The Blood; have you held a live chicken in Beverly Hills lately?

We started the Torah's Book of Vayikra (Leviticus) last Shabbat. Jews all over the world get together to read about the "sacrifices" which were offered at the Temple. It all sounds so weird and downright insulting to our 21-first century urban sensibilities. slaughtering cows, sheep, chickens and cute doves to wash off our sins! It sure sounds barbaric and unsophisticated.

Our commentators explains that through the experience of holding the warm body and feeling the heartbeat, and seeing the blood and what happened to the animal, the person realized the seriousness of his behavior. This aided him in the process of teshuva - correcting his ways.

To just demonstrate that how quickly and profoundly we react to blood, consider this; right now there are literally tens of thousands of Jews who are being spiritually slaughtered through assimilation, intermarriage, depression, drug use, teen pregnancy and a whole lot of other catastrophes, but majority of us do not even blink. Just look at our own little immigrant community in the US, the high number of unmarried adults who are despondent to find their partners, the high divorce rate even in the circle of the 60+, the rampant gambling that is going on, the untold suffering and sadness that embraces our abandoned elderly... We think this is all right and life can go on, as long as my family and I are doing OK.

But when you see a bleeding nose or a cut pinky, you react fast and do something, just anything to stop the bleeding! Such is the power of blood, which is the life source and the seat of Nefesh, the lowest level of soul.

The sacrifices had the power to help a person focus on the right issues. But, how do we relate to the sacrifices in our day and age? Are they relevant to us in 2006, living in Beverly Hills? If you are really interested, please spend some precious minutes and study the following pieces here and here.