This Shabbat in our Parashah Vayakhel we read about the collection of donations for the construction of the Tabernacle and the preparation of the parts of the Tabernacle and the vessels that were placed in it – the ark, the menorah, the table, the gold altar for burning incense and the copper altar on which the sacrifices were offered, and the sink where the priests cleansed their hands and feet before entering the Tabernacle.

Just before Moshe ordered the collection of donations, he commanded the Israelites with a commandment that at first glance does not seem to be related to the Tabernacle: keeping Shabbat.

“Six days you shall labor, and on the seventh day you shall have a holy day—a Shabbat to God.”

The Sages, and following them most commentators, explained that this commandment was related to the building of the Tabernacle and was intended to limit the work of building the Tabernacle and its utensils to only six weekdays. On the seventh day of each week—the Shabbat—preparations for building the Tabernacle were stopped and resumed again on Sunday the following week.

Accordingly, the works that are forbidden to be done on Shabbat are learned from the work of the Tabernacle. Any work that was necessary for the Tabernacle is defined as work that is forbidden to be done on Shabbat. Acts that were not necessary for the construction of the Tabernacle are permitted on Shabbat and are not included in the list of works forbidden on Shabbat.

 Applying the prohibition of doing work on Shabbat to the construction of the Tabernacle implies the importance and superiority of Shabbat. Even the holiest work, the work of building the Tabernacle, which God Himself commanded, is forbidden to be done on Shabbat. Last week we read in the Torah that Shabbat “is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you.” Shabbat is the sign that indicates the covenant between God and the people of Israel, and therefore Shabbat rest should not be canceled, not even for the sacred task of building the Tabernacle. Only one necessity postpones Shabbat rest: “Pikuach Nefesh”-an emergency for saving life. When a person’s life is at stake, Shabbat rest must be violated, and Shabbat must be profaned in order to save a life.

Why is Shabbat not postponed for the construction of the Tabernacle? One of the most important rabbis in Eastern Europe at the beginning of the 20th century was Rabbi Yisrael Meir HaCohen from the town of Radin in Belorussia, today known as “the Chafetz Chaim.” He explained the importance of Shabbat with a striking parable: a story about a businessman who went on vacation, and for that purpose closed his shop for a few days. During these days, people came and saw that the shop door was closed. When they inquired as to why the store was closed, they learned that the store owner had gone on vacation and would be back in a few days. The store is open – but only temporarily closed. But after a while, the business ran into difficulties, and the owner decided to close it. When he closed the store, he took down the sign that hung above the door, which displayed the name of the business. When the sign was removed, everyone knew that the store was closed, and that it was not another holiday.

Shabbat, says the Chafetz Chaim, is the sign that indicates that a person is a Jew who is faithful to the tradition of Judaism. It is the ‘sign’ that there is a connection between a person and God. Even if a person stumbles and fails in actions that are not appropriate according to the law, if he is a Shabbat-keeper he still has not removed the sign. Every week we have the opportunity to reinstall the blessed sign that indicates that we are a continuing link of Judaism, from Moses to the present day.

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Refael Cohen