The initial words of Moses where he recalls the need to keep the Shabbat in this parasha, Vayakhel-Pekudei, repeats what happened after the Golden Calf. In this case looking to get the people back on track Moses instructs them to keep three Holy Days; Pesach (Ex. 32:18 - remember the liberty from Egypt and their gods), Shavuot (Ex. 32:22 - the giving of the Torah to guide the people) and the Shabbat (32:12 - A day of communal rest and reflection from oppression and forced labor). We do this weekly with the Shabbat Kiddush, reflecting on the obligation of the week (Egypt) with the freedom to rest on the Shabbat (from the obligation of the week), which is why we say zeicher lee’tzee’at Mitzraim, remembering the leaving of Egypt. As such the Shabbat introduced the idea of sacred time into the world, whereas with the completion of the Mishkan this week at the conclusion of Exodus, the Jews who came out of Egypt were the first to encounter the idea of sacred space. Sacred time and sacred space coexisted for them yesterday and it does with us today.
Parshiyot Vayakhel and Pekudei, the last two readings in Exodus that we combine in non-leap years, mainly looks at the execution, completion and inauguration of the Mishkan. The beginning and the end are about the Shabbat and the presence of God that acts like a sandwich to hold together everything in between, such as the community and its values, the Mishkan, sacrifices, the Holy Ark, etc. So in Vayakhel Moses taught that the first act of faithfulness was the keeping of the Shabbat by ceasing all work, which included lighting a fire (Ex. 35:1-3). Let’s just say without getting into all the halakhot (Jewish Law) the reason behind not lighting a fire was not so much the fire but what was connected to it, such as the collecting of wood, arranging it, starting as well as maintaining it and so forth, something that took a lot of work; as Jews we might have different ideas of practice but the idea is the same, a day to rest, reflect and be refreshed from obligated normative work. Shabbat was also a matter of perspective. Therefore we read in the Talmud (Shabbat 69b) that for Rabbi Huna since God’s final act of creation was the Shabbat on the seventh day it is at the end. For Rabbi Chiyya b. Rav since humankind was formed on the sixth day the Shabbat was their first day. So in Vayakhel the keeping of the Shabbat comes first while in Pekudei it is last, and as we shall see, although the mention of Shabbat is not explicit I think it is most certainly implied.
Toward the conclusion of Pekudei,
after the Mishkan is now built and operational, it says in Exodus 40:33-34, “When Moses had
finished the work, the cloud covered the Tent of Meeting, and the Presence of
Adonai filled the Tabernacle.” When “Moses had
finished the work” is awfully similar to what we read in the creation
narrative when “God finished the work,” it says in Genesis 2:2-3, “On
the seventh day God finished the work that had been undertaken: [God] ceased on
the seventh day from doing any of the work. And God blessed the
seventh day and declared it holy—having ceased on it from all the work of
creation that God had done.” In both cases the word “finished”
(same Hebrew root) suggests a relationship between the Mishkan and the Shabbat
itself. We see this in a Midrash
(Mekhilta d'Rabbi Yishmael 35:2:1-2) that says “since we are permitted to
perform labor (i.e., the daily offering) in the Temple (on Sabbath), it should
(also) be permitted outside the Temple. It is, therefore, written
"(Sabbath) shall be holy for you," (labor being forbidden to you),
but for the Lord (i.e., for sacrifice), it is ‘mundane.’"
Although all daily sacrifices for God were normal (mundane), for the Jews of
the Temple times they were to differ on Shabbat, thus the work of the holy on
Shabbat was different than the work of the mundane, or of normal weekdays.
The Shabbat was to remind them of God and the
creation of the world that they were now responsible to maintain,
whereas the Mishkan represented their partnership with God in building a place of light that stood in contrast to the darkness of the wilderness around them but also as a reminder of their freedom from the darkness of Egypt. While it is true that the vast majority of us do not
know of such a slavery here in America, we too must be grateful for whatever
darkness we emerged from, even if it was just a tough work week! The
point being that the Mishkan became a symbol of freedom, light and the presence
of the God, thus the myth of Pekudei concludes with the words of Exodus 40:35-36 that says, “Moses could not enter the Tent of
Meeting, because the cloud had settled upon it and the Presence of Adonai
filled the Tabernacle. When the cloud lifted from the Tabernacle, the
Israelites would set out.” In the same way the Shabbat presence invited them to gather together on this unique day, in the sacred space of the
Mishkan, with their families and friends to celebrate all that is
good and holy before the daily tasks of the new week began once
again.
If you recall when writing about parasha T’rumah I
said that the Mishkan was more so a forerunner to our modern Synagogues and Temples
rather than the precursor for the Beit Hamikdash, or the Temple that
stood in Jerusalem. So we are reminded of two things here. First,
the Shabbat had a very important purpose; to separate the holy and the mundane,
a time we can embrace to set aside the adventures and challenges of the week, the congregation being a part of the
Shabbat experience. Second, our congregations in particular function like
the Mishkan, a space where the scared can be found, both inside and out. In
the Mishnah (Sukkah 5:2-3) we read about the illumination of the fire during
Sukkot so all, even those from far off, could see the glory of what the Temple
stood for. Our congregations must stand to better our world with all
their signs, symbols, and internal structures to illuminate those
around us, beginning with our own families and communities, being places of
Tikkun Olam for those near and far, improving lives when and where the opportunities present themselves. As we enter this new month of Nissan next week with the special Shabbat's of Passover on the horizon, we should recall that all our Shabbat's remind us of sacred time, whereas the Mishkan (our
congregations and gatherings) remind us of sacred space; as people we need to value both.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Adam
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