This week’s parashah, Vayikra, the first in the Book of Leviticus, introduces our forebears’ manual for creating and sustaining holiness among the Israelites, beginning with a discussion of ritual animal sacrifice. The parashah discusses five different types of offerings including the zevach shlamim, often known as the peace offering or freewill offering.
The sages suggest that the zevach shlamim brings shalom—peace—to Israel. Unlike other sacrifices, which accompany guilt or ritual celebrations, shlamim are offered strictly for the purpose of securing the continued peaceful existence of the celebrant. The zevach shlamim, then, represents one of the first rituals to formalize the process of bringing personal or familial aspirations to the public arena. By offering a zevach shlamim, an Israelite publicized the peace they sought for themselves or their family to the community.
Three thousand years later, we still follow this practice, sharing our aspirations through communal prayers of supplication, such as mi shebeirach for healing or t’filat haderech prior to a challenging journey. In many ways, the zevach shlamim reminds us that, when we exist in community, individual concerns are all of our concerns.
—Rabbi Josh Knobel