Netvort Terumah 5773:           Unplugged

By Rabbi Joshua (intentionally known as the Hoffer) Hoffman

            The central vessel of the Mishkan, or Tabernacle, was the aron, or ark, which contained the tablets of the Torah, known as the luchos ha-eidus, or tablets of testimony.  The Mishkan itself was known as the Mishkan ha-eidus, because it housed these tablets, which actually gave the entire structure sanctity. The Torah prescribes that two molten keruvim, with faces of children, or cherubs, were to sit atop the aron. The Rabbis tell is that when the Jews did God's will, the keruvim faced each other, while when they did not do God’s will, they faced away from each other.  Rav Aharon Kotler, zt”l, in his Mishnas Rav Aharon, points out that we see from this comment of the Rabbis that even though God’s glory inhered in the Mishkan by virtue of the luchos, the influence which this glory had on the people depended on their intention and their readiness to receive that glory. The process of divine influence was not automatic, and the people had the potential to increase or decrease the intensity of the experience. 

            Rav Aharon, zt”l's remarks have wide-ranging implications that go beyond the Mishkan and Mikdash which we currently don’t have, and spread to the entire Jewish religion. A question asked by many commentators is why the Torah goes into such detail about the structure of the Mishkan and its vessels, and repeats it so often. Rabbi Saul Berman suggested a novel explanation, saying that in many religions much of the content is kept as a mystery, reserving that information for the priestly class which basically controls everyone else’s allegiance and worship. Judaism is different. Full disclosure is practiced, and everyone is able, and expected, to delve into the details of mitzvos, in order to enhance their understanding and observance. We may add, based on Rav Aharon zt”l's comments, that hiding the details of the religion may lead one to believe that there is some kind of magic involved in its workings, a kind of “segulah", or magical charm, which, when performed, automatically achieves positive results. The Mishkan with its vessels could easily have lent itself to this kind of notion. The changing directions of the faces of the keruvim, based on the nation’s actions, intentions and preparation, demonstrated that this was not the case. 

            Although we still await the rebuilding of the Beis HaMikdash, and we do not currently have the aron and the keruvim, the misconception that they warn us against has meaning today as well. A high school teacher of mine in Cleveland, Rabbi David Sander, once related that a student came to him and told him that although he donned his tefillin every day, he did not feel anything when he wore them. “Why not?” he asked. Rabbi Sander answered by asking: “So you think that there are batteries in there?” He was telling him that he had to invest his own concentration and intention to feel any sense of holiness from the tefillin.  Although tefillin are objects of inherent holiness, a person does not feel that holiness without having the proper intention. They do not work automatically as a segulah. 

            Actually, this misconception can apply to other areas of mitzvos as well. The device known as “heter iska” is an agreement entered into at the outset of a loan by which the loan is converted into a business venture, thereby averting the prohibition of taking interest on a loan.  Rav Moshe Feinstein, lamented the act that people use this device without understanding it at all, and actually treat it as a “segulah” that somehow magically removes the prohibition. In reality, without understanding the terms of the contract it is not effective. Unfortunately, there are some who view much of Judaism in this mistaken, magical fashion. The example of the keruvim is that even in regard to objects of holiness, the holiness one attains is not automatic.  The greatest remedy to the misconception of so many is, I believe, to involve oneself in continued study of the Torah that is contained in the aron, atop which the keruvim are found.