Parshat Vayakhel goes to great lengths to describe the gifts
that both the men and women brought to the Mishkan (Tabernacle).
The Torah doesn’t waste words so what is the meaning behind
the listing of all of the intricate details of their contributions?
According to Ramban, the passage outlining the way that the
people brought their contributions for the Mishkan as well as Moshe’s
proclamation that they received enough (and his request that people stop
contributing) stresses the fact that the people were generous, the craftsmen
were dedicated and Moshe was unselfish.
This can be contrasted with the Sin of the Golden Calf
(Shmot 32:3) where the giving of the jewelry was done very quickly and without
details: “All the people broke off their earrings of gold…And they brought them
to Aharon.”
When the people donated to the Mishkan, their contributions
were made with their hearts and souls.
The contributions for the Golden Calf were done hastily and
without much thought. Moshe had not yet returned from
Sinai
contributed. As soon as Moshe returned they just as quickly turned away from
the Golden Calf.
We see from here that it is important to take the time to
consider what we are doing as opposed to making a quick decision that we may
later regret.
Unfortunately many people get mixed up in “get rich quick”
scams that look too good to be true but don’t end up panning out.
The proper path to follow is to emulate what B’nai Yisrael
did when they made contributions to the Mishkan, they gave their hearts, their
souls and their material belongings.
In the Shma prayer (Dvarim 6:5) we are commanded to “love
our God with all of your heart, with all of your soul and with all of your
possessions.”
In the case of the Golden Calf they were only contributing
their possessions, independent of their hearts and souls.
As the elections in
remember that the choice of who to vote for should be well thought out. The
idea of having campaigners trying to sway us on our way to vote belittles the
voters who have already put their heart and soul into the decision of who they
will be voting for.
