"Make Me a sanctuary"
(Exodus 25:8)
Adar 3, 5780/February 28, 2020
When G-d created the world, He did so out of a supernal, infinite desire to emanate His goodness, and, in order to do this, G-d needed to create an 'other' which could receive G-d's goodness. This 'other' is what we call creation, creation being a 'space' that G-d created within His infinite being, into which He could project His goodness and blessing. The ultimate recipient of G-d's goodness is man, who has the ability to live his life in accordance to G-d's will, so as to maximize G-d's blessing in the world. When G-d tells Moshe, at the opening of this week's Torah reading of Terumah, "Speak to the children of Israel, and have them take for Me an offering; from every person whose heart inspires him to generosity, you shall take My offering," (Exodus 25:2) He is essentially calling upon Israel to emulate His own creative impulse and to set aside a part of their world in order to make room for G-d's infinite being: "And they shall make Me a sanctuary and I will dwell in their midst." (ibid 25:8)
In a manner of speaking, "Make Me a sanctuary" is the ultimate 'commandment,' in that it is emphatically not a diktat, but a beckoning. We can only make for G-d a sanctuary if we are inspired to do so out of the generosity of our own heart, something which cannot be compelled, even by G-d. Just as G-d created our world by virtue of His pure desire to do so, so too, Israel is being called upon here to create a world for G-d to reside within our world, by virtue of our pure and unblemished desire to do so. "Make Me a sanctuary" is the ultimate 'commandment,' in that it lays bare the indisputable fact that man, the possessor of free will, (by virtue of G-d's loving kindness), fulfills G-d's commandments because it is man's preeminent desire to do so. This is what gives the Torah covenant between G-d and Israel its life force. This is why the Torah covenant between G-d and Israel is eternal. The fulfillment of each commandment is a coming together of wills, G-d's will and man's.
Nevertheless, performing G-d's commandments on a personal level, such as keeping Shabbat or refraining from speaking gossip, or even on a national level, such as observing the Sabbatical or Jubilee years seems to be on a whole different level than creating for G-d a space from which His infinite Being can emanate forth. Setting aside a space in our finite world for the infinite, endless Presence of G-d is the definition of paradox. Midrashteaches us that Moshe, upon hearing G-d's 'request,' raised this very question: "Moshe said: Master of the Universe, it is written, 'Even the heavens to their uttermost reaches cannot contain You' (I Kings 8:27), yet You say, 'Let them make Me a sanctuary'? The Holy One, blessed be He, answered him, 'It is not as you think; rather, twenty planks on the north, twenty planks on the south, and eight planks on the west; and I shall come down and reduce My presence below, ... as it is said: There I will meet with you, and I will impart to you...'"(Yalkut Shimoni 365)
G-d brushes aside Moshe's intellectual puzzlement, and in doing so seems to be presaging the words of Binyamin Ze'ev Hertzl, the visionary of the modern state of Israel, who said, "If you will it, it is no fairytale." G-d will, for His part, "reduce His presence," if we, for our part, will allow ourselves to be inspired to enlarge the generosity of our hearts way beyond the constricts of our physical, finite world, and let G-d in. After all, G-d tells Moshe, that He "will dwell in their [our] midst." It is the generosity of our hearts, our hearts' desire to welcome G-d into our lives that must assume infinite proportions. Once Israel, as a people, united and wholeheartedly accepts this challenge, then building a physical structure within which G-d's infinite Presence can dwell is, to paraphrase G-d's response to Moshe in the Midrash, "easy-peasy."
G-d is laying it all on the line here. G-d created the world so that He could fill that world with His Presence. He originally proposed to Adam that should Adam refrain from eating the fruit of but one tree in the Garden of Eden, then man and G-d would dwell forever in peace. But Adam, being Adam, refused. Now G-d, rather than asking Israel to hold back and limit its natural desire to partake in G-d's creation, is asking Israel to open its heart in the deepest of deep ways, with unrestrained love and desire for G-d's nearness, and thereby create for G-d a world within the world that G-d created for man, a world in which man and G-d can dwell as one.
This is a bold gambit on G-d's part, one which he is first proposing to Moshein their private rendezvous atop Mount Sinai. How will Israel respond? Will they open their hearts to G-d's desire, or will they hide from G-d, as did Adam? That we won't know until later in our story. And much much later in our story brings us to today. G-d is still beckoning. G-d is still asking for a Sanctuary so that He can dwell in our midst. Today, as then, it's a matter of the heart. If we will it, it will happen.
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In the words of the prophet Isaiah, "My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations."
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Tune in to this week's Temple Talk, as Yitzchak Reuven describes how "Build for Me a sanctuary" are the sweetest words ever spoken, how G-d ask for "an offering from every person whose heart inspires him to generosity,"and, in honor of G-d's request, the Temple Institute kicks off its Terumah 2020 campaign!
G-d wants in to our world, and what G-d wants, (with man's help), He gets! From the grandeur of the Mount Sinai experience, to the subtle presence of G-d in the ordinances which followed Mount Sinai, to now, G-d's simple command: "Build for Me a Sanctuary!" G-d wants to dwell among us , and He won't be denied. The Temple Institute also wants what G-d wants, and parashat Terumah is the birthplace of the Temple Institute, and the inspiration for our Terumah 2020 campaign. Also, updates on the Temple Mount and on Israel's upcoming elections. Wishing everyone a good new month of Adar!
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"As you have been shown on the mountain" G-d tells Moshe three times concerning the commandment to build the Tabernacle and its sacred vessels. To what vision, what plan, what blueprint is G-d referring? Just what did Moshe and the children of Israel see on Mount Sinai, what did G-d show them? And how was that glimpse of G-d's overwhelming Oneness to be embodied and reflected in the Holy Temple and its vessels, renewing and reliving every day our incredible closeness to G-d.
Terumah (Exodus 25:1 - 27:19)
Parashat Terumah is read on Shabbat:
Adar 4, 5780/February 29, 2020
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Help To Build The Holy Temple In Our Time: Donate Generously To Help The Sacred Work Of The Temple Institute! Every contribution helps to rebuild the Holy Temple in our Time!
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Blessings from the holy city of Jerusalem!
Yitzchak Reuven
The Temple Institute
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