Summary Vayakhel-Pekudei 5762
Today is the last of the four special Shabbatot surrounding Purim and Pesach on which we require a second Sefer Torah. We also read two sidrot : Vayakhel-Pekudei, which makes for the longest Torah reading of the year!

In Vayakhel, Moses relays the commandment to build the Tabernacle to the Israelites, but he prefaces it by reiterating the commandment to observe Shabbat. The rest of the double-sedra describes the fulfilment of the detailed instructions to build the Tabernacle. In this first-ever Jewish fundraising campaign, the people actually brought too much and Moses had to make an announcement asking the people to stop bringing contributions!

Bezalel and Aholiav were appointed to oversee the making of the Tabernacle, as well as the priestly garments. They were granted special Divine wisdom to make the various parts exactly as G-d had commanded and to teach others to assist. It was then left to Moses to erect the Tabernacle itself.

Parashat Hachodesh
From the second Sefer Torah, we read the first 20 verses of Exodus Chapter 12. These contain the commandment to observe the first ever Rosh Chodesh and that the months should be counted from Nissan. On the 10th of Nissan, the Pascal Lamb should be set aside and then slaughtered on the afternoon of the 14th, with its blood smeared on the doorposts and lintel. That night (15th Nissan), the first Seder should be celebrated, eating the Pesach (the lamb), matzah and maror. The Israelites should be dressed ready to leave Egypt, and at midnight, the Almighty would slay the firstborn.

In the future, there would be a weeklong festival to mark this occasion, with a severe prohibition against eating chametz, leavened products. The first and last days are designated as ‘Yomtov’, on which work forbidden on Shabbat (melachah) is forbidden, with the exception of cooking and carrying.

Points to Ponder:

1. Why do we have a ‘double’ Torah Portion this week?

Answer. The Torah is divided into 54 portions. Up to seven may be doubled up in any one year. This year has only twelve months, as opposed to thirteen in a leap year. Non-leap years automatically create four double portions in the Spring, which usually have a thematic connection. Vayakhel-Pekudei is the first; the other three occurring after Pesach. Double portions are also created when some festivals fall on Shabbat, in which case the festival pushes aside the regular sedra.

2. Why does the Torah go into such great detail regarding the construction of the Tabernacle?

Answer: such a major, holy project demands attention to detail, which reflects the value we place in the project itself. This should point the way to our conduct of mitzvot in general, particularly those that by their nature demand attention to detail, such as Pesach, which is the theme of the next paragraph.

Shabbat Shalom