>> Torah portion KIDS EAT FREE EVERY FRIDAY! Italian Dishes & Pastas, Fresh Seafood, Fresh-Cut Steak, Salad & Flat Pizza and more! LOCCINO Pray To Show Gratitud Parshat Vayachel-Pekudei, Shabbat HaChodesh: Exodus 35:1-40:38, Exodus 12:1-12:20; Ezekiel 45:16-46:18. 15% OFF ITALIAN GRILL & BAR TOTAL FOOD BILL UP TO $30.00 Expires 3/31/13 5600 Crooks Rd. (North of Long Lake Rd.) Troy, MI • 248-813-0700 Open 7 days a week for lunch and dinner, Sat. and Sun. dinner only • Private room available for up to 85 people T his week's double Torah portion, Vayachel and Pekudei, deals with Moses' request for the people of Israel to donate material and labor for the construction of the Tabernacle so that the Lord "may dwell in their midst" (Exodus anathema to rational Judaism. Secondly, it should be obvious that God blesses all of His creation equally — those who "do not keep His command- ments" as well as those who attempt to precisely observe what they perceive 25:8). to be "God's will." Those of us who are Its construction is described in detail. "Torah observant" do so because it is In fact, to emphasize the pre- our obligation as Jews and cise fulfillment of the instruc- the "right" thing to do, and tions, the Torah tells us 18 not for any kind of ulterior separate times that each part motive or reward. God blesses was made "just as the Lord everyone, Jew and non-Jew, commanded Moses." observant and non-observant. The clear lesson of these What, then, is the connec- verses is that if one wants tion between the meticulous "to bring God into their life observance of the command- one must follow precisely the ments and our prayers: It "blueprint" the Torah reveals. seems to me that the midrash Rabbi Eliezer In addition to this rather is teaching us that the people Co hen obvious lesson, the midrash were eager to fulfill the com- (Midrash HaGadol) states: mandments with joyful love, "Just as the Lord commanded Moses: and this is the connection. Eighteen commandments are stated Just as the people were grateful to God for providing for them in the wilder- in the Torah, and all of them were ful- ness (and, in fact, in life in general), and filled with joyful love and eagerness. Corresponding to these (18 verses), the appreciated the opportunity to demon- rabbis instituted 18 blessings in our strate this gratitude by constructing the `prayer' to teach you that 'prayer' takes Tabernacle as a symbol of their loving the place of the service of the Tabernacle:' relationship with God, so, too, is it with Now, the "prayer" that the midrash our prayers. refers to is the so-called Amidah or By asking for what we need, we are Shemona-Esray (18) prayer, recited three acknowledging our complete depen- times a day. But the bulk of these bless- dence upon God to meet our needs and ings (now 19) are beseeching God to our gratitude to God for fulfilling those take care of our personal and communal needs. Through our prayers we are, needs. What could be the connection essentially, reminding ourselves constant- between the precise adherence to the ly not to take anything for granted: not instructions for the Tabernacle and our our lives and not all that they contain. prayer that God bestow upon us what we From the very depths of our being, we request? must be grateful for all that God gives us. One might say that just as the people This is the "service of the Tabernacle": followed God's command in construct- bringing to God the token of our love and ing the Tabernacle, likewise, if we follow appreciation. God's other commandments, then He will Eliezer Cohen is rabbi of Congregation Or grant our prayerful requests. Chadash in Oak Park/Huntington Woods and However, firstly, such a notion is a superstitious, "magical-thinking" attempt teaches at Yeshivat Akiva in Southfield. to control an omnipotent God, which is Tuesdays 99(' hard tacos with ground beef (carryout only) Open 7 days a week for lunch & dinner • Daily lunch specials starting at $4.99 • How many people treat prayer like some kind of "magical incantation" to attempt to control God? • When we pray, do we really think that God will not fulfill our needs if we don't say these words? • How much more meaningful would our prayers (and our lives) be if we emphasized our gratitude for what we have instead of our "need" for what we don't have? 0/ All lunch specials include rice & refried beans I • Full Bar • Lunch and Dinner Specials Daily We are now taking orders for Holiday Fiesta Trays! F ;OF I Exp 3/31/13 not good with any other offer. 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