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This week we read almost the exact same thing that we read three weeks ago in “Parshat Truma” about the building of the Tabernacle (Holy Temple) in the desert. The main difference is there we learned what G-d commanded the Jews to do and here we read about how they ACTUALLY did it.

At first glance this is hard to understand. Each word of the Torah is exact, written by G-d Almighty. Why repeat an entire Torah portion just to tell us that the Jews followed instructions? Why not just add a few words at the end of ‘Truma’ that the Jews did what G-d commanded?
Even more perplexing is; What is the Holy Temple and why did the Jews need it at all? Especially in the desert when everything around them; the Clouds of Glory, the pillar of fire, bread from heaven, water from a rock, Torah, Moses and Aaron, reminded them of G-d every moment.

To illustrate here is a story.

The Baal Shem Tov had a pupil who we will call Mordechi (the name wasn’t mentioned in the story) that wanted to learn sorcery.
Sorcery is forbidden according to the Torah and Mordechi certainly knew it was but It is known that the greater that a person is, so is his selfish ego (evil impulse).
In any case as soon as he heard about sorcery he had a great yearning for it. He became desperate, bored, angry, depressed! He wanted action, REAL ACTION!
He made contacts, and everything was set. He made up his mind; this Shabbat would be his last with the Baal Shem Tov and early Sunday morning he would head out for a new life…. a REAL life!!
That Shabbat night he sang the songs, ate the meal, and listened to the words of Torah with all the other Chassidim, but his mind was far away. However he did noticed that it was unusually warm in the room and, not giving it much thought, he removed his Shtrimel (large fur hat worn by Chassidim), wiped the sweat off his brow and opened the top button of his shirt but it only helped for a few minutes. He unbuttoned another button and removed his over coat. He’d never remembered it being so hot here before.
Through the window across from him he saw the icy winter wind howl through the trees and whip up the deep snow covering the forest. Outside it was well below freezing. But he was sweating and he felt as though he was about to faint. “Please, may I step outside for a moment?” he asked the Master “I need some fresh air.”

“Just for a minute, no longer” answered the Besh’t “Just make sure that you return immediately, it’s dangerously cold out there. Remember no longer than two minutes!”
It was already getting hard for him to breathe as he stood, walked to the door, opened it and stepped into freezing fresh air hitting his face. “Whew! Another minute and I would have passed out,” he thought to himself as he closed the door quickly behind him. But seconds later he felt hot again. Without hesitating he opened his shirt and began rubbing his face and chest with snow. But this too only brought temporary relief and he again felt as though he was standing in a furnace.
He began running. Ahhh… The cool wind against his body felt good, he took wider and wider strides, stumbling and falling into the snow but he didn’t care. He needed cold! Wind!! He staggered to his feet and resumed running like a madman through the woods the trees, leaves, snow on the ground racing, spinning by him, he was out of breath, the cold wind, the stars, the sky…… then he fell and everything went black.

He woke in a strange warm room and a freshly made bed. An old farmer and his wife were standing over him.
“Are you alright?” one of them asked worriedly “We thought you were dead when we found you there in the snow” said the other. “You’ve been sleeping for over a week. Are you alright? Do you want some warm soup? Where are you from?”
Our young hero was in a daze. He sat up, looked around and didn’t remember anything, but he took up the offer on the soup.
In a few weeks he had regained his strength and was already learning how to clear the land and work behind the plow. Gradually the farm began to change. Mordechi, although he had no idea who he was, had a sense of business. He hired new workers, purchased all the neighboring fields and farms and five years later what had been a simple field had become a massive spreading estate.

