The Kohanim are commanded to avoid contact with corpses in order to maintain a high standard of ritual purity. They are permitted to attend the funeral of only their seven closest relatives: father, mother, wife, son, daughter, brother and unmarried sister. The Kohen Gadol may not attend the funeral even of his closest relatives. Certain marital restrictions are placed on the Kohanim. The nation is required to honour the Kohanim.
This week's Torah reading
Behar
The Torah commands the cessation of farming the Land of Israel every seven years. This 'Shabat' for the land is called Shmitah. (5754 was a Shmittah year in Israel.) After every seventh Shmitah, the fiftieth year, Yovel (Jubilee), is announced with the sounds of the shofar on Yom Kipur; this was also a year for the land to lie fallow. HaShem promises to provide a bumper crop prior to the Shmitah and Yovel years to sustain the Jewish people. In the year of Yovel, all land is returned to its original division from the time of Joshua, and all Jewish indentured servants are freed, even if they have not completed their six years of work.
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