Parashat Tetzaveh uncovers a lengthy description of the Mishkan (the Tabernacle) and the sacred garments of the Kohanim (the Priests) who will minister there. At the end of that description, the Torah explains that the purpose of the Mishkan is, from God's perspective, that "there I will meet with the Israelites, and it shall be sanctified by My Presence." So far, there is nothing remarkable about this passage. Many generations of commentators have noted, in the words of the Talmud, that the purpose of the mitzvot found in the Torah is to refine humanity. Consequently, Rashi (11th Century France) understands that the Mishkan was build to provide for the religious development of Israel. This view assumes that the commandments of Judaism serve a human purpose, reflecting God's concern for the Jewish People and our needs. But today's Torah portion seems to stand that viewpoint on its head. The passage concludes:
They shall know that I the LORD am their God, who brought them out of Egypt that I might abide among them, I the LORD their God.
This remarkable verse presupposes that the purpose of God's actions to liberate the Jews, and to instruct them to build the Mishkan were to meet a divine need--a need for companionship and for relationship. This revolutionary shift in perspective drew the notice of several commentators throughout Jewish history. Thus, Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra (12th Century Spain) notes that this verse means that "the purpose of My bringing them forth from the land of Egypt was only that I might dwell in their midst." Rabbi Moses ben Nahman, the Ramban (13th Century Spain) observes that this focus on God's need is "a great secret":
For in the plain sense of things it would appear that the dwelling of the Divine glory in Israel was to fulfill a want below, but it is not so. It fulfilled a want above. The Torah, according to this understanding, is telling us something fundamental about God. The God of Israel is a passionate God, a God who loves, cares, and gets involved. This is no Prime Mover which is itself unmoved, no first cause which is beyond causation. Unlike the notion of an unchanging God portrayed by so many philosophers, the Jewish notion of God--while ultimately beyond containment in human language or human concepts--is one who responds to human needs and desires, who needs a relationship with each one of us. That notion, of God requiring human love and human relationship, lies at the very core of Judaism through the ages. God's passion and loneliness find expression and resolution only in the reciprocal love of human beings. It was out of that need for love and commitment that God first created the world and later made a brit (covenant) with a particular people, the Jews. God's love extends beyond the borders of the Jewish People, but it began there.
The chosenness of the Jewish People is a primary expression of God's need for emotional connection and for mutual concern. It was God's love which created the world. It is our love for God which sustains it and fills our lives and communities with meaning. How is that love evidenced? ln the fact that the world is a place where life can flourish, where people are generally able to live and thrive, where children can grow and develop and adults can cultivate their families, their interests, and their virtues. ln the fact that each of us has a deep-seated need to love and to be loved. It feels good to care about another person, to belong to a group of people who share a history, an ethos, and a vision for the future. It feels good to help those who need our assistance. Our tradition teaches us that we are made in God's image: just as we have been created with a drive to love and be loved, so our Creator, whose image we reflect, needs to give love and to receive it. Over the millenia, Jewish people the world over have cultivated that special affection through deeds of holiness, through acts of loving-kindness, and through the ongoing study of the accumulated record of our relationship with God--our sacred writings. The next step is yours; the Lover awaits.
Shabbat Shalom