THEOSISCyrill of Alexandria
Cyril. Furthermore, it establishes guidelines on how the sacrifice, specifically the sin-offering, should be properly presented, detailing which portions may be consumed by the ministers and which parts are designated for the pleasing aroma; as it is stated: “But every sin-offering of which the blood is brought into the tabernacle of the congregation to be cleansed in the sanctuary shall not be eaten; it shall be burnt with fire.
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This is the law of the sacrifice of obedience: it is a great holy thing; the sacrifice of duty shall be slain in the same location as the burnt-offering, and its blood shall be sprinkled around the altar; the offerer shall present all the fat, the curd, and the fat covering the internal organs, as well as the kidneys and the fat on them, along with the omentum on the liver; he shall separate these things with the kidneys, and the priest shall burn them on the altar as an offering to the Lord: it shall be a sacrifice of oblation. All males from the priestly lineage may partake of it; it shall be eaten in the holy place: it is a great holy thing. The laws regarding both the sin-offering and the obligation offering are consistent: they are allotted to the priest, who is cleansed through it" (Lev. 6:30; 7:1-7). The consumption of the internal organs of the victims is prohibited. It is declared that they are to be dedicated solely to God and presented before Him; this signifies the command to “Let them be burned with fire,” implying their separation for consecration to a singular Divine and perfect essence, for which fire stands as a symbol. When the ram for sin is sacrificed, its blood is poured at the altar's base; for the death of Christ is both holy and fragrant. The entrails, the fat, the kidneys, and the lobes of the liver are collected. This, as previously mentioned, represents not just a singular virtue but rather an embodiment of many virtues, given the multitude of virtues present. Thus, we are justified in Christ, who endured death on our behalf, offering Himself “to God, to God, to the Father, in a pleasing aroma” (Eph. 5:2).