LEV41 [One of the fundamentals of repentance). Confession, as it is written [this verse]: "He shall confess that wherein he has sinned." And he must mention both his own sins and those of his ancestors. Why those of his ancestors? Because he is punished if he continues in their ways; and it is thus written (Ibid. 26:40): "And they shall confess their transgressions and the transgressions of their fathers." And he must take great care during confession to resolve in his heart to forsake his evil ways. For if he intends to return to them and does not forsake them then he is reckoned as one who undergoes [purifying] ritual immersion with a creeping [defiling] thing in his hand (Ta'anis 16a); for confession is analogous to ritual immersion, and the sin, to a creeping thing, and it goes without saying that ritual immersion is of no avail to one who holds such a thing.

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LEV43 Do not detach the head of a bird sin-offering. When a sin offering is a bird, it is not slaughtered as an animal. Rather, its head is pinched from the back of its neck (melikah), but the Kohen must be careful to not detach the head from the neck. He performs melikah by cutting through the bird’s neck bone with his fingernail. He cuts through both simanim (esophagus and the trachea), or completely through one and through the majority of the other. A basic concept regarding offerings: Offerings are to help us to acquire correct ideals and positive character traits. By means of the acts that are involved in bringing offerings, we are inspired to perfect our deeds. Man has a physical body and tends to be materialistic, so ideals do not become a part of him unless he performs actions that reflect and reinforce these ideals. At the same time, we already have stated that it is beyond us and beyond even our greatest luminaries to find reasons for every detail of the laws of offerings. Even simple understandings elude us, so we must suffice with particular explanations of the offerings in general. Although melikah is a particular detail in the laws of the offerings, let us suggest what could be its rationale. A bird is brought as the sin offering of someone who is poor. Instead of a knife, the Kohen slaughters the bird with his hand. This law hints to us that in meeting the needs of the poor, one cannot allow the slightest delay. The Kohen does not take time to search for a knife and check its sharpness. The offering is brought quickly so that the poor man can return to his efforts at making a living. Also for the sake of speed, neither does the Kohen turn the bird on to its back and perform melikah on the underside of the neck. Rather he takes the bird as he finds it and breaks its neck bone from the back. Furthermore, breaking the neck from the back also is a signal to us not to be stiff-necked. Finally, by leaving the head attached, more dignity is afforded to the offering, to hint to us that we must always be careful about the poor man's dignity. It is hard enough for him that he is poor, so we should not add to his suffering by degrading his offering by detaching its head.

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LEV44 It was taught: R. Yehudah says: Beloved is a mitzvah in its time, for he brings it [i.e., even a "poor man's offering"] immediately and does not wait to become wealthier so that he may bring a lamb or a goat (Torath Cohanim).

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LEV45 Do not put olive oil into the flour of a meal offering that atones for sin. The Kohen shall not put olive oil on a flour (meal) offering brought by a poor man for atonement. Oil alludes to importance and greatness, for when poured into another liquid it always rises to the top. Owing to its great importance and value, it is used to anoint kings and Kohanim (priests), so it is not fitting to put oil into a flour offering of a person who has fallen into sin. After all, someone who has transgressed must exhibit concern, worry, and a humbled spirit, and feel crestfallen that such a thing came to his hand. In addition, Hashem shows pity on the poor, so when they have to bring an offering He does not trouble them to procure oil for it. For the same reason only a small amount of flour is required. Even the most unfortunate pauper as at least some flour in his possession.

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LEV46 Bring an offering when perhaps one committed a sin whose intentional violation is punishable by kares. A person always must be alert and on guard that he does not violate the Torah. He must be deliberate in all of his actions, and when he fails in this regard and a doubt arises, perhaps he sinned, he needs atonement for his carelessness. Even if it is determined that he did not violate the Torah, he is guilty of carelessness. Clearly, the offering that he brings to atone for carelessness does not suffice if he actually committed the sin, so if it turns out that his fears were justified and he did commit the sin, he must bring a sin offering (chatas) to attain atonement.

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LEV47 Know that if one sees another transgressing a Torah prohibition in private, and he publicly reveals his sin, he has surely incurred guilt for this [this verse; I.e., even though he is reporting on a sinner, this too is lashon hara.] -- perhaps the sinner has repented from his evil behaviour, and his thoughts are filled with anguish, for the heart knows its own bitterness [Mishlei 14:10; see also paragraph 217]. It is not right to reveal these sins to anyone other than to a discreet [Torah] sage who will not discuss it with others (See Pesachim 113b). Nonetheless, he should avoid the company of the sinner until he knows that he has repented from his evil behavior. But if the sinner is a Torah scholar and one who fears sin, it should be assumed that he has truly repented (I.e., as such, he need not reveal the matter even to a sage, nor must he avoid his company), and that through this once his yetzer may have overpowered him, he feels embittered afterwards (I.e., and therefore he surely will not commit the sin again.)

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LEV48 Bring a guilt offering for certain sins. As to a false oath to deny possession of another’s property, such an oath requires a guilt offering so that people who are short on money will not steal with intent to pay back. Someone suffering financial problems might steal and say to himself that when his finances improve he will pay his victim and it will be as if he never committed any wrong at all. The Torah seeks to close the door on such lines of thought, lest they lead to havoc. If someone falsely denies possession of his neighbor’s object and swears as such, not only must he bring a guilt offering, when he repays the owner, he must give him an additional one-fifth of the items value [See Leviticus 5:16--AJL].

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LEV49 … morality for Judaism is "nothing less than a three-term relationship involving man, his human neighbor, and God himself" (Fackenheim, Encounters Between Judaism and Modern Philosophy, p. 48). The rabbinic source for this concept is found in the cryptic comment on [this verse]."Rabbi Akiva says: 'What do we learn from the phrase 'and commit a trespass against Lord'? Those who borrow and lend and trade do so only with contracts and witnesses, so that when one falsifiers he falsifies the contract and the witness. But one who entrusts an object to his friend does not wish anyone to know except the Third One who is between them. When one, therefore, falsifies, he falsifies against the Third One" (Sifra 372:4). Rabbi Akiva observes the fact that although the Torah seems to be dealing here with transgressions against one's fellow man, it is called a "trespass against the Lord." Rabbi Akiva seems to be suggesting that in all interhuman relationships, there is the invisible presence of a Third One (shelishi she-beineihem)--God Himself, who symbolizes the trust, the obligation, the moral dimension.

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LEV50 See [[DEUT1633]] Deuteronomy 30:19 life BLOCH 241-2

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LEV51 Someone who denies that he was given an object for safe keeping is, in essence, denying God. Rabbi Akiva said, "The Torah considers denial of the claim a trespass against the Lord. The person who deposits something with his fellow man does not want other people to know about it; he wants the matter to remain between the two of them and God. Therefore, when the recipient of the object denies that he received it, he denies God." (Toras Kohanim cited by Rashi).

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