By: Dr. Jeffrey Buch

This parsha closes the book of Exodus, Shemot- meaning “words”.  It is the last of 5 parshiot that all depict the construction of the Mishkan.  Pekudei literally means “accounts”.  Accounts can be audits or can mean taking “account” of what we have, and what we need to complete… you fill in the blank.  The Book of Shemot has been an account of the Exodus from Egypt and a preparation for what it will take to enter the Promised Land.

In order to prepare for entering the Promised Land, Moshe has acted as G-d’s agent to direct us in what we had to collect, and how we had to assemble the Mishkan, so that G-d could dwell “amongst us”.  An obvious metaphor for the Mishkan is our own individual selves, our Souls, what we had, and what we needed to construct or rather to “reconstruct” ourselves in order to create a “Holy space” within ourselves, where G-d could dwell.  Hence, the great importance of us needing a detailed repetition in 5 parshiot, an accounting, of how to build a proper Mishkan to hold the Ark of the Covenant- that which represents our collective Souls’ connection to the Almighty.

When we carefully build the Mishkan- when we carefully build or rebuild ourselves- we become “Miracles of Faith”- human incarnations of the Ark of the Covenant.  Just as on the tablets of the Ark, we have the opportunity to write upon our own Souls, the Ten Commandments… and more!

When we carefully, lovingly, and with attention to detail construct or reconstruct ourselves, the process of this construction helps us to recognize and correct our spiritual and communal flaws.  It is my firm belief, that what matters most to the Almighty, is not the final product, but rather what we go through, and how we grow in this process of carefully constructing or reconstructing ourselves, and our Souls.  Indeed, in the process of taking an account of how we have built ourselves as a Mishkan, we collectively become “Miracles of Faith”.

Shabbat Shalom