Parashas Vayakhel

Moses assembled the entire community of Israel and said to them, "These are the words which G-d commanded to do…come and do all that G-d has commanded. The Sanctuary"…(Exodus 35:1-11)

    At this great assembly, Moses conveyed G-d’s commandment for the building and the furnishing of the Sanctuary. The Midrash states that the building of the Sanctuary was an atonement for the sin of the Golden Calf, and that the donation of gold for the Sanctuary was to offset the gold contributed for the idol (Tanchuma).

    Although idolatry ranks as the most grievous transgression, and one who concedes to idolatry is considered to have rejected the entire Torah (Sifri Shelach 15:22), we nevertheless find that when Jews are united, G-d is willing to overlook even this grave sin (Bamidbar Rabbah 11:16).

    The reason that this unique property of unity and brotherhood is able to offset the most serious of sins may be because idolatry leads to divisiveness. In fact, the Talmud states that Jews never took idols seriously, and knew very well that they were of no substance. The only reason they gravitated toward idolatry was because it allowed them to formulate a religion that would cater to their desires (Sanhedrin 63b). Inasmuch as people’s desires may differ greatly and are often in conflict with one another, true togetherness and idolatry cannot co-exist. Thus, when Jews seek to be united, they are far less likely to condone idolatry.

    In implementing the building of the Sanctuary which was to atone for the worship of the Golden Calf, Moses sought to reinforce the resolve against idolatry. He therefore assembled the entire community to encourage togetherness in the work for the Sanctuary.

    Unity among Jews is without peer in eliciting the divine blessing.

    Excerpt from Living Each Week, by Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski, M.D

Parashas Pikudei

These are the reckonings of the Sanctuary, the Sanctuary of the testimony …(Exodus 38:21)

    Rashi states that the word mishkan, which means "Sanctuary," is spelled identically to the word mashkon, which is "collateral pledged to secure a loan." Pikudei, here used to mean "reckoning," also means "an absence." He therefore interprets the verse to refer to the loss of the great Sanctuary in Jerusalem, which G-d took from Israel as a "pledge," and which will not be returned to us until we rectify our behavior.

    The commentaries often state that inasmuch as G-d and the Torah are identical (Zohar), G-d never does anything which is inconsistent with the laws of the Torah. We may therefore ask, inasmuch as the Torah forbids taking something as a pledge that is vital to a person's existence (Deuteronomy 24:6), how could G-d have taken the Sanctuary as a pledge?

    The answer is painfully obvious. If the Sanctuary had indeed been vital to the Israelites, it would never have been taken from us. We lost the Sanctuary precisely because it had ceased to be the heart and soul of our existence. We do indeed pray regularly for the rebuilding of the Sanctuary and the return of the glory of G-d to Jerusalem. But do we pray for this with the same intensity that we would plead for the return for our car if it was impounded?

    We may be assured that when having the Sanctuary becomes vital to us, and we understand it to be essential to our lives, G-d will honor the precept of the Torah and restore it to us.

    Excerpt from Living Each Week, by Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski, M.D