Reading Leviticus can feel a bit like the end of a medication ad when the narrator is suddenly speaking in five-times speed about all the ways you could die. The book is densely packed, is often skimmed in hyper speed, and, just like the ends of those ads, it mentions a lot of ailments.

With a staggering 613 laws, the Torah covers a wide variety of situations. Some are contingent on the existence of a still-standing Temple. Some feel bizarrely random (like Deuteronomy 25:11–12).  Some promote health, holiness, and cleanliness. Half of Leviticus 15 is devoted solely to discussing the procedures a woman must follow regarding menstruation. Are we having fun yet?

Although I am so glad I didn’t have to endure such bodily functions thousands of years ago, as a Jewish woman who still reads these laws, I feel for the women who had to abide by them in the context of the ancient world.

But I feel for one woman in particular.

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