Prayer for Creativity and Generosity to Give of Ourselves for the Sake of Building Hashem’s Sanctuary

Parashat Vayakhel

Prayer for Creativity and Generosity to Give of Ourselves

for the Sake of Building Hashem’s Sanctuary
 
Hashem, I wish the building of Your Temple would begin,
I’d like to employ my talents and learn to weave and spin.
 
Meanwhile, let me merit to add another layer,
and fix the curtain of our local House of Prayer!
 
Help me integrate my heart, soul, and hands,
expressing myself to fulfill Your commands!
 
Please heal the cracks in the skin of my finger.
It is hard to do crafts when it seems to linger.
 
Hashem help me my skills to hone,
as I am unable to do anything alone.
 
Please G-d let my efforts help me atone
for my many sins even those unknown!
 
Grant me the inspiration to create!
Help me keep all the lines straight!
 
Show me where You need me to add my touch,
whether it is in a grand project or nothing much!
 
Guide me with wisdom to know where to give,
and understand how a profound, holy life to live!
 
Remove my stinginess and arouse me to share,
of my gold and silver and dresses I like to wear! 
 
Imbue me with a generous spirit to give of myself,
 blue, purple, and crimson wool, and linen from my shelf!
 
Teach me how every material is here to raise,
employing it all to serve You in various ways!
 
Help me inspire others to connect their mind and heart,
to express their unique creativity and do their part!
 
Infuse me with energy to work with heart and soul,

to contribute my unique part to the greater whole! 

Based on the Book of Shemot Chapter 35: 

ספר שמות פרק לה פסוק ה קְחוּ מֵאִתְּכֶם תְּרוּמָה לַהָשֵׁם כֹּל נְדִיב לִבּוֹ יְבִיאֶהָ אֵת תְּרוּמַת הָשֵׁם זָהָב וָכֶסֶף וּנְחשֶׁת:

(ו) וּתְכֵלֶת וְאַרְגָּמָן וְתוֹלַעַת שָׁנִי וְשֵׁשׁ וְעִזִּים:

“Take from yourselves an offering for Hashem; every generous hearted person shall bring it, [namely] the Lord's offering: gold, silver, and copper; and blue, purple, and crimson wool; and linen and goat hair” (Shemot 35:5-6).

ספר שמות פרק לה פסוק כב וַיָּבֹאוּ הָאֲנָשִׁים עַל הַנָּשִׁים כֹּל נְדִיב לֵב הֵבִיאוּ חָח וָנֶזֶם וְטַבַּעַת וְכוּמָז כָּל כְּלִי זָהָב וְכָל אִישׁ אֲשֶׁר הֵנִיף תְּנוּפַת זָהָב לַהָשֵׁם:

“The men came with the women; every generous hearted person brought bracelets and earrings and rings and buckles, all kinds of golden objects, and every man who waved a waving of gold to Hashem” (Shemot 35:22). 

הָאֲנָשִׁים עַל הַנָּשִׁים literally it means, “the men on the women.” Rashi comments on this unusual expression and explains that the men came with the women closely following them. Ramban emphasizes that since the donation of jewelry pertained to women, they preceded the men in donating gold, and the men were secondary to them. The women all had jewelry, and took off their rings and earrings immediately, to bring them at once. Only afterward did the men, having found some jewelry, bring it too.

Rabbeinu Bachaya writes that the language “Al hanashim” teaches that the women came first. When the men arrived, they found that the women had already brought their contribution. This is a great tribute to the women, who refused to give their jewelry to the Golden Calf. However, for the Mishkan they were excited to donate their golden jewelry. Although it is natural for women to want to keep their jewelry to themselves, they even preceded the men in bringing clasps, pendants, rings, golden beads and all vessels of gold.

Kli Yakar explains that the women did not need to give their gold to the Mishkan, since only the men, who gave to the Golden Calf, needed an atonement by giving to the Mishkan. Although the women didn’t need an atonement as they didn’t give their jewelry to the Golden Calf, they anyway donated to the Mishkan due to their extra love of holiness. However, it didn’t state that the women brought. They only handed over their jewelry to be given by others. Had the women given their gifts directly with their own hands it would look as if they needed an atonement from the Golden Calf.

 

ספר שמות פרק לה פסוק כה

וְכָל אִשָּׁה חַכְמַת לֵב בְּיָדֶיהָ טָווּ וַיָּבִיאוּ מַטְוֶה אֶת הַתְּכֵלֶת וְאֶת הָאַרְגָּמָן אֶת תּוֹלַעַת הַשָּׁנִי וְאֶת הַשֵּׁשׁ:

“Every wise hearted woman spun with her hands, and they brought spun material: blue, purple, and crimson wool, and linen” (Shemot 35:25).

