Vayekhel
What is vital in building our community?
Reflection by Ariel Yisraelah Hendelman, the Or HaLev Team:
"In this week’s Torah portion, Vayekhel, we continue building the mishkan, the finite dwelling place of the Infinite. Some lines from portions just a couple of weeks ago are repeated verbatim, asking all whose hearts are moved to contribute what they can to this sacred & important effort.
The word vayekhel ויקהל shares a root קהל with the word kehilah קהילה, meaning community. This portion is showing us what it means to be a community, & not just any community, but one in which the Divine desires to reside. Perhaps we are learning how to build this community just as much as any physical structure.
The word nediv נדיב is used rather than terumah, the word used in other Torah portions for the offerings that we bring as a community to contribute to this immense project. Nediv shares a root נדב with the word lehitnadev, להתנדב, meaning to volunteer. Everyone is volunteering not only their time & skills, but their finest material possessions. Many parts of the mishkan are made of gold, copper & silver, as well as fine linen & yarns. We are asked to bring the very best, but only if our hearts are open & desiring to take part.
The artisans & craftspeople whose skills will be utilized for special tasks are called, of all things, חכם לב, hacham lev, the wise-hearted ones. The heart seems to be as vital of an ingredient as any of the material things in building our sacred community.
Lastly, we have many homages to the earth – acacia wood is mentioned many times & the lampstands are shaped like almond blossoms (which anyone living in Israel knows are the first trees to bloom).
In our meditation practice, we might feel like we are building our mishkan alone, especially if we don’t have others to sit with regularly, or a retreat to join. But we see here how crucial community is, & how it begins with a willing heart. Let this parsha guide you to connect with community, whether it be online or a gathering of friends to sit in sacred silence, or going out to sit amongst the trees. Let’s create communities, where the Divine desires to dwell."