TORAH SPARKS
Parashat
Terumah, Shabbat Zachor
February 20, 2021, 8 Adar 5781
Torah: Exodus 25;1-27:10; Triennial 26:1-30
Maftir: Deuteronomy 25:17-19
Haftorah: I Samuel 15:2-34
From Sanctuary to Study House
Ilana Kurshan
Parshat Terumah contains elaborate instructions for the construction of the Mishkan, the portable sanctuary where the divine presence resided throughout the Israelites desert wanderings. For those of us living in an age without a Temple, it may seem difficult to find religious meaning in all the architectural details how many cubits long and wide the ark must be, how many rings should be affixed to the table, which colors of linen should be used for the curtains that covered the entire edifice. Fortunately we can look to the Talmudic rabbis who were also living after the Temple s destruction to learn how these verses may take on new meaning such that spirituality is less about structure than about study.
Throughout the Talmud, the details of the Mishkan s construction serve as an occasion for extolling the virtue of Torah study. The rabbis (Yoma 72b) note that three of the Temple vessels the altar, the table, and the ark contained a zer, an ornamental golden rim that resembled a crown (the modern Hebrew word zer refers to a wreath or a garland). The rabbis associate each of these crowns with a different religious value. The crown of the altar, where the sacrifices were offered by the priests, symbolized the priesthood, which Aaron took for himself and his descendants. The crown of the table, which connotes abundance and wealth, symbolized the kingship, which David took for himself and his descendants. But the crown of the ark where the tablets given on Sinai were housed symbolized Torah, which is still sitting and waiting to be acquired, and anyone who wishes may come and take it. Torah study thus becomes the great equalizer it is accessible to anyone who wishes to pursue it, regardless of wealth or lineage. Although the Mishkan is generally regarded as the domain of the priestly class, the Talmudic rabbis, who were champions of Torah study, found a way to ensure that all Jews had a place at the table or at least in the ark.
The Talmudic sage Rava pursues this association between the ark and Torah study in commenting on the verse, From within and without you shall cover it (Exodus 25:11). The ark had to be overlaid with a cover of pure gold on both the inside and the outside. Rava interprets this architectural requirement as a description of the proper character of a Torah scholar. He states that any Torah scholar whose inside is not like his outside is not a true Torah scholar. A scholar of Torah must uphold the same values in her private life as in her public life, just as the ark must have the same pure gold on the inside and the outside.
The showbread, the lechem hapanim, was also employed by the sages to espouse the value of Talmud Torah. The Talmud in Menachot teaches that there were twelve loaves made of fine flour and arranged in two piles on the table in the sanctuary. The Torah states that they had to be before God always, meaning that they had to be on the table at all times. The Mishnah in Menachot (11:7) describes the elaborate choreography whereby one set of priests would remove the previous week s loaves at the very same instant as another set of priests set down the new bread. The Talmudic rabbis, struck by this obsessive concern with ensuring that the table was not left bare for even an instant, make an implicit analogy between the bread and Torah, invoking the verse This Torah shall not depart from your mouth, you shall contemplate it day and night (Joshua 1:8). Just as the bread had to be on the table at all times, a person should always be occupied with Torah study. When it comes to sustaining life, it is as important to speak words of Torah as it is to ensure there is bread on the table, as the Torah reminds us: Man cannot live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds from God s mouth (Deuteronomy 8:3).
At this point the Talmud quotes a figure identified as Ben Dama, son of Rabbi Yishmael s sister, who inquires cheekily whether he may be granted an exception from this injunction to study Torah at all times, since, as he claims, he has already learned the entire Torah. May he leave aside the study of Torah and engage in Greek wisdom? Rabbi Yishmael responds to his nephew by quoting the verse from the book of Joshua. He must contemplate Torah day and night. If he can find an hour that is neither day nor night, then he may use that time to pursue his extracurricular interests. Just as the bread always had to be in the presence of God, a Jew should always be engaged in the study of Torah. (It is worth noting that as understood by the rabbis, Torah was a broad category that subsumed many other disciplines as well, such that Ben Dama could not have been missing out on all that much.) Moreover, the study of Torah brings us closer to God, as per the Mishnah in Pirkei Avot (3:6) which teaches that even if only one person is engaged in the solitary study of Torah, the divine presence rests upon that individual. The proof text for this Mishnah in fact comes from a description of sacrificial worship: Make for me an altar of earth in every place where I cause My name to be mentioned, I will come to you and bless you (Exodus 20:24). God s presence will reside not just on the altars where sacrifices are offered, but also in any place where God s name is mentioned by scholars of Torah.
