Vayikra

God called to Moshe and spoke to him from the Tent of Meeting, saying: Speak to the Children of Israel and say to them: When a man among you brings an offering to God: from animals – from the cattle or from the flock shall you bring your offering.

Chapter 1:1 - 2

With this week's parashah we enter the world of ritual sacrifice, a world and a mind set which seems far removed from the way we live and think today. Yet when we ponder the various types of sacrifices and the reasons for them we realize that this system was expressing the same feelings and emotions that we share even now. Human nature has not changed a great deal if at all over the three thousand plus years that separate us from the Book of Leviticus. We have the same needs, the same desires, the same strengths and the same weaknesses. We simply express them differently.

The sacrificial system as it developed in ancient Israel, as opposed to sacrificial systems among other ancient peoples, was totally intended for the good of the worshipper and not for the benefit of God. It was a method of expressing feelings of gratitude, happiness, sorrow or guilt. It was a
way of ridding oneself of the burden of guilt or of bringing oneself closer to the Divine. Thus there were sacrifices of thanksgiving, of well-being, of guilt and of sin.

Reuven Hammer

The mythological and magical framework that lent cosmic significance to sacrifice in paganism is wanting in the Bible. YHWH is not conceived of as dependent upon food, drink, or any external source of power. This precludes the idea that sacrifice is nutriment for the God.the effect of the offering on the divine realm is depicted not in terms of union, but in terms of God's pleasure at man's submission and obedience.

Yehezkel Kaufman

The Egyptians worshipped Aries, and therefore abstained from killing sheep…Most idolaters objected to killing cattle, holding this species of animals in great estimation. Therefore the people of India up to this day do not slaughter cattle even in those countries where other animals are slaughtered. In order to eradicate these false principles, the Torah commands us to offer sacrifices only of these three kinds: “You shall bring an offering of the cattle, of the herd and of the flock” Thus the very act which is considered by the heathen as the greatest crime, is the means of approaching God, and obtaining God’s pardon for our sins. In this manner, evil principles, diseases of the human soul, are cured by other principles which are diametrically opposed.

Maimonides.

It is fair to assume that the animal sacrifice is required from the unintentional sinner because of what this does for him, not because of what it does for God…it demonstrates the extent of God’s kindness. God does not slam the door in the face of the repentant and the remorseful. This demonstrates that God has waived some of His claims on man, when it comes to the way God deals with the Jewish people.

Animal sacrifice does not normally atone for intentional sins…when a superior being, one that possesses the gift of speech, sins, it can hardly be expected that an inarticulate animal or worse, some lifeless object, could serve as compensation of atonement for his sin. Only the sinner himself can properly be sacrificed on the altar through repentance, fasting, confession, suffering and the performance of good deeds…there is a symbolism in the legislation pertaining to each category of sacrifice…there is a desire of the donor to achieve closeness with God.

Akedat Yitzchak

Genuine repentance…the sinner must boldly face the gravity of his guilt, and then acts to relieve its burden by going to the sanctuary and expressing his feelings there. This is the aim of the sin offerings and the guilt offerings…We are instructed to offer a sacrifice, not to bribe the gods, but to lead ourselves out of sin and guilt, unto the path of repentance.

Pinchas Peli