the Kohanim, the sons of Aaron who will serve in the Tabernacle (and later the Temple). As such, the beginning of this parsha is actually a commentary on speech and how we serve G-d through speech. Today, as we no longer have the Temple, our words of prayer take the place of the sacrifices in the Temple and many of our prayers correspond to aspects of the sacrificial service. But just as everything we do should be for the sake of G-d, so should everything we speak.
The Midrash points out in relation to this speech by Moses that this is one of the portions of the Torah along with the portion of the Red Cow dealing with purity. The Midrash commentators therefore connect it to the verse in Psalms (12:7) that states “the words of Hashem are pure words” and noted that G-d added eight letters to the Torah to express in terms of “unclean” rather than the more derogatory “contaminated.” This reminds of the old adage that it is not what you say but how you say it. The words of Hashem are therefore refined speech.
This is especially important in light of the period of mourning during Sefirah (the counting of the Omer) between Pesach and Shavuot, where we remember the plague that killed 24,000 of Rabbi Akiva’s students, ending on Lag B’Omer. We traditionally mourn them by pausing weddings, live music, and haircuts. Clearly the students were great sages or we wouldn’t mark their loss. So, what is it they did wrong? The Talmud (Yevamos 62b) says they did not treat each other with respect. Being the great sages that they were, the students must have treated each other respectfully, but not to the degree they deserved as Torah scholars. More than that though, some argue that this was in their disagreements on Jewish law where they would get passionate in their disagreements.
As we know from the famous disputes between Shammai and Hillel, the two schools had nothing but love and respect for each other, and in fact often intermarried and were praised for having disputed for the sake of Heaven. Again, it was not the fact they disagreed but how they approached their disagreement. These are divisive times we live in where many Jews disagree with each other vehemently. Often this occurs within families, friendships, and communities. It can be about how we approach Judaism, Israel, or US politics. What we disagree about can matter, but what matters more is that we show each other love and respect in our interactions. Only through emulating the words of Torah and engaging in refined speech can our disputes be truly for the sake of Heaven and be rewarded with purity and rebuilding.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Josh
The Midrash points out in relation to this speech by Moses that this is one of the portions of the Torah along with the portion of the Red Cow dealing with purity. The Midrash commentators therefore connect it to the verse in Psalms (12:7) that states “the words of Hashem are pure words” and noted that G-d added eight letters to the Torah to express in terms of “unclean” rather than the more derogatory “contaminated.” This reminds of the old adage that it is not what you say but how you say it. The words of Hashem are therefore refined speech.
This is especially important in light of the period of mourning during Sefirah (the counting of the Omer) between Pesach and Shavuot, where we remember the plague that killed 24,000 of Rabbi Akiva’s students, ending on Lag B’Omer. We traditionally mourn them by pausing weddings, live music, and haircuts. Clearly the students were great sages or we wouldn’t mark their loss. So, what is it they did wrong? The Talmud (Yevamos 62b) says they did not treat each other with respect. Being the great sages that they were, the students must have treated each other respectfully, but not to the degree they deserved as Torah scholars. More than that though, some argue that this was in their disagreements on Jewish law where they would get passionate in their disagreements.
As we know from the famous disputes between Shammai and Hillel, the two schools had nothing but love and respect for each other, and in fact often intermarried and were praised for having disputed for the sake of Heaven. Again, it was not the fact they disagreed but how they approached their disagreement. These are divisive times we live in where many Jews disagree with each other vehemently. Often this occurs within families, friendships, and communities. It can be about how we approach Judaism, Israel, or US politics. What we disagree about can matter, but what matters more is that we show each other love and respect in our interactions. Only through emulating the words of Torah and engaging in refined speech can our disputes be truly for the sake of Heaven and be rewarded with purity and rebuilding.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Josh
