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March 11, 2005/Adar I 30 5765, Volume 57, No. 28
Be Jewish everywhere
Torah study
RABBI CHAIM SILVER
Parsha Pekudei, Exodus 38:21
Our sages teach us that prior to the sin of the golden calf, the Tabernacle was not essential to Judaism, since God's presence could be experienced in every aspect of our lives. The reason that the Jews could see the hand of God so openly at this time was largely due to Moses' holy presence and leadership. When the Jews felt that Moses would not be returning from his 40-day stay on top of Mount Sinai, they immediately began to search for a new method to connect with God and maintain their previous level of holiness. Unfortunately, they found what they were looking for in the golden calf. It was never their intention to replace the Almighty with their idol; rather, it was the void left by Moses' absence they were trying to fill.
By creating the golden calf and not following God's direction to wait for Moses' return, the Jews were making the statement that the world is not a divine sanctuary where it is God who dictates how we are to act, but rather that we define spirituality in a world that is our own. In the Tabernacle, God's presence could once again be experienced in this world.
It is interesting to note that the Tabernacle was a portable structure that traveled together with Jews. It was disassembled as the Clouds of Glory began to move, and it was once again rebuilt when they made their camp. This teaches us a fundamental principle of Jewish faith: Judaism is not relegated to the synagogues or to the study halls. Our Judaism goes wherever we go.
We must not liken Judaism to a membership in a country club or Torah to a mere subject. Judaism is much more than one of our many interests; it establishes who we are, and the Torah is our guide. We learn from the Tabernacle that Judaism is an inseparable part of our life that constantly defines our identity. Wherever we go and whatever we do, we do as Jews. Surprisingly, this is a quality that our non-Jewish friends appreciate more than we do.
My father, Rabbi Yehudah Silver, once on his way to lecture in Hong Kong, stopped over in Dubai for a couple of hours. The crew requested that all passengers deplane in order to facilitate easier cleaning. My father mentioned to the stewardess that he did not feel comfortable deplaning since he feared what might happen in the terminal. She asked the captain and with some hesitation allowed him to remain on board. The passenger sitting next to my father, a Christian U.S Army officer, was worried about my father's safety and decided to stay to protect my father. He suggested that my father remove his kippah (yarmulke) in order not to draw attention to the fact that he was Jewish. My father told him that by removing his kippah he would not look any less Jewish and he would keep his kippah on his head. Once they were up in the air, my father's newfound friend leaned over and said, "Rabbi, I am real glad you didn't take off your yarmulke. Ya see, I like it when Jews act like Jews and not like us goyims!"
Judaism is not merely a cultural identity, but a spiritual quality that must be developed and nurtured. We accomplish this by using and forming the physical world according to the laws of the Torah, creating a world suitable for the manifest presence of God. It is very difficult to see the presence of God in a dog-eat-dog world, where power and wealth are the measures of success. This is the world that we created for ourselves and not the world in which God desires us to live.
The Tabernacle functions completely according to the laws of the Torah, and therefore it is where God desires to manifest His presence. It is possible to experience God in every aspect of our lives, but it requires us to live by the lesson of the Tabernacle. Wherever we go, we must bring our Judaism with us.
Rabbi Chaim Silver is the spiritual leader of Young Israel of Phoenix.
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