(א) וַיַּ֣רְא הָעָ֔ם כִּֽי־בֹשֵׁ֥שׁ מֹשֶׁ֖ה לָרֶ֣דֶת מִן־הָהָ֑ר וַיִּקָּהֵ֨ל הָעָ֜ם עַֽל־אַהֲרֹ֗ן וַיֹּאמְר֤וּ אֵלָיו֙ ק֣וּם ׀ עֲשֵׂה־לָ֣נוּ אֱלֹהִ֗ים אֲשֶׁ֤ר יֵֽלְכוּ֙ לְפָנֵ֔ינוּ כִּי־זֶ֣ה ׀ מֹשֶׁ֣ה הָאִ֗ישׁ אֲשֶׁ֤ר הֶֽעֱלָ֙נוּ֙ מֵאֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרַ֔יִם לֹ֥א יָדַ֖עְנוּ מֶה־הָ֥יָה לֽוֹ׃ (ב) וַיֹּ֤אמֶר אֲלֵהֶם֙ אַהֲרֹ֔ן פָּֽרְקוּ֙ נִזְמֵ֣י הַזָּהָ֔ב אֲשֶׁר֙ בְּאׇזְנֵ֣י נְשֵׁיכֶ֔ם בְּנֵיכֶ֖ם וּבְנֹתֵיכֶ֑ם וְהָבִ֖יאוּ אֵלָֽי׃ (ג) וַיִּתְפָּֽרְקוּ֙ כׇּל־הָעָ֔ם אֶת־נִזְמֵ֥י הַזָּהָ֖ב אֲשֶׁ֣ר בְּאׇזְנֵיהֶ֑ם וַיָּבִ֖יאוּ אֶֽל־אַהֲרֹֽן׃ (ד) וַיִּקַּ֣ח מִיָּדָ֗ם וַיָּ֤צַר אֹתוֹ֙ בַּחֶ֔רֶט וַֽיַּעֲשֵׂ֖הוּ עֵ֣גֶל מַסֵּכָ֑ה וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּ אֵ֤לֶּה אֱלֹהֶ֙יךָ֙ יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל אֲשֶׁ֥ר הֶעֱל֖וּךָ מֵאֶ֥רֶץ מִצְרָֽיִם׃
(1) When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, the people gathered against Aaron and said to him, “Come, make us a god who shall go before us, for that fellow Moses—the man who brought us from the land of Egypt—we do not know what has happened to him.” (2) Aaron said to them, “[You men,] take off the gold rings that are on the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” (3) And all the people took off the gold rings that were in their ears and brought them to Aaron. (4) This he took from them and cast in a mold, and made it into a molten calf. And they exclaimed, “This is your god, O Israel, who brought you out of the land of Egypt!”
Rabbi Cheryl Rosenstein, DD, "Emunah-Regaining Faith" in Block, Rabbi Barry H.. The Mussar Torah Commentary: A Spiritual Path to Living a Meaningful and Ethical Life, CCAR Press.
Enslaved and oppressed for four hundred years, the Israelites’ faith was understandably weak. It was for their sake that God sent the plagues against Egypt, that they should witness God’s power and faithfulness. In flight, flanked by Pharaoh’s army on one side and the Reed Sea on the other, our ancestors’ newfound faith flagged. Only after they had crossed the sea on dry land and had seen the waves close over their pursuers did their faith revive: “Who is like You, Eternal One, among the celestials?” (Exodus 15:11). Their faith reached a pinnacle at Mount Sinai—only to disintegrate in the debacle of the Golden Calf, when Moses’s prolonged absence on the mountaintop enflamed their fears and doubts. The Israelites’ crisis of faith precipitated God’s reciprocal if momentary loss of faith in the people of Israel: “Now, let Me be, that My anger may blaze forth against them and that I may destroy them” (Exodus 32:10). In the aftermath of the Golden Calf, when the remnant of the people stood punished, shattered, subdued, and repentant, God restored their dignity by asking something of them.
