Parsha for Kids: Terumah 2023
Below is the transcript for this week’s episode of Parsha for Kids, Terumah 2023.
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Season 2 Episode 7:
Hello! My name is Chana and this is Parsha for Kids. The Parsha of the week is Terumah. Terumah means contribution.
But what contribution? Who was contributing it? And why?
The answer is Bnei Yisrael. God wanted Bnei Yisrael to engage in a special building project where they would build a gorgeous portable building which would be a house for God. Portable means it is able to be packed up and taken to other locations. This building would be called the Mishkan, which means Dwelling, a place where God’s presence would rest. God told Moshe to tell Bnei Yisrael that He was interested in accepting anything of value that they might have to give. This included gold, silver, copper, blue, purple and crimson wool, linen and goat hair, dyed animal skins, special types of wood, oil, spices, incense and precious gems.
These donations were not mandatory. No one was obligated to give a contribution. It was only people who wanted to do so who donated.
This leaves us with several questions. First, why did God only want people who wanted to give to offer up presents? Why didn’t God say that every single family needed to contribute? Second, how can we build a house for God? I thought God could be found anywhere in the world- surely a house cannot contain him?
Here are some answers.
First, God wanted the Mishkan to be a place of unity for Bnei Yisrael. If people were giving money or precious stones begrudgingly, which means they didn’t really want to give them but felt like they were forced into it, that might affect the feeling of the place. When those individuals would visit the Mishkan, they might not feel a sense of happiness, belonging or joy, but rather a sense of frustration and anger over having been forced to donate. God did not want that to happen.
Second, you are completely correct. The Mishkan could not really contain God. God can be found anywhere in the world, not only in one building. In that case, what was the value of the Mishkan? Why did God want us to build it?
The Mishkan was more about us as members of Bnei Yisrael than it was about God. God Himself declares
וְעָ֥שׂוּ לִ֖י מִקְדָּ֑שׁ וְשָֽׁכַנְתִּ֖י בְּתוֹכָֽם
And they will make me a Holy place and I will dwell among them.
Did you notice what God said? He says “I will dwell among THEM” not “I will dwell in it.” If the beautiful building was what God really wanted, then you would expect the Torah to say God would live in IT. But instead, God says He will live in THEM, meaning in members of Bnei Yisrael. God will live inside of our hearts, inside of our souls, in every place where we let Him in.
TRANSITION
The Mishkan was a holy place because we made it holy. How did we make it holy?
Our actions are what filled the Mishkan with kedusha, or holiness. You see, everyone in Bnei Yisrael joined together, united, to help out in this national building project. Anyone who wanted to participate, whether man or woman, was welcome to do so. All kinds of creative knowledge was valued- people who knew how to spin, weave, draw, color and construct were valued. This was a place for everyone to come together, not only people who knew how to read or write.
And during the time that Bnei Yisrael were busy building the Mishkan, they were not complaining, unlike how they had behaved earlier. Earlier in the story, Bnei Yisrael were complaining about wanting water or food, but here, everyone was united in a shared task and goal- making a special place to connect with God. God saw that unity and it pleased Him.
Have you ever taken been part of a shared project that you were excited about? Maybe you participated in color war and you and everyone else in your grade was responsible for painting a mural. Some of you may have participated in Erev Shira or Production. Some of you may have been part of a sports team or a theater performance. When everyone is choosing to join together to make something bigger than themselves, there is an exciting feeling in the air. People are energized and happy and they want to help one another. That atmosphere of helping is what pleased God so much when it came to the building project of the Mishkan.
Sometimes, in order to unite people, you need to have them join together in creating something. So the next time you are in a fight with a friend, or with a sibling, this might be something to think about. What could you join together to make or create with your friend or sibling? When you put your energies towards creating something together, you will probably find your way back to one another and to getting along again.
TRANSITION
There is a lot of symbolism in the Mishkan. A symbol is a thing that represents something else. For example, you may have seen the Magen David, the six-pointed star. When someone wears a six pointed star on a necklace, that is usually a way of showing they are Jewish. On the flag of the State of Israel, we have a six pointed flag and also two blue lines. Those two blue lines actually represent the lines found on the tallit, or prayer shawl.
