DAILY Q10 (02/18)

Even though purity is defined as the condition or quality of being pure and therefore free from anything that pollutes or contaminates, I think that that the definition of purity goes further when this one is analyzed in the religious context that Leviticus provides. In my opinion, what Lev 1-11:19 defines as purity is the concept of cleanness and almost disinfected conditions to be met in order to be able to interact with God. This extract of Leviticus describes the five different offerings that can be taken into practice if an impure behavior has been carried out. Impurity is almost described as a disease, as it is unclean and contagious and has to be treated to be fixed.

I think that the reason why this maintenance of purity is required by God and therefore given so much emphasis, is to underline the magnitude of God’s glory and our duty to acknowledge it. By making sure our souls are clean and purified, we are not only becoming closer to God and enabling interaction with Him, but we are also acknowledging that He is the one and only Lord. And this links to the third question on the logic of the laws we encounter and how these are related to purity. Above, I mentioned that Leviticus describes five different offerings, but it also outlines a series of specific food laws that also build up in determining whether one is clean or not. In the recommended reading, Mary Douglas points out that “the process of eating is potentially polluting, but the manner determines the amount of pollution” and I think this reinforces the idea of worthiness of interaction with God. Overall, like cited in Lev 11:44; “I am the Lord your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy. […] I am the Lord, who brought you up out of Egypt to be your God; therefore be holy, because I am holy.“