This week’s parsaha begins: וַיַּקְהֵל מֹשֶׁה, אֶת-כָּל-עֲדַת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל--וַיֹּאמֶר אֲלֵהֶם – Moshe then gathered the whole of Israel and said to them… (Exodus 35:1).
In the Five Books of Moses, Moshe addresses the Israelites several dozen times and only this once does it use the expression ‘gathered the whole of Israel’ which, of course, leads us to ask ‘why?’ One explanation teaches that during the receiving of Torah at Mt. Sinai the Israelites were of one heart (Rashi); the episode of the golden calf split us and now Moshe is gathering everyone together to repair the fracture. A different explanation points to the senseless hatred amongst Jews as the origin of the destruction of the Holy Temple; this portion's emphasis on Moshe’s convening everyone to participate in the building of the tabernacle is a lesson that the stability our most holy sanctuaries depends on Israel’s unity. Is the modern State of Israel a holy sanctuary? Should it be?
