Parashat Eqev
Deuteronomy 7:12-11:25

In repeating stories of what happened to Israel before, Moses sometimes changes, or  adds, or subtracts elements from the version we originally learned in earlier books. One such change – an addition to the original version told in the Book of Exodus – is that Moses made a wooden ark to serve as a container to hold the two Tablets given by God at Mount Sinai. Readers have always wondered what this ark was. Was it simply the ark that was part of the Tabernacle? But the rest of the Tabernacle is not mentioned here. So a strong argument can be made that this is a different ark. (For further discussion about this see Sparks 2013)

What was the purpose of this ark? It seems to have been a temporary solution to an immediate need. We needed to place the Torah in a safe place until such time as a more permanent ark would be built, an ark that would be part of a proper shrine.

We are living in a moment with a similar challenge. We need to find temporary solutions for our immediate need to protect the Torah. The solutions will be temporary because our circumstances are changing. We are living in flux. Our hopes that the pandemic would be a thing of the past by now have not fully materialized. Every day the situation is reassessed in terms of risks and safety. We are not at a point where we can construct a sturdy and permanent shrine for God. But we cannot leave the Torah unguarded. So we construct temporary, simple means to keep the Torah cherished and safe until we can do better.

But let us not mistake the temporary solution – the simple wooden ark – for the stable, more elaborate and more permanent solution – a golden ark covered with angels.

Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi David Greenstein

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Thank you to John Lasiter for suggesting the title and selecting an image for this Torah Sparks – Rabbi Greenstein

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Rabbi David Greenstein

Rabbi David Greenstein arrived at Shomrei Emunah in August 2009 with a rich, broad and deep background as a rabbi, cantor, artist, scholar, and teacher. He retired midyear 2022, and spends his time teaching and painting.

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