Communit Torah Portion The Tabernacle Was Designed To Draw Us Closer To God Shabbat Terumah: Exodus 25:1-27:19; Deuteronomy 25:17-19; I Samuel 15:2-34. *Current Cadillac lessees receive additional $500 rebate. Valued Customers Heated memory leather seats, power tilt, loaded! GM Employees O Down Per month + tax* Per month + tax* $1149 due at signing $1112 due at signing 36 Month Leases, 12,000 Miles/Year Mon. & Thurs. till 9; Tues., Wed., Fri. till 6 THE FUSION OF DESIGN S TECHNOLOGY 7100 Orchard Lake Road, West Bloomfield Plus tax, title & license with approved GMAC credit. Leather nettle Italian!American Bar & Grill Fresh Ash • Steaks • Ribs • Chicken • Banquet Facilities for groups up to 100 • Homemade Soups & Rolls • Great Pizza e MONDAYS & 'TUESDAYS 16 oz. 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Commentators note that the verse reads "make Me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them" — among the Israelites — rather than "that I may dwell within it" — within the par- he focus of this week's sanctuary. shah (Torah portion) is the According to the Malbim, each per- building of the Tabernacle son is to build God a tabernacle in his in the wilderness — with or her own heart for God to dwell much detail provided as to its struc- within. In the words of bib- ture and accoutrements. tlical scholar Nehama God commands the Leibowitz, "The Holy One, Israelites to bring gifts of who is the Heart of Israel, gold, silver, copper and other summons the people once valuables "as their hearts more to draw near unto move them" so that they Him, knocking at the door, might "make Me a sanctuary as it were, and expressing a that I may dwell among wish to dwell amidst them." them." If this perspective is true, The free-will offerings then building the Tabernacle brought by our ancestors to RABBI MARLA is not the ultimate goal, but -build God's sanctuary set a rather a tool to bring us J. FEL DMAN precedent for future genera- closer to God: It was for Specia to the tions. From the Tabernacle in their own sake that our Jewish News the wilderness, to the Temple ancestors devoted themselves in Jerusalem, to our syna- to building the Tabernacle, gogues today, our people have just as it is for ourselves that we build built houses of worship designed to inspire us and edify our worship expen- our impressive houses of worship. It is not the building, itself, that ence. To this day, we continue to strive God requires. Rather, it is the free-will to build structures worthy of God's offerings, the gifts of the heart, that holiness_ and. reflective of God's glory. God seeks — and it is in these offer- The notion of hiddur mitzvah, the ings that God dwells. As one com- glorification of a commandment, mentator put it, "all gold and silver encourages Jews to bring additional belong to God, but the willingness of beauty to their observance of mitzvot the heart is ours to give." and traditions. This concept has led to We should continue to invest our the proliferation of synagogue art and resources in building sanctuaries that Jewish craftsmanship. will enrich our worship. And we The mitzvah of reading the Torah is should strive to observe the mitzvot in enhanced when done in pleasant sur- roundings, with a decorative yad (Torah ways that glorify God. Yet, let us also remember that the pointer) and handsomely crafted man- real gift we bring to God is what is in tles, shields and crowns. When we use our hearts. ❑ treasured heirlooms or artistic objects in our various home rituals, we have added dignity and glory to those mitzvot. This idea may explain the excruci- ating attention to detail demanded of the Israelites in building the Tabernacle, and the exacting instruc- What are ways we can fulfill the tions provided in the parshah as to the mitzvot that go beyond the basic specific parameters for every aspect of requirements, in order to glorify the sanctuary. Creating an edifice wor- the commandments (hiddur thy of God's glory would be no simple mitzvah)? Can we ever go too far task. in embellishing the mitzvot so as to lose their underlying values? Marla J. Feldman is the assistant direc- What free-will gifts of the heart tor of the Jewish Community Council of would you bring to build a sanc- Metropolitan Detroit and executive tuary worthy of God? director of the Michigan Board of Rabbis. . Conversations