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Vayeilech

COVENANT & CONVERSATION

Parshat Vayelech

Vayelech is the shortest of all parshiyot, a mere thirty verses long. Poignantly, Moses tells the people, “I am now a hundred and twenty years old, and I can no longer go forth and come in” (Deut. 31:2). He will not lead them across the Jordan into the Promised Land.

So Moses summons his successor - Joshua - and, in the presence of the people, gives him words of encouragement. He instructs the people to gather every seven years to hear a public reading of the Torah. God appears to Moses and Joshua, warning them that the Israelites may eventually stray from the covenant. He instructs them to write down the Torah and teach it to the people, as permanent testimony of the covenant itself. He then encourages Joshua, assuring him that He will be with him as he leads the people.

MAIN ESSAYSFAMILY EDITIONS

NITZAVIM, VAYELECH • 5773, 5776, 5783

To Renew our Days

The moment had come. Moses was about to die. He had seen his sister Miriam and brother Aaron pre-decease him. He had prayed to God…

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VAYELECH • 5775, 5782

Torah as Song

Moses’ long and tempestuous career is about to end. With words of blessing and encouragement he hands on the mantle of leadership to his successor…

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VAYELECH • 5774, 5781

Consensus vs. Command

What do you say to your successor? What advice do you give them? Vayelech is the place to look for the answer, because it is here that…

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NITZAVIM, VAYELECH • 5780

How to Renew a Nation

The Talmud gives an ingenious reading to the line, “Moses commanded us a Torah, as a heritage of the congregation of Israel.” Noting that there…

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VAYELECH • 5779

The Torah as God’s Song

At the end of his life, having given the Israelites 612 commands at God’s behest, Moses gave them the final mitzvah: “Now therefore write down…

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VAYELECH • 5778

The Second Mountain

What do you do when you have achieved it all, when you have risen to whatever career heights fate, or providence, has in store for…

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NITZAVIM, VAYELECH • 5772, 5777, 5780

Why Be Jewish?

In the last days of his life Moses renews the covenant between God and Israel. The entire book of Devarim has been an account of…

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NITZAVIM, VAYELECH • 5769, 5773

The Singers and the Song

At the end of his life, having given the Israelites 612 commands (mitzvot), Moses is instructed to give them the last; command number 613: Now…

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VAYELECH • 5772

The Heart, the Home, the Text

By now Moses had given 612 commands to the Israelites. But there was one further instruction he still had to give, the last of his…

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NITZAVIM, VAYELECH • 5771, 5784

Leadership

The great transition is about to take place. Moses’ career as a leader is coming to an end. Joshua was leadership is about to begin.…

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NITZAVIM, VAYELECH • 5770

Covenantal Politics

At the end of his life, Moses gave the people the penultimate command – the 612th of the 613 that comprise the Torah. It was…

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Kedoshim

With Kedoshim, the laws of holiness broaden out from the world of the Sanctuary and Priests to that of the Israelites as a whole, as they are gathered together and commanded to be holy because “I, the Lord your God, am holy.”

The opening chapter contains the famous “holiness code” with its commands to love the neighbour and the stranger, as well as other laws more ritual in character. The second half of the parsha deals with forbidden sexual relations and other prohibited pagan practices. (R Sacks)

Rabbi Sacks (Kedoshim)

https://rabbisacks.org/covenant-conversation/kedoshim/judaisms-three-voices/

https://rabbisacks.org/covenant-conversation/acharei-mot/the-courage-to-admit-mistakes/

https://rabbisacks.org/covenant-conversation/kedoshim/from-priest-to-people/

https://rabbisacks.org/covenant-conversation/kedoshim/followership/

https://rabbisacks.org/covenant-conversation/kedoshim/in-search-of-jewish-identity/

R Soloveichik (Kedoshim) Core Jewish Values in Modern Times

Chabad (Kedoshim)

The name of the Parshah, “Kedoshim,” means “holy [ones]” and it is found in Leviticus 19:2.

The Parshah of Kedoshim begins with the statement: “You shall be holy, for I, the L‑rd your G‑d, am holy.” This is followed by dozens of mitzvot (divine commandments) through which the Jew sanctifies him- or herself and relates to the holiness of G‑d.

These include: the prohibition against idolatry, the mitzvah of charity, the principle of equality before the law, Shabbat, sexual morality, honesty in business, honor and awe of one’s parents, and the sacredness of life.

Also in Kedoshim is the dictum which the great sage Rabbi Akiva called a cardinal principle of Torah, and of which Hillel said, “This is the entire Torah, the rest is commentary”—“Love your fellow as yourself.”

Learn: Kedoshim in Depth
Browse: Kedoshim Parshah Columnists
Prep: Devar Torah Q&A for Kedoshim
Read: Haftarah in a Nutshell
Play: Kedoshim Parshah Quiz