Enslaved and oppressed for four hundred years, the Israelites’ faith was understandably weak. It was for their sake that God sent the plagues against Egypt, that they should witness God’s power and faithfulness. In flight, flanked by Pharaoh’s army on one side and the Reed Sea on the other, our ancestors’ newfound faith flagged. Only after they had crossed the sea on dry land and had seen the waves close over their pursuers did their faith revive: “Who is like You, Eternal One, among the celestials?” (Exodus 15:11). Their faith reached a pinnacle at Mount Sinai—only to disintegrate in the debacle of the Golden Calf, when Moses’s prolonged absence on the mountaintop enflamed their fears and doubts. The Israelites’ crisis of faith precipitated God’s reciprocal if momentary loss of faith in the people of Israel: “Now, let Me be, that My anger may blaze forth against them and that I may destroy them” (Exodus 32:10). In the aftermath of the Golden Calf, when the remnant of the people stood punished, shattered, subdued, and repentant, God restored their dignity by asking something of them.
Alan Morinis, Everyday Holiness (p. 220-1). Shambhala.
Faith is a challenge even to people who do feel some degree of resonance with the wellsprings of divinity, because too often that inner sensibility is corrupted by stories that have been internalized in the name of faith—because if faith means admiring a big white man with a long white beard enthroned in the sky, then this sort of faith is foolish or, in the view of Rav Kook, who was the first Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel, heretical... Even people who do have a well-established inner sense of God need to be challenged in their faith, because a fully resolved faith is a dead faith, since the facts of life challenge faith at every turn. Our understanding, like all our inner qualities, is meant to grow.... faith is not something to be understood intellectually but rather to be appreciated from experience.
Faith is a challenge even to people who do feel some degree of resonance with the wellsprings of divinity, because too often that inner sensibility is corrupted by stories that have been internalized in the name of faith—because if faith means admiring a big white man with a long white beard enthroned in the sky, then this sort of faith is foolish or, in the view of Rav Kook, who was the first Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel, heretical... Even people who do have a well-established inner sense of God need to be challenged in their faith, because a fully resolved faith is a dead faith, since the facts of life challenge faith at every turn. Our understanding, like all our inner qualities, is meant to grow.... faith is not something to be understood intellectually but rather to be appreciated from experience.
How does the Israelites' wrestling with faith show up throughout the book of Exodus, which began with the enslavement of the Jewish people, and included the Exodus from Egypt, the golden calf, revelation, the Ten Commandments?
How does this struggle with emunah resonate in your own lives?
To what extent does Alan Morinis's statement about consistently workng on faith resonate with you?
What gets in the way of your emunah (faith)?
How does this struggle with emunah resonate in your own lives?
To what extent does Alan Morinis's statement about consistently workng on faith resonate with you?
What gets in the way of your emunah (faith)?
(לג) וַיָּבִ֤יאוּ אֶת־הַמִּשְׁכָּן֙ אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֔ה אֶת־הָאֹ֖הֶל וְאֶת־כׇּל־כֵּלָ֑יו קְרָסָ֣יו קְרָשָׁ֔יו בְּרִיחָ֖ו וְעַמֻּדָ֥יו וַאֲדָנָֽיו׃ (לד) וְאֶת־מִכְסֵ֞ה עוֹרֹ֤ת הָֽאֵילִם֙ הַמְאׇדָּמִ֔ים וְאֶת־מִכְסֵ֖ה עֹרֹ֣ת הַתְּחָשִׁ֑ים וְאֵ֖ת פָּרֹ֥כֶת הַמָּסָֽךְ׃ (לה) אֶת־אֲר֥וֹן הָעֵדֻ֖ת וְאֶת־בַּדָּ֑יו וְאֵ֖ת הַכַּפֹּֽרֶת׃ (לו) אֶת־הַשֻּׁלְחָן֙ אֶת־כׇּל־כֵּלָ֔יו וְאֵ֖ת לֶ֥חֶם הַפָּנִֽים׃ (לז) אֶת־הַמְּנֹרָ֨ה הַטְּהֹרָ֜ה אֶת־נֵרֹתֶ֗יהָ נֵרֹ֛ת הַמַּֽעֲרָכָ֖ה וְאֶת־כׇּל־כֵּלֶ֑יהָ וְאֵ֖ת שֶׁ֥מֶן הַמָּאֽוֹר׃ (לח) וְאֵת֙ מִזְבַּ֣ח הַזָּהָ֔ב וְאֵת֙ שֶׁ֣מֶן הַמִּשְׁחָ֔ה וְאֵ֖ת קְטֹ֣רֶת הַסַּמִּ֑ים וְאֵ֕ת מָסַ֖ךְ פֶּ֥תַח הָאֹֽהֶל׃ (לט) אֵ֣ת ׀ מִזְבַּ֣ח הַנְּחֹ֗שֶׁת וְאֶת־מִכְבַּ֤ר הַנְּחֹ֙שֶׁת֙ אֲשֶׁר־ל֔וֹ אֶת־בַּדָּ֖יו וְאֶת־כׇּל־כֵּלָ֑יו אֶת־הַכִּיֹּ֖ר וְאֶת־כַּנּֽוֹ׃ (מ) אֵת֩ קַלְעֵ֨י הֶחָצֵ֜ר אֶת־עַמֻּדֶ֣יהָ וְאֶת־אֲדָנֶ֗יהָ וְאֶת־הַמָּסָךְ֙ לְשַׁ֣עַר הֶֽחָצֵ֔ר אֶת־מֵיתָרָ֖יו וִיתֵדֹתֶ֑יהָ וְאֵ֗ת כׇּל־כְּלֵ֛י עֲבֹדַ֥ת הַמִּשְׁכָּ֖ן לְאֹ֥הֶל מוֹעֵֽד׃
