 FEBRUARY 27 • 2020 | 33

A

s a person who loves 
building projects, I 
find Terumah’
s intri-
cate description of the 
blueprint and materials 
needed for the construc-
tion of the Mishkan more 
exciting than most. 
Reviewed again and 
again, the Torah takes the 
precision of holy space’
s 
construction quite seri-
ously. 
The building of the 
tabernacle is a watershed 
moment in the history 
and emergence of our 
people. The dedication of 
a central hub for worship (and 
sacrifice) will serve as the focal 
point of Jewish life and practice 
for the next 1,000 years. 
The vast majority of this 

week’
s portion (all but nine 
sentences) is filled with the 
nitty-gritty details that describe 
what will become the 
locust point of Jewish life. 
However, it is in the open-
ing lines that we find the 
most radical and inspira-
tional aspects.
“Tell the Israelite peo-
ple to bring Me gifts; you 
shall accept gifts for Me 
from every person whose 
heart so moves them” 
(Exodus 25:2). Though 
this might not seem like 
such a unique instruction, 
the implication here is of 
the upmost importance. Every 
person is not only welcome to 
contribute, but without their 
gifts, we would be unable to do 
the work of building the insti-

tutions necessary to sustain our 
community. 
The text goes on to list the 
different types of gifts that one 
may bring to contribute. They 
range from that which you 
would expect, like gold and sil-
ver, to that which may leave you 
perplexed — dolphin skins, for 
example. (We’
ll have to leave the 
question of where exactly one 
finds a dolphin in the desert for 
another time.) In summarizing, 
the famous commentator Rashi 
understands there to be 13 cate-
gories of gifts one may bring. 
As we know, 13 is a special 
number in our tradition. While 
the age of b’
nai mitzvah might 
be the first thing that comes to 
mind, 13 is also the number of 
attributes of God, which are the 
different ways we can experience 
Divinity in the world. 
From this, we learn that the 
work of building the tabernacle 
is as complex and diverse as our 
community. Just four weeks ago, 
we read that the Israelites came 

up out of Egypt as an erev rav, a 
mixed multitude (Exodus 12:38). 
Now, as we begin to build the 
infrastructure of our peoplehood, 
we see not only the importance, 
but also the power of that diver-
sity. 
In its instruction to us the 
Torah is quite clear: We need 
you, all of you, moved by your 
own heart, in order to make our 
community possible. 
In the climatic conclusion 
of the command to construct 
the Mishkan, we read V’
asu li 
mikdash, v’
shachnti b’
tocham, 
“Let them build me a sanctuary 
that I may dwell among them.
” 
These words, commonly found 
etched into the walls of our con-
temporary congregations, are a 
reminder that it is on us to bring 
Divinity into this world; we are 
the builders of community, and 
every one of us has a unique and 
precious gift to offer. 

Rabbi Ari Witkin is the director 
of leadership development at the 
Jewish Federation of Metro Detroit. 

Parshat 

Terumah: 

Exodus 25:1-

27:19; I Kings 

5:26-6:13.

Rabbi Ari 
Witkin

Spirit
torah portion

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