The Divine Presence in the Nation

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1. The Chariot and the Journeys of God's Glory

   Dr. Tova Ganzel

   At the beginning of his book, Yehezkel describes how "the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God." Chapter 1, described by Chazal as the "ma'aseh merkava" is one of the most difficult chapters to understand in all of Tanakh.

   This Divine vision, which appears at the very outset of the book, holds the key to understanding one of the central prophetic messages of the book. The recollection of this vision accompanies Yehezkel's prophecy throughout the rest of the book. In these visions, God's glory is borne in a chariot, which indicates motion. The upshot of all these visions is that God's glory has departed from the Temple.

   Even in Yehezkel's pre-Destruction prophecies the glory of God has already departed from the Temple and the Divine Presence is no longer within the city of Jerusalem. Therefore, during the six first years of Yehezkel's prophecy – from the time he began to prophesy until the destruction of the Temple – there is no call to the nation as a whole to mend its ways and to repent. The fate of Jerusalem has already been sealed; the Temple is defiled and desecrated, and the city will not be purified until God has poured out His wrath in its midst.

   Where is God's glory is to be found during the years of the Destruction? Does God's glory wander with the people to Babylon, or does it remain in the Land of Israel, outside Jerusalem, waiting for the people to return?

   Yehezkel emphasizes that even though this is the first time that God's glory has departed – indeed the Temple lies in ruins – nevertheless the same Divine vision will return and once again dwell in the future Temple. The nation need not fear that the departure of God's glory from the Temple means the departure of His glory from the nation.

   God’s Presence in the Temple cannot be assumed to be unconditional; God will not allow His Presence to dwell there if the nation causes the Temple to be defiled. But even though the nation refuses to accept the message of the prophets and fails to repent, even after the destruction of the Temple, God will never abandon His people.

2. Parashat Vayakhel Pekudei - Why the Repetition?

   Rabbi Alex Israel | 30 minutes

   Vayakhel - Pekudei contains the precise dimensions of the Mishkan, but these already appeared in Teruma and Tetzaveh. Why did "Moshe followed the instructions" not suffice? We try to understand the secrets behind this "list - repetition" phenomenon in Vayakhel - Pekudei. 

   We relate to the question of the detailed language and repetition of our parsha by looking at the wider context of the latter part of the Book of Shemot.
   Is this repetition part of the emphasis on the possibility of Israel's atonement for the Sin of the Golden Calf? Ultimately, the structure of the parasha and Sefer Shemot is such that it ends off with the message that God has come back to dwell within the midst of Israel, as the Mishkan is filled with a Divine cloud.
    

3. Ramban on Teruma: The Mishkan and the Divine Presence

   Rabbi Ezra Bick | 35 minutes

   In his introduction to Parashat Teruma Ramban focuses on introducing the concept of the Mishkan and its placement in the Torah immediately after Parashat Mishpatim. Ramban seeks to explain the concept of why there is a need for a “Divine dwelling place” – what is the purpose of the Mishkan? He gives an interpretive summary of Parashat Yitro and Parashat Mishpatim, emphasizing that the Jewish people had received some mitzvot and had pre-emptively accepted all future mitzvot. They are now ready to be a special nation and to experience the Divine Presence in their midst. 

4. Tetzaveh: Where Is God In a Physical World?

   Rabbi David Fohrman |

   Last week's parsha video outlines the mishkan as a 'face' of God, and this week, he delves into the paradox - how can God be both outside of space and time, and in our physical world? Rabbi Fohrman argues that maybe the face of the mishkan gives us the answer, and begins to explore the similarities between humankind and God.

    

    

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5. "The Divine Presence Within Israel is a Need of the People" - "Shechina BeYisrael Tzorech Hediot"

   Rabbi Ezra Bick | 36 minutes

   We will be looking at a short section that is one of Ramban's most important comments in his entire commentary on the Torah. In a break from the usual, we will explore one of his comments that he categorizes as sod - the hidden, underlying meaning of the text. What does it mean that God took Israel out of Egypt so that He would dwell in their midst? Is the Exodus necessary for God to dwell in Israel's midst? Is it a conditional statement? Is dwelling in Israel's midst the purpose of the Exodus? Who benefits, and why is God's presence within Israel so crucial?

   As we consider different responses to these questions, we gain insight into Ramban's approach to both peshat and Kabbalistic sod perspectives on the relationship between God and Israel.

    

    

6. Pekudei: A Giant Chiasm In Sefer Shmot

   Rabbi David Fohrman |

   In this week's video, Rabbi Fohrman explores an incredible chiasm that encompasses more than 15 chapters, and asks, how do the pieces of this puzzle, especially the focal point at the center, come together to help us understand how the Torah builds together?

    

    

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7. Ramban on Tetzaveh - The Shechinah within Israel

   Rabbi Ezra Bick | 36 minutes

   In this shiur, we examine one of the most important comments in Ramban's commentary to the Torah. What does it mean that God took Israel out of Egypt to dwell in their midst? Was the construction of the Mishkan really the purpose of the Exodus? Why would this be, and what does this mean? Is the Divine Presence dwelling in the midst of the nation for the purpose of God, Israel, or the other nations - or some combination thereof?