One day, the old farmer returned from a trip into town and showed the young man an advertisement he had taken from the post office. “They are looking for new officers in the army” he said, “Just read this. I think you should apply; it’s your chance to be someone really important. Just look at the miracles you have done here. You are someone special; don’t waste your life here on this farm. You’ve been here long enough”
The young man took the advice. He applied, passed all the entrance requirements and took to the army like a fish to water. Two years later he was a captain in the Czar’s Royal cavalry fighting in a war between his country and Poland.
Several chapters would be necessary to describe the many victories and brave accomplishments of our hero; his innumerable brushes with death, his brazen spirit, split second decisions and impressive record against impossible odds that got him promoted to the rank of Major-General.

One day, as he was sitting astride his magnificent white steed reviewing the ten thousand mounted calvary lancers at his command, it came back to him in a flash of memory… that night twelve years ago when he left the Baal Shem’s Shabbat table!
He paused for several minutes, deep in thought remembering every vivid detail, and every emotion that passed through his mind back then. Suddenly he had an idea. He announced, “Dissss…mount! Return to your tents and prepare to travel. In one hour, we are beginning a three-day march!”

It was late at night, three days later, when He and his forces stopped in the forest surrounding the small synagogue of the Besh’t. He turned to face his myriads of mounted soldiers and yelled: “Light torches!” Suddenly the trees were illuminated with an eerie flickering light. “Draw Swords” the ringing of the swords and the glistening blades was everywhere.
He dismounted, approached the large old hut, drew his sword and began pounding with its hilt on the closed door “Open in the name of the King! See what happens to a Chassid who leaves the Baal Shem Tov! Ha HA HAAAAAA!”
No one answered, but he heard singing within the house and he got angry. Why didn’t they open the door?!
He furiously stuck his sword in the snowy ground and began pounding on the door with both fists and screaming “Open! Open for a General in the King’s army!”

The wind was whistling furiously as the door opened, the Baal Shem Tov looked out and said, “Mordechi?! You have been outside for almost five minutes! Do you want to become ill? Come in immediately!”

“Five minutes?!” the General screamed “Look at all my troops and tell me about five minutes!” He turned around and…. except for the wind howling through the trees and the snow-covered forest, no one was there, no soldiers, even his horse and uniform had disappeared! He was in the same garments as he was…twelve years ago. It all wasn’t real! It had been an illusion. The entire twelve years were an illusion!
Suddenly he realized that the world of the Besh’t, the world of Torah and Commandments was true reality, and he humbly reentered the room.

The point of the story is this: What if our hero hadn’t woken up? What if he died thinking he was a General? Would that have been better?
The same for us; What if it were possible to live a ‘virtual’ life; to have our brains experience whatever life we wanted. To live 120 imaginary years of pleasure and success with no disappointments or pain. Would it be worth it?
This week’s section tells us, NO!
An imaginary life; one that is not devoted to actually doing the Creator’s will, is a false life, and no healthy minded person wants to be fooled.
That is why the Torah doesn’t mention heaven or hell and why Judaism regards death as the worst thing possible.
Heaven is a mere consolation prize (If Adam hadn’t sinned death and heaven would not exist)! Because heaven is a virtual, spiritual life while here is a real world where one can ACTUALLY serve the Creator. (Which is why doing a commandment in a Jewish Graveyard is called ‘scoffing at the unfortunate’).
So this answers our question about the Torah repeating here what was said weeks ago.
The novelty of this week’s Torah portion is ACTION. And that is why the Jews had to have a tabernacle and make sacrifices even while surrounded by miracles in the desert. Because miracles are what G-d does for US … but the Temple service was what WE do for G-d.

This is why we pray tens of times daily for Moshiach to rebuild the Third Temple.

And also why he will gather all the Jews to Israel and cause the dead to rise; because ACTION in this physical world is, in fact, holier than all the spiritual worlds and Moshiach will ACTIVATE and direct the world.

It all depends on us to bring Moshiach even one moment sooner. We are standing on the merits of thousands of years of Jewish hopes, prayers and suffering. Now it could be that just one more good deed, word or even thought will bring ……  Moshiach NOW!!

Rabbi Tuvia Bolton
Yeshiva Ohr Tmimim
Kfar Chabad, Israel

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