Parshat Emor begins with the following possuk [Vayikra 21’ 1’]: "...GOD said to Moses: Say to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them: None shall defile himself for any [dead] person among his kin…"
The possuk contains a blatant difficulty: Why does Hashem repeat the fact that Moshe is supposed to say the upcoming commandments to the Kohanim twice?
Ramban [ad. Loc.] offers, that the possuk is alluding to a new, secondary detail that would be relevant to almost every commandment in the Torah - namely, that while children (boys under 13 and girls under 12) are not typically bound by the Torah’s strictures, there is still a prohibition for Jewish adults to go ahead and provide prohibited matter to youngsters. Thus, while a child technically does not have to be stopped from eating milk and meat together, it would still be a violation of the Torah’s commandment for an adult to have a hand in the child getting the forbidden foodstuffs. Ramban explains, that this is why the Torah repeats the word "say" here: to communicate a prohibition for the adults, in addition to children.
The great and saintly Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev, in his commentary Kedushat Levi, offers a different approach. The kohanim, as the priestly caste, were expected to be stewards and guides over the rest of Am Yisrael. Thus, kohanim would play an active role as judges and Torah teachers, as well as mentor Am Yisrael as to appropriate interpersonal behavior. It is for this reason that kohanim were needed when dealing with someone suffering from tsar'at; the blemish would have no legal standing until declared so by the kohein, for the sufferer was likely guilty of antisocial behavior such as lashon hara, and the antidote for the guilty party would require guidance from the kohein as to how to improve their behavior.
Hence, Rabbi Levi Yitzchak explains that this is the true intent of G-d’s command here: While the possuk would seem to simply be saying, "...Say to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them, 'None shall defile himself for any [dead] person…'", in reality, the Torah is commanding the children of Aharon as to how to be role models of decent speech and behavior, for the alternative of cruel talk and mean-spirited speech, is, in fact, equal to total defilement in the eyes of the Torah. The possuk should therefore be read, "Speak to the priests the sons of Aharon-about how to speak to each other! For to do otherwise is tantamount to complete impurity."
There can be no greater lesson for the current time of the year, when we commemorate the death of Rabbi Akiva’s students, who were missing this key ingredient. While purity and holiness are awesome and righteous goals, the first thing one must do is ensure pure speech.
This point is echoed in Shemot, by none greater than Moshe Rabbeinu himself, who is punished by having his staff turn into a snake because he doubted the faith of the Jewish people [see Shemot chapter 4]. The snake in Torah literature is always reminiscent of the sin of inappropriate and evil speech; Moshe, by not fully trusting in the faith of Am Yisrael, was considered slanderous in the eyes of Hashem, and therefore his staff was transformed into a snake. May we merit to guard our tongues and always communicate with respect and kindness.
Dedicated in memory of all those who have perished and sacrificed for Am Yisrael.