Bostoner Torah Insights: Bostoner ‘Chassidus’ in Hebrew and English: Parshas Pekudei (HaChodesh) – 29 Adar 5785
Bostoner Torah Insights - Yerushalayim
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Bostoner Torah Insights
Bostoner ‘Chassidus’ in English
Parshas Pekudei (HaChodesh) – 29 Adar 5785
Bostoner Rebbe shlit”a – Yerushalayim
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In Parshas Pikudei we find that “All the work of the Mishkan and the Ohel Moed was completed and Bnei Yisroel had done everything that Hashem commanded Moshe…They brought the Mishkan to Moshe…its vessels, its hooks, its beams, its bars, its pillars and its sockets” (Shemos 39:32-33).
The Midrash (Shemos Rabah 52) explains that many wise men came to Moshe and none of them could erect the Mishkan. The Midrash then quotes the verse from Eishes Chayil, “Many women have amassed achievement but you surpassed them all” (Mishlei 31:29), meaning that Moshe had surpassed all of the others. Many men and women ‘all wise of heart’ (Shemos 35:10; 36:8) were involved with the construction of the various parts of the Mishkan. Each individual or group took what they had made and brought it to Moshe Rabbeinu. They would say, ‘Here are the pillars, here are the bars, etc.’. When all of the various objects were in front of Moshe, he was inspired with Ruach HaKodesh and it was erected. And do not say that Moshe erected the Mishkan, but rather it was erected miraculously by itself in the presence of Moshe, as it says, “It was the first month of the second year on the first of the month that the Mishkan was erected” (Shemos 40:17).
And if one is wonderstruck by this, the Beis HaMikdash was also built by Shlomo in a similar fashion, as the Pasuk says, “When the temple was being built, it was built of complete quarried stone; hammers, chisels, or any iron utensils were not heard in the Temple when it was being built” (Melachim I 6:7). R’ Huna in the name of R’ Yossi explains that the winds miraculously built the Beis HaMikdash.
The Sfas Emes explains that even though all of Bnei Yisroel had a portion in building the Mishkan by either donating toward the Mishkan or manufacturing the various Mishkan items, it required Moshe Rabbeinu to bring all of their shared work and contributions to completion. Just as separating and sanctifying Terumah from a batch of produce transforms the remainder of the batch from forbidden Tevel to permissible Chulin, so too was Moshe Rabbeinu the Terumah of the remainder of Klal Yisroel.
Although on a Biblical level any amount of a batch may be set aside as Terumah, our sages have established a median shiur of 2% or one-fiftieth. Generous people are encouraged to give 2.5% or one-fortieth, while stingy people are recommended to give the borderline threshold of Bitul corresponding to one-sixtieth. Similarly, the period of Miluim, when Moshe demonstrated the Mishkan and its Service to Aharon and his sons, was seven days, from the 25th of Adar until Rosh Chodesh Nissan. Note that one week is approximately one-fiftieth of a simple Jewish Year of 12 lunar months, corresponding to the measure of Terumah.
We see from here that even though everyone must do their share of Torah, Mitzvos and Tefillah vis-à-vis Hashem, there is still a need of the Tzaddik or Gadol HaDor to complete and bind all of these disparate pieces of Avodas Hashem together into one Mishkan or Mikdash. The Gemara (Sotah 14a) explains that Moshe Rabbeinu did not want to enter Eretz Yisroel to eat from its fruit or to be satiated from its goodness, but rather in order to perform the Mitzvos that can only be performed in Eretz Yisroel. Hashem told Moshe that since he was not permitted to enter Eretz Yisroel, He would consider it in the Heavenly accounting books as if Moshe Rabbeinu performed all of these Mitzvos.
There seems to be a fundamental Macholokes whether Bnei Yisroel were able to fulfill the Mitzvah of Tefillin in the Midbar. According to the side that the Mitzvah of Tefillin was only applicable once Bnei Yisroel entered Eretz Yisroel then Tefillin would be one of the Mitzvos that Moshe could not fulfill but received credit from Hashem as if he has worn them.
The five Parshiyos (combined) in the Tefillin Shel Rosh (four) and the Tefillin Shel Yad (one) correlates to the five Chumashim of the Torah. The one Parsha in the Shel Yad that contains all four paragraphs corresponds to Sefer Devarim, Mishnah Torah, where Moshe Rabbeinu recapitulates the entire Torah. Just as there is a Mitzvah for a Melech to carry around a Sefer Torah in his bosom, so too does every Jew have a ‘miniature Sefer Torah’ close to their heart when they wear Tefillin.
The Gemara (Brachos 6a) states that the Pasuk, “And all the nations of the world will see that the name of Hashem is proclaimed upon you and will fear you” (Devarim 28:10) refers to the Tefillin that we wear. Yes, Tefillin requires Kosher parchment, ink and boxes to house the words of Torah, but also the arms and heads of Yisroel with a clean body, a Guf Naki. This is why the Tefillin themselves are also Zecher Yetziyas Mitzrayim, a Mitzvah that remembers the Exodus. Freedom from slavery in Egypt allowed Yisroel to have a Guf Naki V’Tahor and to proclaim the name of Hashem while wearing the Tefillin, which represents our nation becoming the distinct, separate and chosen nation of Hashem, which is why the nations fear us.
This Shabbos we read Parshas HaChodesh which took place on the first of Nissan before the Exodus, the same calendar date as the dedication of the Mishkan following the Exodus. It is one of the four Parshiyos we read prior to Nissan, during the month of Adar, the month of Moshe Rabbeinu. Pesach represents the ‘fifth’ Parsha that completes all that was done until Pesach by all of Klal Yisroel. In this way, we should all merit the freedom to learn Torah and perform Mitzvos.
May it be His will that the merit of the Torah, Tefillah and Mitzvos of Klal Yisroel should protect us so that we may go from suffering to relief, from darkness to light, with the coming of the Go’el Tzedek, speedily in our days.