We all have values. Family. Faith. Integrity. Honesty in business. Loyalty in marriage. We list them so easily it can feel like having them is settled.

In this week's talk on the Parsha of Emor, the Chief Rabbi opens with a question that sounds simple. It turns out not to be: what is a value?

We begin somewhere unexpected: economics.

In economic terms, something is worth only what someone is prepared to pay for it. What does that say about the things we claim to value?

Drawing on Pirkei Avot, the Sefer HaChinuch, and the structure of the mitzvah of Sefirat HaOmer, the Torah introduces a deeper question about value. One that is not so easily reduced to price.

And leaves us with a question many would rather not answer.

Key Questions

• Is a value still a value if you're not prepared to pay for it?

• Where does the very idea of intrinsic worth come from?

• Can a society have objective values without God?

• Why are the values we say we have so often the values we don't live?