Emor

In this portion the Holiness Code continues with laws concerning the maintaining of ritual purity by the priests. In particular, we find laws regulating the marriages of priests, limiting their participation in funerals, and specifying the blemishes which may disqualify a priest from officiating. This section ends with an admonition not to profane God’s holy name, but to hallow it among the Israelites. The Code then turns to the sacred seasons and presents a calendar of the festivals on which cessation from work is mandated. The list begins with Shabbat and continues chronologically from Pesah. Cessation from work is a crucial element in the account of creation and, by observing the festivals, the Israelites are led to emulate one of God’s major characteristics and achieve holiness.