Our Parasha-portion
begins the instructions for the building of the Mishkan – Tabernacle and Sanctuary
in the desert . The Mishkan was a resting
place for God's presence= שכינה. The Mishkan was the climax of nation building and a symbol of a complete redemption from Egypt. The Mishkan was the place where God's revelation to his people at Mount Sinai was to be reconstructed on a daily basis
and it would be a place where people would come to be spiritually uplifted and
feel the shechinah , God's presence- שכינה.
Although God is everywhere, because of
the sin of the Golden calf, the nation lost in spiritual stature, so a special
place was needed where people could feel God's presence rest upon them. The temples in Jerusalem
replaced the Mishkan – tabernacle in the desert. After the destruction of the temples,
the houses of worship and learning became the ' מקדש מעט,'
– miniature sanctuaries, and a resting
place for God's presence.
The resting place for
the divine presence – השכינה is not really a building or a tent, the temple or a
mishkan. The verse says – ועשו לי מקדש ושכנתי בתוכם – בתוכו לא נאמר אלא בתוכם' and you (plural) shall make a
Sanctuary for me and I will dwell among them. The commentators note that it is
not written I will dwell in it, but the divine presence will dwell among them,
it will rest upon each and every individual. In Psalm 78:60 - תהילים עח: ס
– משכן שלו אהל שכן באדם - 'The tabernacle of Shiloh
where He-God dwelled among men ' expresses the same idea that God has no desire
to rest his divine spirit on an inanimate construction. The tabernacle is
merely a means to channel God's spirit and presence into the midst of human
life. It is people who give value and kedusha- holiness to the mishkan – tabernacle
and invite God into the mishkan, by their holy thoughts, prayers, learning and the way they conduct themselves - intrinsically
motivated to be of service to man and the community and to serve God. And it is
man's sins and immoral behavior that drives the divine presence – שכינה from the temple or sanctuary.
The Talmud teaches that
one does not need a particular building for the divine presence to rest. If a
man and a woman, relate to each other as true Torah husbands and wives should relate,
they merit that the Shechinah – divine presence will rest upon them. True love
is not dependent on something external and it is an expression of giving and
connection between the inner souls and divine sparks of the couple. When people
connect to each other on a deep level of the soul, being totally involved in giving
and not concerned about the ' self', God becomes a partner in their endeavors.
The Talmud speaks of the
divine presence being with people who study the Torah and Talmud together in a
collaborative way. When one has a love of learning and is enjoying learning
together with others , one becomes totally involved in the process of learning
and loses oneself ,being totally connected to the Divine Torah and connected on the
most deep level , to one's inner being and the souls of one's learning partners. Once there
is connection between the divine elements of each person, God joins in and
rests his presence upon them.
The verse –' you shall
make a sanctuary for me and I will dwell among them ' can also be read as God
dwelling among the people while they are in the process of contributing to the building of the
mishkan . People gave in an altruistic way and totally
lost themselves in the process of collaborating with others in their national and
religious duty of building the mishkan.
They operated in a way that they were able to connect to their inner-beings
and the souls of others , thus making space for God's presence to rest upon
them.
As parents and teachers
we want to interact , bond and connect with children on a deeper level , on the
level of the soul. We can achieve this
if the child feels self-determined, endorsing his actions at the highest level of
reflection. He feels self-directed, autonomous, and competent in what he does.
He feels a sense of belonging and connection to his family, school and community , and being supported
by caregivers and friends. It is important that we are not judgmental and help
the child focus on what he is doing or
learning and not how he is doing and learning. The child should also
have a sense of purpose , feel
part of a bigger mission to serve God and be of service to man , and that they are
making a contribution and impact on the lives of others. When we learn Torah
with our children in a non-judgmental way , we can truly connect with them on
this deep level of the soul and engage in authentic learning. When we relate to
our kids on this deep level , we are dealing with an authentic child. In this way we get to really know the real
child and help him access all his strengths and connect with his inner core values.
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