Our parsha, on its surface, more closely resembles an architectural blueprint than a moral code. But the rabbis understood that the Torah is more concerned with building a society than with building a structure. They knew that Judaism through its disciplines has the potential to fashion a morally beautiful life, just as an architect fashions a beautiful structure. And so they used the verses about the Mishkan to teach about the supreme religious pursuit, the study of Torah. Accessible to every Jew, Torah study has the potential to transform us within and without, affecting who we are and what we think about, such that no matter what we are doing, we are always at the same time contemplating the divine will. When read through the eyes of the rabbis, Parshat Teruma is a reminder that a world devoid of God s Temple may nonetheless be permeated by God s presence.
What s in the Ark?
Vered Hollander-Goldfarb
Text: Shemot 25:16
And you shall put in the Ark the covenant that I shall give to you.
● What seems to be the purpose of the Ark?
● What is to be placed in it? What do you think it is to be kept in the Ark?
● We never hear about the Ark being opened and the covenant taken out. What are the positive and negative aspects of such inaccessibility?
● The
first item described in the preparation of the Mishkan (Tabernacle) is the Ark
into which the covenant is to be placed. Why do you think the Torah started
with this item? What does it tell us about the Mishkan?
Commentary: Rashi Shemot 25:16
The covenant the Torah, which is a testimony between Me and you that I have ordained the commandments written in it.
● According to this reading, what is placed in the Ark? When might it be placed there?
● If so, what is the purpose of the Ark, and the Mishkan?
Commentary: Ibn Ezra Shmot 25:16 (The Long Commentary)
And you shall put – The tablets are the covenant; they are like a ketuba (marriage contract). And they are the tablets of the covenant . And furthermore, Moshe did not write a Torah scroll; and the Torah scroll (that is referred to in Deut. 31:24-26) was put by the Kohanim (priests) next to the Ark, externally. Furthermore, it is written that there is nothing in the Ark save two stone tablets (I Kings 8:9) and it is a dispute [if the broken tablets were placed there as well. Cf Bava Batra 14a-b] And this is the meaning of they were there until this day (I Kings 8:8) for a sign and a testimony that the Torah scroll was not in the Ark, for first he put the tablets in the Ark, then the Kaporet (cover of pure gold) with the cherubs, so how will Moshe place the Torah scroll inside the Ark in the fortieth year, if he did not remove the Kaporet with the cherubs from above the Ark?
● According to Ibn Ezra, what was placed in the Ark? How should that item be understood? What might this understanding have to do with placing it in the Ark?
● Ibn Ezra is in a heated discussion with whom? (It s not the first time )
● Compare Rashi and Ibn Ezra s comments. What are the advantages of each reading?
Remembering Ourselves
Bex Rosenblatt
In the cosmic battle against evil, evil has a face and a name. Evil is Amalek and the Amalekites. Their story runs through the Tanakh, emerging at important points in our history to threaten our people s existence. However, in the cosmic battle, there is a question of what role we play. If Amalek is the evil, are we the good? Are we merely the victims of Amalekite aggression? Does the introduction of evil into the world force us to perpetuate evil?
This Shabbat, Shabbat Zachor, the Shabbat of Remembering, we remember one of the more difficult stories about Amalek. We tell it in advance of Purim, the holiday on which Haman, descendant of Agag the Amalekite, tries to exterminate our people but instead Esther and Mordechai, descendent of Saul, exterminate him and all who would do harm to us. Our haftarah features their ancestors, Agag and Saul, pitted against each other.
In 1 Samuel 15:3, Samuel the prophet tells Saul, King of Israel, to strike down Amalek, and commit herem, utter destruction, against him and all that is his. You shall not have pity on him. You shall put everyone to death, man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and donkey. Why do the Amalekites deserve total destruction? Why should we kill the babies? Because, as 1 Samuel 15:2 says, God remembers how the Amalekites had craftily attacked us on our way out of Egypt. Deuteronomy 25:18 adds to this story, noting that the Amalekites had waited till we were weary and then attacked us from behind. And so, Samuel reminds Saul of his responsibility to destroy this nation. But Saul fails. He kills almost all the people. But the Israelites and Saul have pity on Agag, King of the Amalekites, and they do not kill him. They do not kill the animals and they do not kill all that was good. In response, Samuel strips the kingship from Saul and kills Agag himself.
The way the story is told, Saul seems to be the bad guy and Samuel seems to be the good guy. God is on Samuel s side. Midrash Tanhuma, Ki Teitzei 9:1 dives into exactly how Samuel accomplishes the killing, how he positions himself on the right side of God. R. Abba bar Kahana said, He cut olive-sized pieces from his flesh and fed them to ostriches. …but the masters say, [Samuel] set up four poles and stretched him upon them. Another opinion describes how he castrated him.
Here, we come back to the questions posed at the beginning. If the Amalekites are evil in the cosmic battle, what are we? What does it mean to wage war against evil itself? In the story from the Tanakh, we see Saul punished for trying to save all that was good. In the imaginings of the Midrash, we let our fantasies run wild, delving into sadistic modes of death. As we confront evil in our generation, may we remember just how dangerous the battle is. May we remember who we want to be even when evil seeks to destroy us.