It would be comfortable and familiar to say, “Well of course, this is what Rabbi A.J. Heschel meant when he coined the phrase “a palace in time” – he was no doubt relating to why our Torah portion begins with the laws of Shabbat and continues with the building of the Mishkan (tabelnacle).” But I would like to take us on somewhat of a different journey.
I have been accused of picking on one word of the Torah portion when crystallizing my thoughts, so I have chosen this week to limit myself to one vowel!
The second pasuk (verse) tells us: "Sheshet yamim tey'a'se melacha / six days shall work be done ... " (Shmote / Exodus 35, 2). Under the letter "tav" in the word tey'a'sethere are two dots - a "tzereh" - which leads us to read this pasuk as is translated. If it would have said ta'a'se - you shall do - the pasuk would be saying something very different.
The reading as vocalized in the Torah tells us about the nature of the six days of the week. Weekdays are defined by the ability and potential for work, creativity and creation. The second vocalization would offer a possible interpretation (as appears elsewhere in the Torah) regarding the actions of people during those six days but nothing inherent about the quality and definition of these days.
Why is it so important to know what the nature of the week is? "Alienation" would be my one word answer. It is one of the more weighty words in the English language. It partners with "estrangement". At times I remind my students that people don't, God forbid, take their lives because of physical hunger but rather because of spiritual and emotional hunger. A penniless person will find a way to feed him or herself, even if it means eating leftovers from a garbage pail. But the other forms of hunger - alienation and estrangement - can compel drastic measures.
I believe that this estrangement and alienation can come at times from a lack of knowledge or information; from a lack of alignment with the nature of life of even the institution we work in or social fabric of which we are a part. How many people, painfully, walk in and out of a synagogue within half an hour vowing to never return because all that they see and experience is foreign? How often have we felt like outsiders in a situation that from the outset you might assume we would fit in? There is something in our inner rhythm that is compromised, and when this happens we are left alone with a sense of alienation and estrangement.
For a moment I would like us to learn the opening Mishna of the tractate of Shabbat. It opens with describing the prohibition of transferring objects between private and public domains on Shabbat. The description is of a "Ba'al Bayit" (master of the house) standing inside, and an "Ani" (pauper) standing on the outside, transferring a basket between them - presumably with food in it. Rabbi Ovadia of Bartenura (d. 1510) walks hand in hand with the Babylonian Talmud and asks, "Why is it that when describing this situation does the Mishnah use the phrases "Ba'al Bayit" (master of the house) and "Ani" (pauper), is it not sufficient to say, 'one is standing inside and one is standing outside'?" He responds by teaching us the halachic/legal principle of "mitzvah ha'ba'ah b'aveira asur" - if you have to transgress one commandment to fulfill another one, this is prohibited! Therefore, in this Mishnah we are taught that if a poor person is standing outside and a home owner is standing inside, the home owner is prohibited from handing the poor person food! Is this not jarring to the whole notion of Shabbat? Not being able to hand someone in need some food?
In class I challenge my students by asking "Why is this the opening section of the entire tractate dealing with Shabbat? Why start here? Why close us off from the outside world? Why estrange and alienate those who are in need?"
The Mishnah, I offer, is actually here to teach us the nature of Shabbat in the same way our opening pasuk comes to teach us the nature of the six days of the week. The problem isn't that the halacha is cruel, ignoring the needs of those that roam the streets, but rather as an opening statement it is teaching us that on Shabbat there are no "outsiders" and "insiders" - on Shabbat there are only "insiders"! Yes, it is prohibited to feed the hungry on the street on Shabbat - we should bring them into our home and not leave them standing on the street!!!
There is only one ultimate "Ba'al Bayit" (master of the house) - God is the Master of the House - and it is on Shabbat that God brings us into His home.
Our Torah portion begins with the laws of Shabbat and continues with the building of the Mishkan. It is with the knowledge and experience of being at home in God's world, an "insider" in God's creation that we can then go and create a dwelling place for Him among us. It is about having a personal sense of belonging in God's world which takes place on Shabbat that enables us to walk the streets of the world and create during the six days of the week.
This Shabbat, may we merit to feel at home in God's world.
This Shabbat, if we see someone who is emotionally or spiritually hungry, may we walk in God's footsteps and invite them into the home of our heart and soul.
Shabbat Shalom.