Terumah
Exodus 25:1-27:19
I Kings 5:26-6:13
Fresh out of Egypt, the Israelites are called to offer gifts for the construction of the desert mishkan (sanctuary). The newly freed slaves, remarkably, bring an array of precious stones and metals, fabrics and animal skins. Moses frames these gifts as gifts of the heart — kol ish asher yidvenu libo, literally, everyone whose heart is moved (Exodus 25:2).
The parashah tells us the desert tabernacle is to be a temple (mikdash), which will allow the Divine presence to dwell within the community — ve’asu li mikdash veshachanti b’tocham (Exodus 25:8). This wisdom applies not only to the desert sanctuary, but to all the communities of which we are a part. What gifts are needed to make a community sacred, infused with the Divine presence?
Every community depends on members stepping forward with donations of money and time. But it is the gifts of self — the offering of our own generous hearts — that are the most precious resources on which the life of a community depends.
It is not easy to be part of a human community. Some might say that it is especially challenging to be part of a Jewish community, so full of strong opinions, high-pitched conversations and disagreements. For the most part, we like it this way. But at times our contentiousness hurts people and damages the tapestry of our relationships.
The Sefat Emet (19th-century rebbe of Ger, Warsaw) sees the Torah’s description of the building of the mishkan as a beautiful piece of wisdom about community life. The rebbe emphasizes that each person brought a unique gift to the mishkan, resulting in a beautiful and sacred whole. The beauty was precisely in the variety of the gifts.
In every community, individuals have their own perspectives, their own piece of the truth. The communal endeavor requires that we all contribute what we have, and that we value the very different gifts that others bring, even when we fancy the community would be better if everyone were just like us.
Rebbe Nachman of Bratslav takes the point one step further. He says, “Everyone brings as an offering the goodness in his (or her) heart. The mishkan was built from the essential good in the heart of every Jew …” (Cited in Itturei Torah, vol. 3, p. 205).
What would it be like if we looked around our synagogue or communal organization and said to ourselves, “That person … and that person … and that annoying person over there … are bringing the very best of their own hearts to build this community”?
Next Thursday is the 9th of Adar. On that date, approximately 2,000 years ago, traditional sources say that the famously peaceful conflict between Beit Hillel and Beit Shammai erupted into a violent and destructive struggle, leading to the deaths of many rabbis and students. The day was considered so tragic that it was declared a fast day.
The Pardes Center for Judaism and Conflict Resolution has called for Jewish communities around the world to dedicate this week to the Jewish value of machloket l’shem shamayim — disputes for the sake of heaven — conducted in a respectful and generative manner. More broadly, the 9th of Adar invites Jews and Jewish communities to rededicate themselves to redifat shalom (pursuit of peace), a way of being in relationships that honors all people, including those with whom we disagree.
When our hearts are generous enough, we remember that others too are bringing the best that they have to give. When conflict emerges, we need to recall the wisdom of this parashah, reminding us that the sacred texture of community depends on our willingness to stretch to understand another’s perspective and recognize the uniqueness and beauty of a fellow human being.
Our capacity to fashion our differences into healthy and constructive arguments for the sake of the greater good invites the Shechinah (God’s presence) into our lives and makes community sacred.
Rabbi Amy Eilberg is the director of the Pardes Rodef Shalom Communities Program, helping synagogues and Jewish organizations place the pursuit of peace in interpersonal relationships at the center of their communal mission. A Minnesota resident, she is the author of “From Enemy to Friend: Jewish Wisdom and the Pursuit of Peace.”