Terumah 5775:            Caring

By Rabbi Joshua (heartfully known as The Hoffer) Hoffman

Parshas Terumah, in which we are commanded to build the Mishkan, a sanctuary to serve as God’s dwelling place among us, follows directly after Parshas Mishpatim, which deals largely with the civil laws that govern Jewish society. What is the connection between them? The Beis HaLevi, Rav Yosef Dov Soloveitchik of Slutzk and Brisk, famously explains that the funds used to build the Mishkan must be obtained honestly, in accordance with all of the laws set forth in Parshas Mishpatim. This applies to all forms of tzedakah, but especially to the building of a holy place where we seek God’s presence. The Vilna Gaon reputedly said, that the way to assure that a synagogue will endure, is to see to it that every component of the building, down to the last nail, is acquired honestly, without any trace of theft. A synagogue built in this way, he said, will never be destroyed.

The teaching of the Beis HaLevi and the Gra takes on greater significance in light of a question raised by the Ohr HaChaim. Why is it, he asks, that in the list of items brought as donations for the construction and service of the Mishkan, the shoham stones, and the stones of setting, which were the most valuable items (see Kiddushin 41a), are mentioned last?  One of his answers is that the princes, who brought these stones, received them originally as gifts brought in the cloud (the Midrash derives this from the fact that the word for princes can also mean clouds).  Because they obtained the stones in this manner, without expending any effort, they were less meaningful to them, and constituted a lesser contribution then the objectively less valuable items obtained through effort and brought by others. 

Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz, in his Sichos Musar, elaborates on the answer of the Ohr HaChaim. He says that the essential element in the donations brought for the Mishkan was the “nidvas haleiv,” the contribution of the heart invested in the gift. This was the real contribution to the building of a sanctuary, whose purpose was, in fact, to make each person into a place where He dwells. The more effort a person puts into obtaining something, the more meaningful it is to him, and the greater contribution of the heart it constitutes when he gives it over to the Mishkan. This is the meaning behind the statement of the rabbis, that the money of a tzadik is more dear to him than his body, because he does not place his hand in theft. The tzadik puts great effort into following all of the laws that govern the monetary matters, and, therefore, whatever money he does acquire, is that much more meaningful to him. 

Based on the comments of the Ohr HaChaim and Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz, the explanation of the Beis HaLevi for why the Parsha of Terumah follows that of Mishpatim takes on an added dimension. When a person is careful, and follows all of the laws of Mishpatim that regulate the manner in which he obtains his possessions, the possessions that he does acquire take on greater meaning, and constitute a greater contribution of the heart when he donates them to the Mishkan, thus more effectively promoting the construction of a dwelling place for God’s presence.