History has chosen to look favorably upon the healed leper for his courageous display of faith. However, there is still more to the original story than what initially meets the eye.
The laws of Leprosy constitute the most stringent purity protocols in response to tumah. But if contagion was not the motivation for isolation, then what was the harm in touching a leper?
Miriam’s case of leprosy is fascinating on multiple levels: Regarding her affliction and healing, it is God who both strikes and heals her; and there is no mention of her purification process.
In Temple times, leprosy was a severe source of impurity that necessitated the removal of the victim from three spheres of holiness: The Temple, the Levitical Camp, and the commonwealth.
Part 1 of a 5 part series covering one aspect of the levitical purity laws: A synopsis of one the most misunderstood symptoms described in the Torah and how it informs our reading of the Gospels.