Obligation and Self-Expression
Student Summaries of Sichot of the Roshei Yeshiva
Yeshivat
Har Etzion
PARASHAT
VAYAKHEL-PEKUDEI
GUEST
SICHA BY RAV YOEL BIN-NUN
Obligation and
Self-Expression
Adapted by
Shaul Barth
Translated by
Kaeren Fish
In this week's
parasha, we read about the conclusion of the construction of the Mishkan. The
Torah provides a tally of the silver that was collected and a description of
what it was used for; inter alia, we are told:
The money of
the counting of the congregation was a hundred talents and a thousand seven
hundred and seventy-five shekels, by the shekel of the Sanctuary; a
'beka' per person – a half shekel – by the shekel of the Sanctuary, for
all who passed among those who were counted, from the age of twenty years and
upwards, for six hundred and three thousand, five hundred and fifty. And the
hundred talents of silver were used to cast the sockets of the Sanctuary, and
the sockets of the curtain: a hundred sockets corresponding to the hundred
talents; a talent per socket. (Shemot 38:25-27)
In other words,
the half-shekels donated by Bnei Yisrael were used for building the basis of the
Mishkan – the sockets. But we know that Bnei Yisrael donated more than what was
necessary; hence, the remainder was used for other construction needs related to
the Mishkan.
A contribution
is usually given out of goodwill on the part of the donor; hence, he is able to
bring as much as he wants, and to direct it to whichever cause he chooses. In
the case of the contributions to the Mishkan, though, the situation is quite
different: the Torah stipulates exactly how much every individual is to donate,
and for what exact purpose the contribution is to be used. This may be a hint to
us that the basis and foundation of every building, every endeavor, must start
with a layer of obligation. The people involved cannot be left to do as they
wish; first there must be certain rules, regulations and limitations, in order
that the proposed project can be realized. It is for this reason that the
contributions collected from every individual in Bnei Yisrael are used to build
the sockets of the Mishkan – in other words, the basis upon which everything
else stands.
This does not
mean to say that there is no room for personal freedom of expression: all of the
contributions beyond that which was needed for building the sockets, were used
for the other components of the Mishkan. This tells us that there is certainly
room for individual, personal involvement and creativity – but their turn comes
after the layer of obligation, with which the work begins.
Often, people
complain about the set prayers, claiming that they do not reflect the
worshipper's true emotions and intentions; there are voices that question our
obligation to pray three times every day just because that is what Chazal
decided. But it should be noted that throughout the Amida there is room
for personal expression: a person may add into any of the blessings whatever he
wants to say on the subject of that blessing. In the blessing "Shome'a
Tefilla," one may add requests about any subject. In truth, there is plenty
of room for personal expression in prayer. So what is all the dissatisfaction
about?
Apparently, the
problem is the very existence of eighteen blessings that everyone must recite.
But, as we have said – this is our obligation. Prayer, too – like the Mishkan –
starts with a certain layer of obligation. Beyond that, every individual may
express himself to his heart’s content within this framework, which indeed
facilitates such self-expression.
It is important
to understand that the layer of obligation is necessary not only for the
purposes of establishing a framework for action; it also lends the action a
dimension of equality. If every individual were left to contribute whatever he
wanted to the Mishkan or Temple, a situation would arise whereby a group of
wealthy Jerusalemites would end up financing all the building materials and all
the sacrifices – and they would do so happily and willingly. After all, what
would motivate the simple folk to contribute towards the Mishkan, if there were
others who were more capable of doing so - and happy to do it? Everyone else
would become distanced – psychologically – from the Temple, eventually ceasing
even to visit.
Thus, by
obligating everyone to give a contribution, rather than leaving it all to
personal initiative and generosity, the Torah establishes the principle of
equality in relation to the establishment of the Mishkan. The Mishkan belongs to
everyone, and everyone can and should feel personally involved in its
construction and operations.
Purim presents
an idea that may be related to this: we read that Haman's proposal of genocide
begins with his assertion that "There is one nation, which that is scattered and
divided among all of the king's provinces." In other words, the fact that the
Jews are a single nation – a fact that was immediately apparent to Haman – is
what makes Am Yisrael special, and it is this that preserves us in difficult
times. It is precisely this concept that the Mishkan represents, by means of the
principle that every person brings a contribution, such that it is built – first
and foremost – upon a basis of obligation.
(This sicha was
delivered on leil Shabbat Parashat Pekudei 5763
[2003].)