(33) Then they brought the Tabernacle to Moses, with the Tent and all its furnishings: its clasps, its planks, its bars, its posts, and its sockets; (34) the covering of tanned ram skins, the covering of dolphin skins, and the curtain for the screen; (35) the Ark of the Pact and its poles, and the cover; (36) the table and all its utensils, and the bread of display; (37) the pure lampstand, its lamps—lamps in due order—and all its fittings, and the oil for lighting; (38) the altar of gold, the oil for anointing, the aromatic incense, and the screen for the entrance of the Tent; (39) the copper altar with its copper grating, its poles and all its utensils, and the laver and its stand; (40) the hangings of the enclosure, its posts and its sockets, the screen for the gate of the enclosure, its cords and its pegs—all the furnishings for the service of the Tabernacle, the Tent of Meeting;
In what way is creating the Mishkan an act of faith?
WHY DO WE NEED FAITH?
Viktor Frankl
Just as a small fire is extinguished by a storm whereas a large fire is enhanced by it- likewise a weak faith is weakened by a predicament and catastrophes, whereas a strong faith is strengthened by them.
Just as a small fire is extinguished by a storm whereas a large fire is enhanced by it- likewise a weak faith is weakened by a predicament and catastrophes, whereas a strong faith is strengthened by them.
Rabbi Ibn Pekuda, Duties of the Heart
One who trusts in God “neither worries nor laments.... is free of worldly cares... [and] lives in perpetual repose, security and tranquility.... [This person] is pleased with everything, even it if goes against his grain.”
One who trusts in God “neither worries nor laments.... is free of worldly cares... [and] lives in perpetual repose, security and tranquility.... [This person] is pleased with everything, even it if goes against his grain.”
WHAT IS FAITH- REALLY?
Chofetz Chayim
For the believer, there are no questions. For the unbeliever, there are no answers.
For the believer, there are no questions. For the unbeliever, there are no answers.
Rabbi Jonathan Sacks
Emunah, the Hebrew word normally translated as faith, does not mean what it is taken to mean in English: a body of dogma, a set of principles, or a cluster of beliefs often held on non-rational grounds. Emunah means faithfulness, loyalty, fidelity, honouring your commitments, doing what you said you would do and acting in such a way as to inspire trust. It has to do with relationships...
Emunah, the Hebrew word normally translated as faith, does not mean what it is taken to mean in English: a body of dogma, a set of principles, or a cluster of beliefs often held on non-rational grounds. Emunah means faithfulness, loyalty, fidelity, honouring your commitments, doing what you said you would do and acting in such a way as to inspire trust. It has to do with relationships...
Ramban, as quoted in Morinis, Alan. Everyday Holiness
Faith and trust are two separate concepts. The latter is dependent on the former, while the former is independent of the latter. Faith precedes trust, and can exist in a believer’s heart even when he lacks trust, for faith can exist without trust. Trust, however, denotes the existence of faith, for it is impossible for trust to precede it or to endure independently.
Faith and trust are two separate concepts. The latter is dependent on the former, while the former is independent of the latter. Faith precedes trust, and can exist in a believer’s heart even when he lacks trust, for faith can exist without trust. Trust, however, denotes the existence of faith, for it is impossible for trust to precede it or to endure independently.
