Leviticus 13:2

אָדָ֗ם כִּֽי־יִהְיֶ֤ה בְעוֹר־בְּשָׂרוֹ֙ שְׂאֵ֤ת אֽוֹ־סַפַּ֙חַת֙ א֣וֹ בַהֶ֔רֶת וְהָיָ֥ה בְעוֹר־בְּשָׂר֖וֹ לְנֶ֣גַע צָרָ֑עַת וְהוּבָא֙ אֶל־אַהֲרֹ֣ן הַכֹּהֵ֔ן א֛וֹ אֶל־אַחַ֥ד מִבָּנָ֖יו הַכֹּהֲנִֽים׃

When a person has on the skin of the body a swelling, a rash, or a discoloration, and it develops into a scaly affection on the skin of the body, it shall be reported to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons, the priests.

If there was ever a doubt that Torah is a book for all moments of life, let this Torah portion be evidence against it. While most commandments speak to the person who is healthy enough to fulfill them, this Torah portion speaks specifically to one who is so ill that they have no choice but to quarantine. It speaks about rashes, discolorations of the skin, burns, scaly infections, all things that are hard to stomach but nevertheless true about our vulnerable human bodies. 

It is said that Torah is like water. Moses compares Torah to rain in a poem at the end of his life, and it’s a fitting metaphor. Just as rain comes from above, Torah comes from the heavens. Just as rain nourishes a parched earth, Torah nourishes a parched soul. And, just as that rain keeps trickling down to the lowest places, so to Torah.

For many of us, illness will bring us to some of our lowest moments. In those moments we might not be able to live out Jewish tradition in the way we would like to. When that occurs, we are not abandoned by our tradition, but embraced by that Torah that has likewise descended to the lowest points. This Torah portion can be hard to read because it talks about those things that happen to our bodies that we would prefer to ignore. Torah does not ignore it. God does not ignore it. Torah is for everyone, no matter healthy or ill, no matter at their highest highs or lowest lows, the Torah sees us as all equally part of this heritage.