Ki Tisa- כִּי תִשָּׂא Shemot ~ Exodus Making Torah Personal 30:11 – 34:35

Excerpts and Questions: Through the middah of separation / prishoot / פְּרִישׁוּת , we will examine the relationship between being separate and distinctive.

Quick Summary

God instructs Moses to collect a half-shekel from every person > age 20 as a census and contribution for the mishkan.

Instructions for vessels for mikdash, including the ingredients for the annointing oil and incense.

Bezalel, a skilled artisan, is appointed by God to supervise the building of the mishkan

Moses reminds the people that Shabbat is a reminder of covenant between them and God Moses is given two tablets, engraved by God.

Forty days have passed, and the people are anxious and request that Aaron fashion a golden calf (eigel hazahav) and he agrees

God tells Moses what happened, threatens to destroy the Israelites. Moses pleads for them and saves them.

Moses, when he sees this for himself, anger wells up in him, shatters the tablets, destroys the idol, and punishes those who have not shown loyalty to God.

God tells Moses to carve a new set of tablets (luchot) and to go back up Har Sinai, and he is there for a second set of 40 days and 40 nights.

When he comes down, Moses' face is radiant and teaches the Torah to B'nai Yisrael.

It is relevant to bring in verses from Megillat Esther here which brings light to a discussion of separateness and its relationship to antisemitism.

The words "Ki Tisa" are translated as "when you take a census" but literally means "when you raise up". What is the spiritual significance of this?

The day on which all our actions are reviewed by G’d is Rosh Hashanah, New year’s Day. On that day each one of us is treated as an individual and this is why it is such an awesome day. On that day our deeds are isolated from the fact that all of us are also members of the community at large. ~Rabbeinu Bahya, on Shemot, 30:12

A rational approach: The reason the Torah stipulated a half-shekel when the Torah could just as easily have demanded a whole shekel of ten geyrah weight, was to hint to every intelligent person that he must weigh his actions in life so as to give due weight to his spiritual needs as well as to his physical needs. Ideally, he should be able to give full weight to both these requirements each, i.e. a full shekel to each. In fact, he ought to be able to use his body exclusively in the service of the Lord. However, on the other hand, sometimes attention to the physical needs such as eating, drinking, sleeping, provision of clothing, etc., is essential for the continued ability to serve the Lord. Keeping these factors in mind, the Torah, by speaking of a half shekel, hinted that it is aware that we suffer from this dichotomy of demands made upon us. We have numerous sayings of our sages in which they interpret verses in the Torah as reflecting this dual-duty of the Jew to look after both his body and his soul....It goes without saying that even when indulging in mundane activities one should strive to perform this with a view to benefiting one’s soul, one’s spiritual level as a personality. This very donating of the coin, i.e. using money, must be לה', devoted to divinely inspired purposes. When this is the case then one has achieved the degree of sanctity described by the Torah when it calls the coin “sacred.” מעשיו והנהגותיו שקולים בשקל קדש ויעלה מזה למדרגות הפרושיות והקדושה.

A Midrashic approach to the words כי תשא, based on Pessikta Zutrata on our verse. G’d said to Moses: “how are you going to raise the stature of the Jewish people? By the words כי תשא, seeing that it is written (Proverbs 14,34) צְדָקָ֥ה תְרוֹמֵֽם־גּ֑וֹי וְחֶ֖סֶד לְאֻמִּ֣ים חַטָּֽאת׃

Righteousness exalts a nation; Sin is a reproach to any people. Rabbi Yehoshua interpreted this verse to mean that the nation mentioned first are the Jewish people who are elevated spiritually by giving charity. ~Rabbeinu Bahya on Shemot, 30:12

ונמצא הפרישות עם החסידות הוא כמו הזהירות עם הזריזות, שזה בסור מרע וזה בעשה טוב.

We find that Separation is to Piety as Watchfulness is to Zeal. For the former concerns "turning from evil" (Tehilim 34:14), while the latter concerns "doing good" (ibid). ~Mesillat Yesharim 13:2

Sabbath is the first commandment given to Israel before the Torah was given. It is the basis of our faith and is equated with all other commandments combined. The Sabbath affirms our belief that G'd created the world in six days and rested on the seventh. ~Rabbeinu Bahya

The Sabbath teaches us about limits and the ability to say No. It tells us to take time out to focus on what really matters: the important as opposed to the urgent. It gives our most significant relationships the time and space to breathe. It keeps us human, reminding us that we are the masters of technology, not its slaves. ~Rabbi Jonathan Sacks

The Jewish people were to appreciate that the ‎Sabbath rest, even though they may have enjoyed it in Egypt, ‎was not to be a physical rest from the labours of the week, but ‎was something decreed by G’d, to bring them closer to Him. ~Kedushat Levi on Leviticus, Behar.

The Sabbath meant and means many things. It was a protest against slavery. One day in seven, every individual shared the same freedom, breathed the same air of liberty. It was a reminder that there are limits to our exploitation of natural resources. Like the sabbatical and jubilee years, it was a time when the earth rested as a reminder that we are not only creators but also creations, charged with conserving the natural world for future generations. ~ Rabbi Jonathan Sacks

The Almighty’s presence does not rest where there is sadness, only where there is joy in fulfilling the commandments. Talmud Shabbat 30b

More than Jews have kept Shabbat, Shabbat has kept the Jews. ~ Ahad Ha'am (Asher Ginsberg, poet, philosopher, 1856-1927)

Shabbat was dedicated to building a relationship with the Divine, and reconnecting and renewing our deepest selves after a week of laboring in the physical world. One of the greatest benefits of Shabbat has always been family and community, whether in tikkun hanefesh (renewing of the soul/self) or tikkun olam (renewing/repairing of the world). Even a portion of the 25 hours together, a meal, an unplugging-- claiming some shabbat on Shabbat can aid our well-being and help us feel more connected to each other in gratitude, shared experience, mutual support and ongoing soul growth. ~Rabbi Shawn Zevit

The great sin (חטאה גדלה, Exod. 32:21) of the golden calf is packaged tightly within the magisterial details related to the building of the Mishkan, Israel’s portable temple. In Exodus 25–31, God outlines the plans for the Mishkan, replete with precious metals and incense recipes. Exodus 35–40 chronicles the building of the Mishkan. Notably, at the core of this sumptuous description are laws related to the observance of Shabbat, Exodus 31:12–17 and 35:2–3. In this literary way, holy time appears to lie at the center of holy space....

Even when we behave terribly, as Israel did with the golden calf, Shabbat reminds us of God’s holiness and our holiness. It is a sign of who we can be, as the Torah says: “It is a sign between Me and you for all generations that you know that I, God sanctified you” (Exod. 31:13). ~Professor Amy Kalmanofsky, Professor of Bible, JTs

Shabbat is our moment of eternity in the midst of time. Within the cycle of the week it creates a delicate rhythm of action and reflection, making and enjoying, running and standing still. Without that pause to experience family, community, and God, we risk making the journey while missing the view. ~Rabbi Jonathan Sacks

The Sabbath is the presence of God in the world, open to the soul of man. ~Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, The Sabbath

Using the Torah and God’s decrees as our guiding principles, we must carve out a life that is tenable, one where we can fully function and live. It is, I believe, a call to find the right balance—a balance between a life that knows no boundaries and one that looks to create too many strictures and limitations. A life of shunning, entirely, ma’aseh Ca’naan and ma’aseh Mitzrayim. ~ Rabba Sara Hurwitz, Yeshivat Maharat