According to Midrash HaGadol, the Mishkan is designed in a way that represents the human body. The walls of the Mishkan were built of wood that were inserted into two silver sockets on the ground. The beams were held together by two gold covered poles running through rings on the outside of the beams. Just like the walls, the ribs in our body are connected to and set into our vertebrae, the small bones that form our backbone.
The beams of the Mishkan were covered in gold just like the ribs in our body are covered with skin. The gold poles in the walls helped them stand up, just like our organs and muscles help us stretch and stand up.
The Mishkan had tapestries and curtains spread out across it, just like our bones, muscles and organs have a covering of skin.
In the Mishkan, fire, water and air were all represented. There was fire on the Mizbeach, God’s altar. There was water in the copper kiyor, a special vessel the Kohanim, or priests, used to wash their hands and feet before performing the Avodah, or special service in the Mishkan. Air was represented by God’s presence, the Shechina, in the form of a cloud that rested on the Mishkan. Similarly, according to the Midrash, our mind is compared to fire, there is air in the heart, and water in the belly.
The Aron, or Ark, in the Mishkan, holds the Torah which contains 248 mitzvot asei, or commandments we SHOULD do (like do honor your parents, do perform hashavat aveidah) and 365 mitzvot lo taasei, or commandments we should NOT do (like don’t kill, don’t steal). Similarly, the body has 248 organs that correspond to the mitzvot asei and 365 tendons that correspond to mitzvot lo taasei.
In the Mishkan, the Keruvim, two figures carved like angels, spread their wings over the Aron, just like the two lungs in the body are spread over the heart.
In the Mishkan, food was placed on the Shulchan, or Table, daily. Similarly, the body has food inside of its intestines.
In the Mishkan, there were pictures decorating the tapestries, just like a human being has two eyebrows, hair, nostrils, teeth, lips and tongue decorating their skin.
In the Mishkan, there was goat skin on the sheets, while in the body, there is hair on top of the skin.
In the Mishkan, the presence of God shone out like the light of seventy suns ,and in the body, the neshama, or soul, is its shining light.
Why do you think God had us build the Mishkan in such a way that mirrors the human body?
I think God was teaching us a very important lesson. The Mishkan is a place that is kadosh, holy. So too, you and I and every human being are also kadosh, or holy. Just like the Mishkan is dedicated to performing service and worship of God, so too our bodies are dedicated to perform service and worship of God. And most of all, just like God’s Shechina fills up the Mishkan, God’s Shechina can fill us up, too. When we dedicate our bodies to the service of God, God is visible in us.
How can we dedicate our bodies to the service of God?
There are so many ways. We can eat kosher with our lips. We can use our hands to help carry a a toy to a baby sibling who is crying in an effort to calm them. We can use our feet to walk to the fridge to get a glass of water for our parent. We can use our eyes to see who in our class is not included and use our mouth to try to welcome and include them with kind words. Every part of our body can be used for good, and for God, just like every part of the Mishkan.
TRANSITION
Now we will spend some time explaining the layout of the Mishkan and the different items that were found within it.
The first thing you should know is that the Mishkan was divided up into three parts. There was an area called the Chatzeir, or Yard. Then, inside of the Mishkan, there was another area called the Kodesh, or Holy. And finally, the last section of the Mishkan was made up of a special area called Kodesh HaKedoshim, or the Holy of Holies.
There were different objects found in each part of the Mishkan.
