"The Rabbis regarded chapter 19 of Leviticus as the kernel of the law and declared that the essentials of the Torah are summarised therein." - Hertz Chumash.
So what is it that we look at in a parshah whsoe name has roots in the word for holiness? What is it in this parshah that draws it alongside the Decalogue?
The answer is almost every word -this parshah is so packed with rules and laws, statutes, commandments, punishments and all. It almost seems disrespectful to summarise so, but here are the main points:
The holiness of G-d and the keeping of the Sabbath.
Other moral laws such as respecting one's parents and not worshiping idols.
Ritual laws, consideration for the poor with regards to the harvest.
Laws concerning our fellows, such as not stealing or lying, or laws concerning wages.
Warnings not to hate your neighbour, which leads onto a controversial verse (Lev 19,18) reminded the Jew to love their fellow Jew (although from this argument dictates that one learns to love everyone).
Laws against dealing with spirits and ghosts, and more laws concerning the well-being of the stranger.
Laws on immorality, listing off sexual deviancies (which also leads to a modern controversy).
All in all, everything is crammed into these verses. But because of the sheer voluminous content of law and instruction, there is bound to be controversy. How can Judaism allow homosexuality, for example, when Lev 20:13 expressly forbids it? How can Judaism not call itself segragationalist after the commandment to respect your fellow tribesman? Don't worry, it's not all bad! The flexibility of some movements of modern Judaism account for this, and women and homosexual rabbis are tolerated and encouraged there, but it's always likely to be a touchy subject! Similarly one can use the argument that as a child first loves its family, it moves on and extends its love to other people as it encounters them, but it's basis for love will always be with the family.
So what is the most important point to draw from this sedra? There is only one thing I can really suggest and that is to look at it yourself. Each verse leads to such wide possibilities for discussion that books could, and probably have, be written on this one portion alone. There is a tendency for people to learn the stories in Genesis - who after all has never heard of Noah's Ark or Adam and Eve? But for greater spiritual guidance, for an ethical code which could even be taken out of a religious context for many of the verses, this is the parshah. This one section of the Torah is the kind of ethical code we wish only more people would follow. And by being so controversial it always leaves us with bases for discussions!