Catholic Commentary on Leviticus 2

"Every grain offering you bring to the LORD must be made without yeast, for you are not to burn any yeast or honey in a food offering presented to the LORD." (Leviticus 2:11)

The Grain Offering

The grain offering, minchah, is an offering of flour and oil and frankincense, baked or fried or prepared on a griddle, always without yeast, always with salt. A portion is burned on the altar as a food offering, a pleasing aroma to the LORD; the rest belongs to Aaron and his sons. The prohibition of yeast in the grain offering connects to the unleavened bread of the Passover: yeast is a symbol of corruption spreading through what it enters. The requirement of salt, by contrast, is the covenant of salt - salt preserves and purifies and seasons. Every offering is to have salt: do not leave the salt of the covenant of your God out of your grain offerings.

The grain offering is the offering of the work of human hands: what the earth provides and human labour transforms. The Catechism sees in the grain offering the type of the Eucharist, where the fruit of the earth and the work of human hands become the body and blood of Christ (CCC 1350). The connection is explicit in the liturgy of the Mass: bread and wine, the transformed grain and fruit, are offered as signs of what human work can become when it is placed on the altar of God.

Living the Word

Brothers and sisters, the grain offering is the fruit of your labour placed before God. Every Sunday at the offertory, the bread and wine represent not only Christ's body and blood but your week's work, your daily effort, the grain of your life brought to the altar. Bring it intentionally. Let Monday through Saturday be the preparation for Sunday's offering.

Prayer

Lord God, receive the grain offering of our work, purified of yeast and seasoned with the salt of your covenant. Let the fruit of our labour be acceptable before you, transformed by the altar into something worthy of your presence. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

2
Laws for Grain Offerings
(Leviticus 6:14–23)
1 “When anyone brings a grain offering to the LORD, his offering must consist of fine flour. He is to pour olive oil on it, put frankincense on it, 2 and bring it to Aaron’s sons the priests. The priest shall take a handful of the flour and oil, together with all the frankincense, and burn this as a memorial portion on the altar, an offering made by fire, a pleasing aroma to the LORD. 3 The remainder of the grain offering shall belong to Aaron and his sons; it is a most holy part of the offerings made by fire to the LORD.
 
4 Now if you bring an offering of grain baked in an oven, it must consist of fine flour, either unleavened cakes mixed with oil or unleavened wafers coated with oil.
 
5 If your offering is a grain offering prepared on a griddle,* 2:5 That is, a shallow pan for baking or frying it must be unleavened bread made of fine flour mixed with oil. 6 Crumble it and pour oil on it; it is a grain offering.
 
7 If your offering is a grain offering cooked in a pan,† 2:7 That is, a deep pan or stew pan it must consist of fine flour with oil.
 
8 When you bring to the LORD the grain offering made in any of these ways, it is to be presented to the priest, and he shall take it to the altar. 9 The priest is to remove the memorial portion from the grain offering and burn it on the altar as an offering made by fire, a pleasing aroma to the LORD. 10 But the remainder of the grain offering shall belong to Aaron and his sons; it is a most holy part of the offerings made by fire to the LORD.
 
11 No grain offering that you present to the LORD may be made with leaven, for you are not to burn any leaven or honey as an offering made by fire to the LORD. 12 You may bring them to the LORD as an offering of firstfruits, but they are not to be offered on the altar as a pleasing aroma. 13 And you shall season each of your grain offerings with salt. You must not leave the salt of the covenant of your God out of your grain offering; you are to add salt to each of your offerings.
 
14 If you bring a grain offering of firstfruits to the LORD, you shall offer crushed heads of new grain roasted on the fire. 15 And you are to put oil and frankincense on it; it is a grain offering. 16 The priest shall then burn the memorial portion of the crushed grain and the oil, together with all its frankincense, as an offering made by fire to the LORD.

*2:5 2:5 That is, a shallow pan for baking or frying

†2:7 2:7 That is, a deep pan or stew pan

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