The Torah Clause

The name of this week’s Torah portion, Terumah, means "contribution" since the Tabernacle was constructed from contributions made by the Jewish people.

The half shekel donation for the purchase of communal offerings.

But why is the Parsha about God's house named after man's contribution?

Chasidic thought teaches that God created the world because He had a plan, but the plan contains a clause:

The plan is that God's presence be revealed in the world.

The clause states that this should occur through man's efforts.

At the giving of the Torah, God stated His plan. He taught us that we can reveal His presence in the world by performing the mitzvot.

Until that moment, everything had come from God. With the construction of the Tabernacle, God's clause began to be implemented. Now, man has made an effort to help God's plan reach fruition.

It is for this reason that our Parsha, which speaks of God's house, is named after man's contribution. God's house could only be complete when His clause for human involvement was adhered to.

A problem with this Parsha is that it appears, at first glance, to be obsolete. The Tabernacle was a temporary structure, which was superseded by the Temple in Jerusalem. So why do we have to read about it at all?

The Tabernacle possessed one advantage that the Temple did not have: The uniqueness of the Tabernacle is that it brought its contribution to the farthest of places, the desert. So we read Parshat Terumah, year after year, to remind us of the need to bring Judaism to the most distant places.

Most importantly, we are reminded to create a Tabernacle inside ourselves, a place for God to rest in our inner thoughts, speech, and actions. 

Wishing you a Shabbat Shalom!

Candle lighting time in NYC: 5:28 PM