In this week’s Torah portion (Parashat Naso) the Lord speaks to Moshe to instruct the people in regard to making a distinction between the clean and unclean saying the following, א וַיְדַבֵּר יְהוָֹה אֶל-מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר: ב צַו אֶת-בְּנֵי יִשְֹרָאֵל וִישַׁלְּחוּ מִן-הַמַּחֲנֶה כָּל-צָרוּעַ וְכָל-זָב וְכֹל טָמֵא לָנָפֶשׁ: ג מִזָּכָר עַד-נְקֵבָה תְּשַׁלֵּחוּ אֶל-מִחוּץ לַמַּחֲנֶה תְּשַׁלְּחוּם וְלֹא יְטַמְּאוּ אֶת-מַחֲנֵיהֶם אֲשֶׁר אֲנִי שֹׁכֵן בְּתוֹכָם: 5:1 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 5:2 ‘Command the sons of Israel that they send away from the camp every leper and everyone having a discharge and everyone who is unclean because of a dead person. 5:3 ‘You shall send away both male and female; you shall send them outside the camp so that they will not defile their camp where I dwell in their midst.’ (NASB) Tur HaAruch on Bamidbar / Numbers 5:2 Part 1, states these kinds of people are to be removed from the encampment of Israel having varying degrees of impurity is to prevent the entire camp from becoming infected with ritual impurity which would drive away the Shechinah (glory, presence) of God which rests upon the encampment and the people. We are told, on the contraction of impurity, it was obligatory that the unclean person avoid that which is holy and take steps, involving the rituals for disposal of impurity, to return to a ritual state of cleanness. Uncleanness placed a person in a “dangerous” condition under which may lead to divine involvement and even death (Vayikra / Leviticus 15:31), The reason being, the unfaithful person will not taking the proper steps of Teshuvah and may approach the sanctuary without regard to God’s Word. Modern theologies today do not address the importance of making the distinction between what is clean and unclean in the eyes of God and His people. Based upon the Scriptures, Teshuvah (Repentance) is also important to the concept of clean and unclean. Rambam in his Mishneh Torah on repentance (2:2) states that Teshuvah is when the wicked abandons his path and regrets his sin to never return to it. He must confess verbally and admit these things that he has committed in his heart and his actions. One of the most clear purposes on making the distinction between what is clean and unclean was to separate God’s people from sin and from the way of the Gentiles…
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