26 February 2011 | 22 Adar I 5771 | Exodus 35:1 - 38:20

I spend a tremendous amount of time trying to get other people to do things. If I had a “normal” job we might call that manipulative or “passing the buck” but I don’t have a regular Job. I’m a Rabbi. Part of being a rabbi is about helping people develop the tools, courage and inspiration to reach higher than they might normally. Therefore, I spend a lot of time teaching, calling, emailing and programming all with the hope that other people will take control and ownership over their Judaism. Sometimes, I am effective and other times I am not. That seems to be part of the job, as well.

Our new Friday night service, The Minyan: A Carlebach style Shabbat, is a perfect example. From the beginning, I insisted that this service be lay lead and lay driven. This means that everybody who approaches the amud (Reading Table) to sing, anybody who prepares a D’var Torah, and all the people behind the scenes are volunteers who have stepped forward to take ownership and create something very special within the walls of Ahavath Achim Synagogue. I will tell you, however, this group of people didn’t appear out of nowhere. And it took many phone calls and emails to get things in motion. Each one of these brave souls are on a different level when it comes to ability but they all bring a special flavor to this  Friday night experience. Even with the most motivated of people, however, it still is a lot of work and one could ask the question – Is the amount of work worth it? After all, I know how to lead a Carlebach Shabbat service and I know how to prepare a D’var Torah. Do I really need to spend so much time getting other people to do the work? I believe we find the answer in the opening words to this week’s sidra.

The Torah states:
Moses convoked the whole Israelite community and said to them: (Exodus 35:1)

This week, we read about Moses’ command to the people to build a tabernacle where God’s presence will dwell among them. Much of the parsha is spent giving detailed instructions, providing measurements and materials needed for this holy task. The opening line offers us an important insight into the purpose of this holy endeavor. However, to fully understand it, we must divest ourselves from our traditional translation and look a bit more closely at the Hebrew.

Our Torah says that Moses gathered together (Va-Yak’hel) the entire assembly (adat) of Israel. The first word of the parsha is most informative. Our Etz Chaim chumash translates it as “convoke” but we know this word without the help of a translation – Kehella. What Moses did was to bring the people together as a community (Kehella). A few words later, it is written “Adat -community.” These two words in the sentence present us with a question: If the people of Israel were already a community, then what was Moses doing then he (va’yak’hel) brought them together? Isn’t the fact that they are a community implied that they were already together? The answer can be found a few verses later in the parsha when Moses continues his instruction to the people, encouraging everybody whose heart moves them to bring gifts and offer their skills to the construction of the Tabernacle.  It is through these words that I believe we find our answer. Indeed, the Israelites were an Adat, community based on circumstances like birth, shared history and proximity.  However, they only became a Kehilla Kedosha – a holy community – when Moses encouraged them to work together to build something holy.  So I spend much of my time trying to get other people to do things that I can easily do myself. I do this not because I am in need of more work but because I appreciate the lesson taught by our teacher Moses: Our community will be holy when everybody steps forward to make it holy.

Shabbat Shalom.