“Speak to the children of Israel, that they should take to Me an offering (terumah) [lit. uplifting] from every person whose heart inspires him to generosity, you shall take My offering.” (Exodus 25:2). Our Sages question this request from the Creator, considering that He is the owner and master of all His Creation, and they conclude that His request is about us in our relation to Him. This offering is actually something that we have to elevate to Him, and this elevation is necessary because it comes from the material world and must be sublimated in order to be united with Him.

In the book “God as Love” we call G-d’s Love’s ways and attributes, the means by which we conceive Him and relate to Him; and we do this when all aspects, levels and dimensions of our consciousness act according to those ways and attributes. Divine Love is our Essence and it is through this Essence that we are able to relate and communicate with the Creator; hence Love is the means and the message in our hearts that inspires us to elevate His Love as the offering that He asks from us.

Is this offer something ethereal and abstract like our Soul in order to be sublimated to Him? Not really; because all the aspects, levels and dimensions of our existence are as spiritual as our own Soul, and this is what the Creator wants us to be aware of. That is why He asks from us that every and each part of our being be essential elements in our offering, in our elevation in order to be One with Him: “And this is the offering that you shall take from them: gold, silver, and copper (…).” (25:3-7). Our Sages reveal that the items mentioned in those five verses represent particular traits and qualities of every part of our being. Gold symbolizes the highest level of consciousness, the Soul through which we conceive and comprehend the Creator; silver represents our awareness of the material world and the vehicle to grasp the Creator’s ways and attributes; and copper symbolizes the emotions, passions and instincts bound to the physicality of life. Similarly, “blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and goats’ hair” (25:4) represent spiritual inspiration, creative material thoughts, revitalizing emotions, feelings, and passions. In this context, Soul, mind and heart, encompass multiple levels and dimensions inherent to their own nature; and all those from the children of Israel are summoned by the Creator to ascend to Him: “And they shall make for Me a Sanctuary, and I will dwell amidst them [lit. in them].” (25:8).

The Sanctuary achieves a dual purpose because by elevating our lives to the Creator, we simultaneously fulfill His desire to dwell (be revealed by us) in the lower dimensions of the material world. Our mystic Sages teach that this is the entire task of Man in the world: to reveal the hidden Divine Presence in every aspect and dimension of His Creation. After all, His Presence pervades everything and it is our endeavor to make it tangible for us in order to proclaim His Oneness. This is the profound meaning of His declaration: “and I will dwell in them”, within each one of us and also in our midst, our surrounding reality. The Sanctuary represents the highest awareness of Divine Love and the Torah within it is the means to connect with Him: “And you shall place into the Ark of the Testimony, which I will give you. (25:16, 21). Once the connection is established, “I will arrange My meetings with you there, and I will speak with you, (…) all that I will command you unto the children of Israel” (25:22). We mentioned in previous commentaries that it is Moses who symbolizes our highest awareness of the Creator, and it is only through it that we communicate with Him. In this capacity it is Moses who directs the construction of the Sanctuary, guiding all aspects of consciousness (the children of Israel) for that purpose.

One of the fundamental elements of this awareness is the manifestation of Divine consciousness as the guiding Light of our life and the tasks and duties in every aspect of our relation with the material world: “And you shall make a Menorah of pure gold (…)” (25:31), and pure gold is the way we grasp the pristine quality of our Divine awareness. But let’s remind ourselves that silver and copper are also fundamental parts in the construction of the Sanctuary, because we are not made only with a Soul but also with body, mind, thoughts, emotions, feelings, passions and instincts, symbolized by silver and copper.

In the entire chapter 27 of the book of Exodus, copper is highlighted as the metal for the base of the altar where the Ark of the Testimony rests, and the metal for its utensils; and it is later emphasized in the last verse of the parshah: “All the implements of the Sanctuary for all its labor, and all its pegs, and all the pegs of the courtyard (shall be made of) copper.” (27:19). Let’s be aware that besides our Soul and intellect, our body is mostly dominated by the senses, emotions, feelings, passions and instincts that we can’t put aside or separate from us. They are clearly the foundation where our higher consciousness rests, and as such we must integrate them under the guidance of Love’s ways and attributes as the harmonized unity that we need to permanently connect with our Creator.

Some of our mystic Sages advice that instead of fighting darkness, our duty is to create Light, as it is commanded to kindle the Menorah every day in the Sanctuary. Living in the Light of G-d’s Love is the way to create a place for Him to dwell (to be revealed) in the world. The haftara for this portion reminds us how to do it: “(…) if you walk in My statutes, and execute My ordinances, and keep all My Commandments to walk in them; then will I establish My word with you, which I spoke to David your father. And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and I will not forsake My people, Israel.” (I Kings 5:12-13).