Shabbat Table Talk

Parashat Tetzaveh

Erev Shabbat, 18 February 2005
Week of 13 to 19 February
Torah portions: Ex. 27:20-30:10
Haftarah: Ezek. 43:10-27
Sunday Readings, 20 February: Gen. 12:1-4a; II Tim. 1:8-10; Mt. 17:1-9

“‘Lord it is good that we are here. If you wish I will make three tents…’. While he was still speaking, behold a bright cloud cast a shadow over them…” [Mt. 17:4-5]. We all long to experience God in our lives. If a person’s life is salvation history then we should feel God active and present in the world. The question is, How do we recognize God’s presence and action? Our experiences are so often ambiguous, confusing, and disturbing. How do we perceive God’s ongoing revelations? The answer lies in the approach to Scripture and to life.

This concept was part of the introduction to a retreat on the theme of ‘The Word’ that Maureen Lawson and I facilitated recently, looking at the value of words and their creative power—especially in worship. In Rabbi Lawrence Kushner’s, A Book of Words, he suggests that “not only are words the instruments of creation, in Judaism they are reality itself… We think of words as a few syllables which stand for something really real, but the Hebrew word for ‘word’—davar—can also mean thing. The word does not need to be made more real; it already is! It needs only to be read, spoken, and interpreted. To know the word therefore is to know reality itself.”

This came to mind as we settled down for a havrutah exchange with this week’s parashah; we were amazed to find so many words which, at first reading, seemed to be saying very little. But then we recalled part of our retreat where we had looked at the value of ritual, and the part which words can play in it. Suddenly it all seemed to be so clear: the intent of performing a ritual act is to actualize the spiritual event it represents. In other words, in our communing with God symbolically, actual communion may take place. However, just as life loses its sacredness when we lose our ability to respond, so words can begin to sound hollow, and rituals degenerate into empty formality, without any real spiritual power.

The secret to meaningful ritual is active participation in the process. This creates the catharsis of spiritual purification. In Finding our Home in the Temple and the Temple in our Homes (Goldstein), Rabbi Sara Paasche-Orlow says almost the same thing. She shares an idea of “the movement of Temple ritual to the home.” It evokes “a more egalitarian model.” She notes that in Parashat Tetzaveh the rituals separate the priest from the people, and that the priests are the spiritual pivot of the people. Yet over time the Jewish people have endeavored to realize the words of God [Exodus 19:6], “You shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” Everyone can be a direct part of the ritual, the symbolism, the communion with God.

The ritual lighting of the Temple lamps in the first verse of the parashah (Ex. 27:20)—“You shall instruct the children of Israel to bring to you clear olive oil, pressed for lighting, for kindling lamps regularly”—forms the foundation for the lighting of Shabbat candles, definitely a participative family ritual. “The worshipful context and centrality of the Temple inform today’s continuation of that act. For centuries women have been responsible for evoking the spiritual legacy of the mishkan/tabernacle when they have made their homes into sacred and hallowed spaces” (Goldstein). It is us who need the ritual of rekindling the ner tamid, the continuous light. In this way we invite the Shechinah, God’s presence, into our homes.

And there are more ways. “Next you shall instruct all who are skillful, whom I have endowed with the gift of skill, to make Aharon’s vestments, for consecrating him to serve me as priest” (Ex. 28:3). Fox’s translation reads: “Speak to each who is wise of mind whom I have filled with the spirit of practical-wisdom, that they may make Aharon’s garments.” The spirit of ‘practical wisdom’—what a wonderful gift that is for anyone! What talents/gifts do we have to contribute to the ritual acts of worship?

Rabbi Sara also points out how our parashah helps “by providing insights into beginning a tradition of worship.” Just as the Jewish people were preparing the vestments for their High Priest, the Jewish women of today are in the process of “determining how women will worship.” She adds, “Just as their clothing gave the priest a sacred context, Jewish women are donning ritual garb and directing their hearts toward God in a new way.” They have created a “new trend of beautiful tallitot, kippot, kiddush cups, and challah covers. We are challenged to find new and meaningful ways of being at the “entrance of the Tent of Meeting before the Lord. For there I will meet with you, and there I will speak with you” (Ex. 29:42).

Sometime ago when I attended a workshop on Prayer, I was introduced to the concept of praying with the prayer shawl. It bears a resemblance to the tallit and is worn during praying, symbolizing a willingness to enter into a relationship with Shechinah, a feminine connotation of God’s indwelling Presence, setting the intention of “being at the entrance of the Tent.” It is made with length of material (three meters is comfortable), decorated with images, symbols, Scripture verses, and anything else that speaks to one’s personal ongoing spiritual journey.

Worn over the shoulders, it is as if one covers or enfolds oneself with Shechinah. It is a meaningful ritual of coming into the presence of God and creates a sacred space. For each person the experience of wearing her prayer shawl is different: perhaps it evokes a memory of love, a gift of forgiveness, or a remembrance of a desert experience. Often there is the sense of an “awakening”—new insights of how God works in the arena of our everyday lives. Within a prayerful atmosphere it is the custom to read a portion of Scripture, usually the Gospel for the coming Sunday. Time is spent reflecting on the Word and sharing the message. This always calls for a response either in prayer or action and, as we share ‘the challenge’, we join our shawls to create a circle of love, support, and petition. The Prayer Shawl serves as a wonderful tool for meditation or any other quiet time ritual.

Ritual, words—things!—can be very helpful in our establishment of meditations and worship moments in our lives, whether as individuals or in our local groups. But we know that ‘things’ can also get in the way, becoming the focus rather than leading to spirituality. They must remain only as ‘symbols’ of the real thing. They are available to us to help make our prayer time more effective, more meaningful, and therefore help us to recognize and know the true reality that the symbol represents. Perhaps we can look for new ways to use ‘things’ in rituals, to lead us into deeper communion with God in our times of worship.

For Reflection: [1] Each action or ritual can have a redemptive consequence. How do my words or actions redeem or become creative? How can they make the symbolic become more real? [2] How can I assure that my personal rituals remain rich in meaning and an aid to worship, rather than becoming an empty formality without spiritual power? [3] In what way can God’s Word challenge the reality of my life? What symbols and ritual can help it do so?

Bibliography: Goldstein, The Women’s Commentary (Woodstock, 2000); Kushner, The Book of Words: Talking Spiritual Life, Living Spiritual Talk; Plaut, (ed.), The Torah: A Modern Commentary (New York, 1981).

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This week’s teaching commentary was prepared by Lynn Harrison, Catholic Bible Foundation, Durban, South Africa. Bat Kol alumna, 2003