BS"D

Parshioth Vayakhel-Pekudei
By Yitzhak Kolakowski

My dear friends, this week we read an awesome praise of the Bnei
Yisrael.  In extensive detail, practically all of parshioth Terumah
and Tetzaveh are repeated, except that the former were in the form of
a Divine command from Hashem to Moshe and the present parshioth are in
the form of testimony that Hashem's will was fulfilled by Bnei
Yisrael after Moshe told them what was commanded.  However, the
Parshah begins:

 "And Moshe assembled all of Bnei Yisrael and told them, 'These are
 the words which Hashem has commanded that you should do'."

So we would think that we're about to hear details about the Mishkan
and the Priestly garments, yet we see:

 "Six days work shall be done, but the seventh day should be a holy
 Shabbos, a day of rest to you for HaShem."

What does Shabbos have to do with the Mishkan and the Kohanim?
Although it's well known that we derive the 39 forbidden types of
work of Shabbos from the Mishkan, perhaps there is a deeper reason.

The Sfas Emes explains another reason:  In the world there are
the dimensions of time and space, as well as the human
dimension.  Our job is to make the whole world holy, all three
dimensions of the world.  Shabbos is an offering of the time-dimension
to G-d.  The Tabernacle is an offerning of the dimensions of space to
G-d.  The Kohanim, as well as the "Chachmei Lev", "Wise-hearted"
laypeople who made the Mishkan were human-offerings to G-d.  When all
three of these come together in this week's parsha, it brings higher
levels of Kedushah to Bnei Yisrael, and atones for the Cheit HaEigel
of last week.

Today, we don't have a Mikdash, but each of us can take all three of
these things up as offerings to G-d.  We have Shabbos, and this is
the key.  "THESE are the words which Hashem has commanded, to do
them: Six days you can do work but the seventh day is a holy Shabbos
day of rest to Hashem..."  "THESE are the words which Hashem has
commanded"?  Didn't Hashem command a lot of other mitzvoth?  The
Chozeh of Lublin says, based on the Pesikta, that through keeping
Shabbos we fulfill the words of this passuk.  The Pesikta (a
medrash) says keeping Shabbos is equal to to doing all the Mitzvos of
the Torah.  If this is so, when we keep Shabbos we are also
considered as if we built the Mishkan and did all of the Mitzvos
associated with it.  Then we elevate all the world to kedusha, and
this is what will bring Moshiach.

May we all soon see the day when we go back up to the Holy Mountain
and rebuild Hashem's House and elevate all the world back to its
source, on that great day which will be entirely Shabbos and Menuchah
for the One Who lives forever, forever and ever.

Gut Shabbos.

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