Why This Text Matters | Leviticus | Jeffrey Stackert

Religious studies courses can feature a broad range and variety of texts, including anything from The Daodejing, to The Mishnah, to Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov, to Mary Douglas’s Purity and Danger, to Said’s Orientalism. The Marty Center partnered with the Undergraduate Religious Studies Program to design “Why This Text Matters” as a series of videos to help faculty prepare for courses, their students, and anyone generally curious about important texts in the study of religion. In the space of about 30 minutes, viewers can gain a deeper understanding of the context, themes, and significance of texts taught by experts at the University of Chicago Divinity School.
About the Text:
The biblical book of Leviticus stands at the heart of the Pentateuch/Torah, the first five books of the Hebrew Bible. It is not, however, an independent literary composition. It is instead part of the larger Priestly work, which offers an account of the deity Yahweh’s creation of the world and subsequent decision to live amongst the Israelites. This decision necessitates special measures to accommodate the deity, including special blessings for the Israelites that enable them to provide for their god (land, progeny) and an extensive set of rules to ensure the suitability of his habitation in their midst. Comprising the long, middle section of the Priestly account, Leviticus narrates a set of speeches in which Yahweh articulates these rules. Leviticus’s rules were subsequently taken up and transformed in early Judaism; they have also served as a foil for various Christian ideas and practices.