Did you know that hametz is not merely forbidden on Pesach?! It is also disqualified from the Temple altar. In last week’s parsha we read:
“No meal offering that you offer to the Lord shall be with leaven [hametz], for you shall burn no leaven [se’or] or honey in any fire offering to the Lord.” (Lev. 2:11)
It appears again this week in Parshat Tzav:
“And the remainder [of the meal offering] shall be eaten by Aaron and his sons; it shall be eaten as unleavened cake [matzot] in the sacred precinct…It shall not be baked with leaven…’ (Lev. 6:9-10)
Why is hametz a problem? Please discuss:
- We have a mitzva of matza because we emerged from Egypt speedily. But why is leaven forbidden?
- Why do we scour our kitchens and expunge all leaven from our homes?
- Why is hametz a problem on Pesach?
Click here to read more from Rabbi Alex Israel in this week’s Parsha Discussion: Tzav: What’s Wrong with Hametz?
Please note that if you are printing The Parsha Discussion on US paper, please select the option “fit to print”.
