There is a rabbinic saying that the Torah has 70 faces. By this commentators suggest that each time we read the Torah, we gain new or different insights, as the same words can yield different interpretations over time and space.

The rabbinic maxim can also be construed as a metaphor for the diversity of the Jewish community. Among the 70 faces is the face of the Orthodox Jew and the Humanistic Jew; the Reform Jew and the Conservative Jew; the Reconstructionist Jew and even the unaffiliated Jew. There is the face of my grandfather and the face of my children. When the light hits just right, we can see our reflection mirrored back at us. It is in this vein that a humanistic perspective can be derived from this week's parsha, Kedoshim, the holiness code, and be a meaningful, relevant and ultimately satisfying interpretation.

Kedoshim by its very name implies a particular theological perspective. It opens with the words, "You shall be holy, for I, the Lord your G-d, am holy." (v.1) At the outset, the biblical author has provided his reasons for behaving in a particular way. The very word "holy" means sanctified, separated, other than ordinary; but it need not mean heavenly, otherworldly, or supernatural. It suggests transcending the baser instincts by calling each of us individually and collectively to be other than ordinary.

"Holy" obviously is not synonymous with humanistic, though the two may intersect at times in important ways. Can a secular Jew behave in a holy manner? Absolutely, though one would not immediately choose or use such a description, and if the word were used, it would not be for the reasons offered by the biblical author. Instead, a secular Jew might prefer moral or ethical to holy.

At its core Humanistic Judaism is a human-centered philosophy that promotes human dignity through ethical conduct. Kedoshim in its way also focuses on behavior that enhances human dignity and elevates the human condition. Stripped of admonitions that have no meaning in a modern world such as those involving sacrifices, guilt offerings, and soothsaying by way of example, it offers a series of proscriptions for behavior that fosters our better selves, that removes us from the mundane and asks us to consider each act we engage in for the better. Indeed, at the center of the center book of the Torah, we are admonished to "love your fellow as yourself." (v. 18) As Hillel famously commented, that is the whole of Torah, regardless of the face we each see reflected.

Kedoshim asks us to consider our actions and their consequences as reflections of ourselves. Ultimately, we are accountable for ourselves and for the world we create. Kedoshim teaches that a better society is one in which our parents are cherished; our dealings are fair and honest; and the widow and the orphan are taken care of. As human beings, we actualize our higher selves when we behave compassionately, ethically and justly.

By way of example is the verse enjoining us from insulting the deaf or putting a stumbling block before the blind. (v. 14) This is, of course, noble in itself. It speaks of moral, ethical behavior that on its face is directed at others. Yet it begs the question of why act this way at all; after all the deaf would not hear us if we spoke ill of them, nor the blind see us if we imperiled their path. But we would know. We would be lessened by behavior that compromises our integrity and impugns the dignity of another. In an era of mea culpa but only if caught, when wrongdoing is acknowledged but only in hindsight, this notion of self-awareness of our conduct for our own betterment is critical.

We are anything but ordinary when we behave with acute self-awareness and consciousness. For some it is the very definition of being holy; for others, it is the very definition of being humanistic. Such is the intersection of the two in Kedoshim.

Likewise, the rationale for rising before the aged and showing deference to the old (v. 32); treating the stranger among us as one of our own (v. 33); or considering the rich and the poor equally without favor (v. 15) can be understood to enhance the dignity of one another. The most vulnerable in a society are nonetheless worthy; they are not to be exploited, shunned or deprived of their dignity.

Kedoshim reminds us we are better than that. The refrains are not mere platitudes; the embedded ethical precepts frame the individuals we are and the society we shape. We each have the power as human beings to realize our better selves. To fail to exercise that power is wasteful at a minimum, and harmful at a maximum. Indeed, whether secular or religious, whether humanist or Chasid, we all benefit from a serious consideration of the moral code provided in Kedoshim. Our reflections are in there if only we take the time to look.

Jodi Kornfeld is the spiritual leader of Beth Chaverim Humanistic Jewish Community in Deerfield and a rabbinic candidate at the International Institute of Secular Humanistic Judaism.