LEV70 Again and again our Torah emphasizes the dignity and respect that a man must accord his fellow. The Torah is considerate of human feelings even where you would least expect it. During the days of the Temple, for instance, various people brought offerings for different reasons. Some sacrifices were obligatory, some were gifts, and some were brought to atone for sin. In this last category were the hattah (sin–offering), brought for an unintentional transgression; the asham (guilt–offering), brought, for example, for the sin of swearing falsely; and the olah (burnt-offering), sometimes brought for improper thoughts, but it could be brought for other reasons as well, unrelated to sin. Now just imagine what might have happened at the Temple. The person making the offering had to be present, to place his hands on the animal of the sacrifice. Then, if Reuben walked into the Temple with his ashram, everyone would know that Reuben had sworn falsely! Let Simeon enter the Temple with his hattah, and all would realize that Simeon had sinned! Surely the Temple would have become a center of unwarranted public humiliation. Therefore the Torah specifically commands: "In the place where the olah is slaughtered shall the hattah be slaughtered" [this verse]; "In the place where they slaughter the olah shall they slaughter the asham" (Leviticus 7:2). Under this system the spectator would never know whether a particular sacrifice was a voluntary offering or something obligatory in expiation of a sin. This is how the Torah sought to protect the dignity and esteem of man. (Continued at [[DEUT977]] Deuteronomy 20:5 "go back" SINAI1 301-2)