Covenant & Conversation, Volume 3: Leviticus, the Book of Holiness

I use Rabbi Sacks' essays often when teaching Torah study at a Reform synagogue. They are short enough so that we can read them during class, and challenging enough to be engaging - especially when we note different perspectives between Rabbi Sacks more traditional approach as compared to our more progressive view of Torah. Several essays for each parasha means the Rabbi gives insight into various aspects of each portion.

WOW... Jonathan Sacks delivers once again. The introduction was a bit long, but helpful for someone who is non-Jewish (Gentile, in other words!). So far, all 3 of the planned Pentatuch studies have really been a treasure. May even convince me to continue a version of Shabbat. I can't wait to see what this scholar does with "Numbers." Go out and find all 3 books and make sure your local library has Sacks on their shelves for others to discover.

I'm not even half way through this book but realize what a treasure it is. Reading scripture to my family, the question most asked is "What do the sacrifices really mean?". Not being Jewish, I am only able to glean certain things through additional scripture reading and the occasional great find that someone may have posted on the net. Being a follower of Jesus Christ, knowing the words of Peter and of course what YHWH God Himself declared to Israel in the wilderness(Exodus), that we are to be a holy and set apart people, a kingdom of priests.This book should be read by every Christian and also anyone who seeks to know more about the God of the Bible. It is well written, easy flow of words unlike some other writers who while their intentions are good, their conveyance of language is stilted at best. I highly recommend it.

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks is one of the great Jewish thinkers of the late 20th and early 21st centuries.His explanations and enlightened understanding help us understand one of the most difficult books in the Hebrew Bible.

Excellently written, the essays are are engaging and though provoking. It brings the weekly biblical portion (Parsha) to life. It makes you be connected to Judaism and to live life authentically. At the same it asks tough questions that may come up when reading the Parsha.

Rabbi Sacks has a way of both bringing practical application to difficult texts as well as offering wonderful philosophical and ethical surveys, based on the text, which cover a wide multitude of modern concerns and sensibilities. His sensitivity and ability to connect traditional and esoteric views of religious practice with current dilemnas in our culture and on the world's stage is remarkable. I love his writings and commentaries and this is one of his best works.

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks brings ever more depth in each essay in all of his books on the Parashot. I was waiting for this one to be published and now I am anxiously waiting for the next two. He makes my Shabbat even more special than it already is.

This is a great introduction to any lay person, who wants to understand the basic principlesof the Jewish faith. Beautifully written, easy to follow and very informative.The whole series of the four that have been published, are a treasure. A must read for thoseinterested in Jewish faith, I look forward to Jonathan Sacks completing this great work bypublishing the 5th volume.....very soon .........I hpe

We already have read and used Rabbi Sacks books on Genesis and Exodus. He is such a rich source of insights into the hidden depths of the Torah.Rabbi Sacks brings into "today's language", the relevance of those instruments of sacrifice to us in the 21st century.My wife and I have not finished reading the book yet, but already it is following in the well established form and content of his other works - we recommend it widely!

Lord Jonathan Sacks is always tops at getting to the heart of Hebrew scriptures, not least in this volume on Leviticus. Every Christian should read him also, for the background to much that Christianity inherits from its Israelite foundations.

Rabbie Sacks has an unbelievable talent in articulating both the written and the spoken word.He is therefore uniquely well placed to expound the meaning of Torah in language that resonateswith both scholars and layman, Jew as well as non-Jew.

Great book.

Leviticus is seen by many as perhaps one of ' if not the ' most boring of biblical books. Sacrifices, purity laws and detail after detail causes many a Jew and Christian to declare Leviticus in the 21st century as either irrelevant, outdated or in the words of Sam Harris: among 'the worst books ever written.' Polemics designed to demonize the text neglect the often-ignored truth that text without context as they say is a pretext for just about anything. In the hands of the misinformed, the book of Leviticus has become the ammunition for wanton condemnation, criticism and denunciation by both secular and religious alike.This could not be more wrong. As author Rabbi Jonathan Sacks so aptly puts it, those who advocate such claims know 'just enough about Judaism to misunderstand it.' So where and when then did this misunderstanding spring? This problem it seems, starts from the very beginning.Leviticus, as most learned Bible scholars would be apt to tell you, is not the original name of the book, but the English name of the Greek equivalent for 'relating to the Levites.' The Hebrew name for Leviticus, is Vayikra. Translated and within context, Vayikra in English is translated to: 'He called.' This, more than anything, captures the essence of the book as a whole. Leviticus is not an imposition, it is an invitation. Encouragement, not encumbrance. Leviticus, far from being just a manual on law, is also a manuscript of love ' and one cannot exist without the other. As the caring husband adores his child and the faithful husband adores his wife, so too does G-d call to us by humbling himself and asking us to humble ourselves so we may meet him and others. It is this message of love, care and respect for man and G-d that constitutes Leviticus' unprecedented significance. It is a message that still strongly reverberates thousands of years later, ever summoning and ever beckoning.Rabbi Sacks weaves together how seemingly obscure and obscure texts provide nuanced and subtle ' but powerful ' lessons in how G-d relates to man, man to G-d and man to man. Leviticus, as Rabbi Sacks so beautifully demonstrates, is the seminal book of the Torah and the key to understanding it ' and Judaism ' as a whole. Under the guidance of this wise teacher, preconceptions and misconceptions by the skeptic are confronted and challenged. For the Jew as well as the Christian, it will serve to enlighten the name of this so misunderstood a text: Vayikra.He called. He still calls to us. Do we have the ears to listen?Vayikra.read more at: jjigaeblog.wordpress.com