The building of the Tabernacle, sort of a portable sanctuary, demanded an impressive dose of planning and craftsmanship, according to what we read in this week’s parashah. Although the story abounds in details regarding the design of this structure, both here and in other passages, the idea it conveys is certainly important for the historical evolution of Israel.
Beyond its subsequent use in worship and ritual, the construction itself constituted a colossal project of the Hebrew nation newly freed from Egypt, in which each and every person was involved.
The Torah could not offer us a more idyllic image of an entire people voluntarily willing to contribute to a collective undertaking. The essential role played by each member of the House of Israel in the fulfillment of this project can be easily deduced from those chapters devoted to this subject.
Some contributed with their possessions, others with the raw materials, or with their industry and skills. Everybody took part in the project and felt responsible for it, whether in the task of plan design, or in the collection of funds, or in the processing of materials and coordination of the different activities. It was, without a doubt, a transcendental initiative, full of meaning and symbolism, which brought unity of purpose to the emerging Jewish people.
The Mishkan, with its sacred objects, such as the Aron ha’Kodesh (Holy Ark, which contained the two Tablets of the Law) and the Menora, accompanied the people in their journey through the wilderness and when they entered the land of Canaan. The Hebrew word for tabernacle is mishkan, derived from shechinah or Divine presence. According to classical commentaries, the purpose of the mishkan was the creation of a sacred space, which would radiate religious inspiration and orientation.
The Mishkan at its time, as the synagogue later on, became a unique and special connection between the unity of the people and their spiritual strength. According to some biblical commentaries, the building of the mishkan was the culmination of the process of conformation itself of the Hebrew nation, from tribes merely united by a common interest.
It was from the great experience at Sinai, and the acceptance of the Torah, that the platform of ideas was established, as well as the rules and ideals that instilled the sense of mission and moral and spiritual cohesion in the future generations.
The prophets of Israel already taught it, and historical experience corroborated it: no building per se guarantees the survival of a nation. The temples of Jerusalem were both destroyed later on, but the devotion and ideals of Sinai were what supported the beliefs of the Jewish people against all odds, throughout time, and in every place they’ve lived.
Rabbi Daniel A. Kripper - Beth Israel Aruba
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