In the Chatzeir section there was the Mizbeach HaNechoshet, or Copper Altar. An altar is a flat topped block, in this case made out of wood and covered in copper, upon which sacrifices are offered. The Chatzeir also included the Kiyor, or Copper Laver. Laver means a vessel that contains water. The Mizbeach HaNechoshet was used to offer animal sacrifices. It was made from shittim wood and covered in copper. Each of its four corners had a copper “horn” on top, a square block open on the top on which the Kohanim used to put the blood of some sacrifices. A strip of copper with a flowery design was placed around the middle of the mizbeach. It was called Karkov. Underneath the Karkov was a copper net, or reshet. The net divided the mizbeach into an upper and lower half and the kohanim sprinkled the blood of some sarifices on the upper half and others on the lower half. The Mizbeach had two poles set in rings so it could be carried when Bnei Yisrael traveled.
The Kiyor, or copper wash basin, was used every morning by the Kohanim to wash their hands and feet in order to prepare themselves to serve God. It had two faucets.
After the Chatzeir section came the Kodesh section. This section was actually inside of the building of the Mishkan. The Kodesh section had three special items within it- the Menorah, the Mizbeach HaZahav and the Shulchan.
The Menorah was made of gold and had seven branches. All of its branches had a gavia, or ornament that looked like a cup, kaftor, an ornament that looked like a knob, and a perach, ornament that looked like a flower. The entire menorah, including the ornaments, had to be made out of one solid block of gold. At the top of each branch of the menorah was a small bowl into which the kohanim poured oil and put in a wick.
The Mizbeach HaZahav, or golden altar, was used to offer up Ketoret, good smelling spices.
The Shulchan, or Table, was made of wood and covered in gold. It had a golden rim around its upper edge. Two wooden poles covered in gold ran through gold rings on the sides of the table. On top of the shulchan were five open shelves made of gold. Two loaves of bread were put on the Shulchan itself and ten loaves were put on the open shelves, which means there were always twelve loaves of bread put out. Each loaf of the lechem hapanim, or showbread, looked like a thick, square matza with both ends standing up.
Every Shabbat the old loaves were removed and twelve new loaves of lechem hapanim were put down. The Kohanim were allowed to eat the old loaves.
Finally, we come to the Kodesh HaKedashim, or Holy of Holies. This section contained the Aron, or Ark, which was adorned with the Keruvim, two figures that looked like angels.
The Aron was made of three boxes that were open on top so that one fit into the next. The smallest box was made out of gold. This is where the Luchos, or Tablets were kept. That box fit into a bigger box made of wood. The wooden box fit into the biggest box, which was made of gold. A golden rim that looked like a crown was attached to the outer box. Two gold plated wooden poles were placed inside rings attached to the sides of the Aron so it could be carried.
TRANSITION
Today we do not have the Mishkan, which was a temporary home that we were able to build and then pack up and move, anymore. We also do not have the Beit Hamikdash, which was intended to be a permanent home for God, but which was destroyed. But we do have something similar. Can you guess what it is?
Yes! The answer is the Shul, or synagogue, also known as the Beit Knesset and Beit Midrash. You may notice that there are similarities in our shuls to the Mishkan and Beit Hamikdash. For example, many shuls have a Ner Tamid, or eternal flame, just like the Menorah contained flames that burned continuously. Shuls also have an Aron, or Ark, that houses our Sifrei Torah, just like the Luchot were kept inside of the original Aron.
When Mashiach, or the Messiah comes, we will be able to rebuild the third Beit Hamikdash and create another gorgeous home for God. But until then, we can find God within ourselves, and also within the shuls we go to in order to pray, study and connect to Him.
TRANSITION
So here’s what we learned this week!
By having Bnei Yisrael participate in a national building project, God created an atmosphere where each person’s gift was valued, and each person was a helper. This helped fill up the Mishkan with kedusha, or holiness.
The Mishkan resembles a human body to remind us that just like the Kohanim served God in the Mishkan, we should serve God with our bodies.
Every single section of the Mishkan and every single item was special and important. God wanted us to feel amazed and impressed by how beautiful the Mishkan looked, and to really feel like we were in a special, grand and magnificent place.
Nowadays, we don’t have a Mishkan anymore, but we do have our synagogues!
If you have any questions or comments on this week’s episode, please email me at parsha4kids@gmail.com. That’s parsha the number 4 kids at gmail.com. Good Shabbos!