How to Get Rid of Your Regrets

Parsha [Passage of Scripture] Nugget [Precious Idea] Emor – Leviticus 21:1-24:23

Guilt and regret. It’s terrible to live with such feelings. Despite what seems to be Judaism’s fondness for imposing guilt, in reality the Creator provides several mechanisms for freeing yourself. One is in this week’s parsha, Emor:

“Upon the pure menorah, he will set up lamps, before G-d always . . . . And you shall place them [the loaves] in two stacks, six in each stack, upon the pure table before G-d.” (Vayikra/Leviticus 24:4 and 6)

This Sabbath’s parsha details the standards of purity for a Kohen who serves in the Temple and the requirements of an animal for the sacrificial service. The Sabbath, Passover, Shavuos, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkos are proclaimed as festivals. Next, it discusses the pure olive oil for the menorah and loaves of bread, known as the showbread, for the table. The parsha ends with the story of a man who blasphemed G-d's name.

The story of the blasphemer may seem out of place among such lofty topics as the purity of the Kohanim and sacrifices, the festivals, and the Temple implements. But the placement is no accident.

Emor is always read during the counting of the Omer, a time of semi-mourning, when 24,000 of Rabbi Akiva students died because they could not get along with each other.

Made of pure gold, the menorah and the table symbolize two areas where we should strive for clarity and purity: wisdom and business/daily dealings, respectively. By striving to reach a refined level we can repair past mistakes and deepen our relationships with family, friends, and colleagues. So each day of the Omer count we mold an aspect of our character through every day behavior in accordance with G-d’s wisdom.

Juxtaposed to the menorah and table as symbols of exemplary behavior, the blasphemer typifies denial of G-d. If a person, heaven forbid, will curse the Creator, he demonstrates his belief in the superiority of his desires and decisions. Having set himself above the Almighty, he is unlikely to follow any societal norm or rule of behavior. No foundation exists for a relationship with such a person.

I’m sure you are very competent at work and deal with your associates nicely. And undoubtedly you never curse G-d. But what do you say about your colleagues when they’re not around? The Torah considers gossiping about people tantamount to murder. And you don’t know if such behavior so negatively affects how you’re perceived that it holds back your professional progress, let alone your emotional and spiritual growth. You may think your office relationships are solid. But if you dig below the surface will you find intrigue and unreliability?

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How do you rid yourself of guilt and regret for past mistakes? Please comment below.

Every year beginning on Simchas Torah, the cycle of reading the Torah, the first five books of the Bible, ends and begins again. Each Sabbath a portion known as a sedra or parsha is read. It is named after the first significant word or two with which this weekly reading begins.

What verse in the Old Testament would you like to know more about? Ask a question and I will answer it in a future Parsha Nugget!