In this week’s Parshah we recount the building of the Tabernacle, an account that covers five Parshiot and the rest of the book of Exodus. In the middle of this account we find the story of the sin of the Golden Calf. A major dispute exists among the commentators as to the relationship between the two stories. This disagreement goes to the heart of the purpose of the Tabernacle and indeed the whole idea of communal service of G-d. Some commentators see an intimate connection between the two stories and hold that the commandment to build the Tabernacle came only after and as a consequence of, the Golden Calf incident. The people by worshipping the Calf had shown their deep psychological need for a visible representation of G-d. As a concession to this weakness G-d gave them the Tabernacle and its service. Diametrically opposed to this view is the opinion that sees the Tabernacle being commanded before the incident of the Golden Calf, and not really connected to it. In this view, the building of the Tabernacle and the Presence of G-d within it was the culmination of the purpose of the Exodus. G-d took His people out of Egypt, gave them His Torah and then commanded them to build Him a sanctuary to permanently dwell among them and thus institutionalise the experience of Sinai. In a similar manner the culmination of the settlement of the Land of Israel was the building of the Temple by Solomon. These two approaches go to the heart of the nature of our relationship with G-d. Is prayer, especially communal prayer, a concession to human weakness or is it the highest peak of human spirituality? Would we actually be better off without synagogues, doing mitzvot privately, in families or small groups, or is the synagogue the ultimate realm of our connection to G-d as a people? It may in fact be, in good Jewish fashion, that both views are right. The Tabernacle was intended to be the pinnacle of the Exodus, but also served as a substitute for the Golden Calf. Maybe that is why we repeat verbatim the details of its structure after the Calf story. In a like manner, our synagogues can be the height of our relationship with G-d but also can serve as a substitute for spirituality. Prayer can bring us closer to G-d but also reduce Him to the status of a slot machine. The synagogue service can be inspiring and uplifting but can also turn into a fetish. Maybe the Torah, by leaving both possibilities open, is really telling us that what out Tabernacle, Temple or Synagogue becomes is actually up to us.

ALIYAH BY ALIYAH SYNOPSIS

Rishon	G-d commands the people to build a Tabernacle for His Presence to dwell among them. The Ark.
Sheni	The Ark cover, Cherubim, the Table and the Menorah.
Shelishi	The outer covering of the Tabernacle.
Revi’i	The wooden structure of the Tabernacle.
Chamishi	The Veil separating off the Holy of Holies.
Shishi	The Altar of Offering.
Shevi’i	The Courtyard of the Tabernacle.
Haftorah	I Kings: 5;26-6;13: Solomon builds the Temple.

 Sidra Statistics

Parshat Terumah

·         has 96 verses ;

·         is the 7th in Exodus, 19th in the Torah

·         2nd shortest in Exodus, 38th longest in the Torah

·         has 2 pos + 1 neg = 3 mitzvot.