Rabbi's Weekly Message
February 20,2012Parshat: Mishpatim
Dear friends,
Our Torah portion this week is Terumah, where G!d says to us, “Make for Me a holy place so that I can dwell inside you. Yes, it is possible to stay connected with me at all times in all places, even as you engage in the life of the world.”
When we make a place for G!d to dwell in our lives, then we avoid the illusion of separateness. Millenia of our tradition have taught us that we make this place through spiritual practice and spiritual community. Spiritual practice is about making our lives into a Mishkan, a dwelling place for Divine Presence; spiritual community is about making our community into that same mishkan. In Jewish tradition, the two are inexorably linked.
About one third of the Book of Exodus consists of the detailed instructions for building the mishkan, G!d’s dwelling place. Details are also important as we build our spiritual practice and spiritual community. The portion begins with the invitation to explore and discern the generosity of our hearts. The Mishkan cannot be built solely out of a sense of duty, obligation or debt. Only the willing and generous heart can participate in this endeavor. And it is hard work, requiring attention, discipline, and drive, but the reward is great.
There are many at Beth Shalom who are doing that work, either on themselves, for the community, or both. Our Shabbat morning service — where we learn to do that work – attracts at least a minyan — and our Torah study where we go even deeper generally draws 15-20 eager participants each week. There are others, like those who serve on our Board and as committee chairs, who work hard to make our community a spiritual community, a place where G!d can dwell. I am especially proud to be associated with both groups. As we enter this section of the Torah, my prayer is to see the work of both groups grow larger yet and more of our people take part in the amazing spiritual and community growth opportunities that exist here.
Those spiritual growth opportunities continue this week. Although there is no Friday evening service this week, we will gather as usual on Saturday morning, February 25, at 9:30 for Torah study where we will learn about the mystical secrets of the ark, with bagels and coffee and fabulous discussion. Services will resume the following week with both a Friday night kabbalat shabbat service and a chanting service and Torah study on Saturday morning.
Be sure to mark you calendar for our fabulous Purim celebration, with carnival and shpiel, on Thursday, March 8, at 4:30 (NOTE NEW TIME). The shpiel, which will begin at 5:30, will tell the Purim story through song using the melodies of Beatles songs, sung by Bozeman’s best Beatles impersonation band. A pot luck dinner, organized by our newly forming Sisterhood, will follow the shpiel at 6:15. Please go to our website to sign up for the dinner.
There are two great Jewish-oriented lectures to attend this week, both by Dr. Carl Posy, Head of the School of Religion and Philosophy at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Carl is former Co-Director of the National Library of Israel, and his talk focuses on the preservation of memory and Jewish identity. The first is for thye more philosophically inclined: “Kant and the Paradoxes of Knowledge” on Monday, February 27, at 5:00 pm, in Linfield Hall, Room 234. The second talk is: “The Value of the Original in a Digital Age,” on Tuesday, the 28th, in the Special Collections Room of the Montana State University Library at 2 p.m. Hope to see you there to learn more about these fascinating topics.
Blessings for a great week,
Rabbi Ed