Leviticus 07
Book of Leviticus #07
What is the point of the Sin Offering if it does not cleanse the soul? Why would an Israelite who had inadvertently broken the law confess his action and offer a sacrifice if there is no redemption? Because, as the pious Jews discovered: the secret is in obedience.
Leviticus can come across as a boring read; a book of irrelevant regulations about ancient sacrifices. A book about things that have passed away and are of no concern to us. But the book is not everything as any Catholic who takes his faith seriously would attest: the bible is not everything; It is just the beginning.
In this lecture, we continue our study of the praxis of the Israelite faith, focusing mostly on the role of the priest in the sin offering. How would a pious and God-fearing Levite priest respond to the penitent at the door of the tent? Would he shrug his shoulders, grab the animal to be sacrificed and move on, like a bored butcher doing his job? He would if he were corrupt, but Leviticus is not a book of instruction destined to corrupt priests; it is a book of instruction -- a Torah -- written to the priests who loved God, feared him, and cared for the good of Israel.
Such a priest would have conversed with the penitent. He would have heard his confession, assessed his repentance, and carefully examined the sacrificial offering to make sure it was without blemish -- a measure of the purity of the offerer's repentance.
In this interaction, we Catholics, have much to learn and ponder. Indeed, Leviticus is a mirror of the Catholic ceremonial, a mirror that reflects God's concerns for the liturgy and his love for holiness.
