Parashat Vayakhel - Pekudei

Pekudei 5768/2008

The Book of Exodus ends with a phrase reminiscent of the end of the creation story: ‘When Moshe had finished his work..’. In B’reishit (Genesis), ‘when G’d finishes His work’, there is the Shabbat, a holy day of rest. Here, when Moshe finishes his work, the Presence of the Lord, the Shechina, fills the Tabernacle.

 Our sages draw a beautiful parallel between the building of the Mishkan (Tabernacle) and the creation of the world. Just as G’d created the world so that humans would have a place to dwell, we built the Mishkan so that G’d will have a dwelling place. Jewish tradition emphasizes that G’d did not describe creation as ‘very good’ until humans inhabited the earth. Our Mishkan, too, awaits its tenant. Of course, the Mishkan was not literally  a place in which G’d dwelt; it was a symbol of His dwelling amongst us – and the ‘cloud of glory’ provided us with the visual sign that G’d was with us.

 We are told that Aharon and his sons were inducted into their priestly duties at the altar of the Mishkan on Yom Kippur, providing the model for the annual ceremony in the Holy of Holies in Temple times, when the Cohen Gadol (High Priest) would approach G’d on behalf of the people. While the Mishkan was in our possession, we had a sense that our approach was reciprocated and that G’d was meeting us.

 Yom Kippur is called Shabbat-Hashabbatot, the Sabbath of Sabbaths. We have a weekly reminder, Shabbat, that G’d created the heavens and the earth in order that we would have a place to dwell. At least once a year, on Yom Kippur, we should remember that we once built the dwelling place for G’d on this earth, so that He could dwell amongst us and that there was a time that the Shechina was experienced by the whole nation.

Vayakhel 5768/2008

What is ‘wisdom’? In this week’s parsha we are told that Betzalel, the chief craftsman and artist responsible for the construction of the Tabernacle, was endowed with wisdom. There are numerous Hebrew terms used to describe his particular genius. He is wise, discerning, understanding and thoughtful according to the inadequate translations of just some of the terms used.

According to the text, these qualities are Divinely endowed.

Betzalel is not a philosopher or theologian. He is an artist, devoted to creating a beautiful creation using concrete materials. His contribution to the world is in the realm of the material, tangible domain. This, too, is treasured wisdom.

While Jewish life today remembers and venerates its scholars and prophetic writings, we need to be aware that the genius endowed to Betzalel to create beautiful art was equally Divine.

Vayakhel-Pekudei 5767/2007

This week we read the double parsha of Vayakhel-Pekudei. After the interlude describing the episode of the Golden Calf, this week’s parsha returns to the theme that has dominated the narrative since the Revelation at Mt Sinai: the building of the Tabernacle or ‘Mishkan’. 

The Mishkan is the most sacred item that humankind has ever constructed. Every detail of it is described in intricate detail. The craftsmen and labourers, the artists and artisans, the blacksmiths and carpenters are all described as doing holy labour. They are praised for their sacred insight and their divinely-inspired skills. 

Yet the parsha opens with a warning: do not value your achievements in creating anything material as much as you value the Shabbat. Whatever work you are doing, even work that is explicitly commanded by G’d, is not more important than resting from your work. Abraham Heschel, one of the great thinkers of Twentieth Century America, explained that for the Jewish people, holiness in time overrides holy items or holy places. Thus the Tabernacle, the place where the Divine Presence could be felt, was not more sacred than the Shabbat, time when the Divine Presence can enter the soul of each individual.

The Book of Exodus, which we concluded last Shabbat, devoted many chapters to the building of the Mishkan. The Book of Vayikra is initially devoted to the sacrifices which the Jewish people will offer on the altar of the Mishkan.

There were five main types of sacrifices, comprising burnt offerings, gift offerings, peace offerings, sin offerings and guilt offerings. One of the features of the offerings was that the poor were only required to offer what they could afford whereas the rich had to offer enough that they would be aware of the cost.

The word for ‘sacrifice’ is ‘korban’, which is derived from the word ‘k-r-v’, denoting closeness. When one gave a sacrifice it was intended to allow one to draw close to G’d. By participating in a concrete ritual, where something one possessed was given up, the person making the offering felt that rather than always taking from G’d, there was also the possibility of giving. In any relationship, if one side always gives and the other always takes, there is not genuine closeness.

However, if the weaker partner is given the opportunity to also give, albeit to give something comparatively small, some balance is restored through the bestowing of dignity on the giver. Even when the recipient has no need of what is given, the giver values the opportunity to be the active player in the relationship.