Alan Morinis
One problem I see is that issues of faith are often misleadingly presented in terms of belief. The question that is presented as the heart of the matter then comes out as: do you or don’t you believe in God? The problem here is the unexpressed assumption that God is some sort of entity that you might or might not think of as having an actual historical reality, like a Martian or the Yeti or, maybe more accurately, like arguments that take place over whether a certain species of animal is extinct or not. The faith we need is not a simple matter of belief. Belief can be disproved by new facts. If I believed that the world was flat, pictures from space would rightly shake my belief. If I believed that maggots sprouted spontaneously in mud, a microscope would make me see differently. The Rambam conceives of faith not being about “belief” but about knowledge and understanding,10 and this seems right to me. Rabbi Perr once said to me, “Everybody has faith, but only some people know it.”
One problem I see is that issues of faith are often misleadingly presented in terms of belief. The question that is presented as the heart of the matter then comes out as: do you or don’t you believe in God? The problem here is the unexpressed assumption that God is some sort of entity that you might or might not think of as having an actual historical reality, like a Martian or the Yeti or, maybe more accurately, like arguments that take place over whether a certain species of animal is extinct or not. The faith we need is not a simple matter of belief. Belief can be disproved by new facts. If I believed that the world was flat, pictures from space would rightly shake my belief. If I believed that maggots sprouted spontaneously in mud, a microscope would make me see differently. The Rambam conceives of faith not being about “belief” but about knowledge and understanding,10 and this seems right to me. Rabbi Perr once said to me, “Everybody has faith, but only some people know it.”
HOW CAN WE DEEPEN OUR FAITH?
Makkot 24a
Habakkuk came and established the 613 mitzvot upon one, as it is stated: “But the righteous person shall live by his faith” (Habakkuk 2:4).
Habakkuk came and established the 613 mitzvot upon one, as it is stated: “But the righteous person shall live by his faith” (Habakkuk 2:4).
Sifrei Dvarm 34:6, Psikta d'Rav Kahanah 12:6, as quotedin the Mussar Torah Commentary, p 142.
It is written: “This is my God and I will enshrine Him” (Exodus 15:2). This means: “When I acknowledge God, God is glorified, but when I do not acknowledge God, God is glorified only in name.” It is written: “For the name of the Eternal I proclaim; give glory to our God” (Deuteronomy 32:3). [This means:] “When I call God’s name, God is great, but when I don’t . . . [it is as if God is not great].” It is written: “You are My witnesses, said the Eternal . . . and I am the One” (Isaiah 43:10). This means: “When you are My witnesses, I am God, but when you are not My witnesses, it is as if I am not God.” It is written: “To You, enthroned in heaven, I turn my eyes” (Psalm 123:1). This means: “If it weren’t for me, it is as if You would not be sitting in the heavens.”
It is written: “This is my God and I will enshrine Him” (Exodus 15:2). This means: “When I acknowledge God, God is glorified, but when I do not acknowledge God, God is glorified only in name.” It is written: “For the name of the Eternal I proclaim; give glory to our God” (Deuteronomy 32:3). [This means:] “When I call God’s name, God is great, but when I don’t . . . [it is as if God is not great].” It is written: “You are My witnesses, said the Eternal . . . and I am the One” (Isaiah 43:10). This means: “When you are My witnesses, I am God, but when you are not My witnesses, it is as if I am not God.” It is written: “To You, enthroned in heaven, I turn my eyes” (Psalm 123:1). This means: “If it weren’t for me, it is as if You would not be sitting in the heavens.”
Rabbi Zvi Miller
In its natural state, the heart—which is the emotional core—is sealed, i.e., the knowledge attained by the mind does not penetrate the heart’s barrier. [But] once the heart is awakened and electrified—it bolsters, stabilizes, and anchors the intellectual concepts.
In its natural state, the heart—which is the emotional core—is sealed, i.e., the knowledge attained by the mind does not penetrate the heart’s barrier. [But] once the heart is awakened and electrified—it bolsters, stabilizes, and anchors the intellectual concepts.
Rabbi Cheryl Rosenstein, DD, "Emunah-Regaining Faith"
The narrative of the Mishkan teaches us that we build our faith not by means of spiritual encounters, but through the works of our own hands. Perhaps emunah is built through acts of faith. Our faith grows when we work to make space for God in our lives. Whether we do this through prayer or meditation, or by performing acts of tzedakah or chesed, each of us has the ability to construct a space in which faith can be nurtured.
The narrative of the Mishkan teaches us that we build our faith not by means of spiritual encounters, but through the works of our own hands. Perhaps emunah is built through acts of faith. Our faith grows when we work to make space for God in our lives. Whether we do this through prayer or meditation, or by performing acts of tzedakah or chesed, each of us has the ability to construct a space in which faith can be nurtured.