Why does it state, “spin with their hands”? Is it possible to spin without the hands?

There are wise women who teach others how to spin without being skilled in the use of their own hands. therefore, it states “with their hands,” to show that they were both wise and knew how to use their hands. The spinning was their own handicraft. They did not buy yearn which was spun by others. They also did not hire workers to do the spinning for them, but they themselves, put their own effort into the spinning, because of their love for the mitzvah. 

            In our modern society, where everything can be bought readymade, we often lose contact with the pleasure and satisfaction of expressing our feminine creativity through the loving gifts of our own handicrafts. How much love and devotion goes into the hand-knitted sweater that grandma is dedicating for her new grandchild. The image of her loving grandbaby is on her mind with each purl and knit. How sweet is the scent of homemade challah emerging from our kitchens on Erev Shabbat, and the sight of the matching Shabbat dresses that Ima has sewn especially for her daughters. When my son’s well-meaning praise of my homemade peanut butter cookies sounded, “They are almost as good as store bought,” I knew something had gone wrong in our consumer society. The puffed-up attractiveness of the uniform machine-made goodies in any color and shape, which fills the shelves of our supermarkets, have made us forget to value the importance of the individual talent and creativity of womanhood.

            While reading this, you might object, that you just don’t know how to either weave or spin, so you have no choice but to buy things ready-made. However, the women at Sinai teach us not to despair. Where there is a will there is a way. This is alluded to by the grammatical difficulty in our verse: “And every woman that was wise hearted did spin with their hands.” The tense of the verb does not fit the subject. Whereas the subject is written in singular “Kol Isha” the verb is written in plural: “Tavu” The Shach explains that as soon as the women would take the blue wool to spin, Divine assistance would cause it to be spun by itself. Therefore, the word for spin “tavu” is written in the plural, since another force would spin with them. Likewise, women of today should not despair from expressing our individual creativity. When our excitement and devotion to give, spurs us on to either paint, sew, knit, bake, weave or spin, then G-d will surely assist our loving endeavor (Based on Women at the Crossroads: A Woman’s Perspective on the Weekly Torah Portion, Parashat Vayakhel).

 

ספר שמות פרק לה פסוק כו וְכָל הַנָּשִׁים אֲשֶׁר נָשָׂא לִבָּן אֹתָנָה בְּחָכְמָה טָווּ אֶת הָעִזִּים:

(כו) וְכָל הַנָּשִׁים אֲשֶׁר נָשָׂא לִבָּן אֹתָנָה בְּחָכְמָה טָווּ אֶת הָעִזִּים:

“And every wise hearted woman spun with her hands, and they brought spun material: blue, purple, and crimson wool, and linen. And all the women whose hearts uplifted them with wisdom, spun the goat hair” (Shemot 35:25-26).

 

SPUN THE GOAT HAIR - This constituted a superior skill, for they [the women] spun it on the backs of the goats. [from Shabbat 74b] (Rashi, Shemot 35:26).

 

“All the women that were wise hearted…And all the women whose heart prompted them in wisdom...” Why is the word “wisdom” used twice in connection with the women who spun the goats’ hair?  This indicates that spinning the goats’ hair required additional wisdom apart from the spinning of sky-blue, purple and scarlet threads.  Because our verse reads, “tavu et haizim,” literally, “spun the goats,” Rashi explains that the women had the extraordinary skill of spinning directly from off the backs of the goats. The reason behind this unusual skill was the desire of the women to participate in the work of the Mishkan. However, since some of them were niddah (ritually impure), and therefore unable to engage in the general work of the Mishkan, they would spin from off the back of the goats because the animals do not receive tumah (ritual impurity). While the rest of the women were busy preparing the materials needed for the magnificent curtains of the Mishkan, certain wise women chose to be involved with the curtains of goats’ hair. Although the latter occupation was less glorious, it was more vital to the protection of the Mishkan, because it constituted the main part of the tent as taught by Rabbi S. R. Hirsch. Moreover, the essence of womanhood is manifest in the concept of the tent.  By choosing the vital over the attractive, and identifying with the main part of the tent, these women expressed the wisdom and power of womanhood. 

ספר שמות פרק לה פסוק כט כָּל אִישׁ וְאִשָּׁה אֲשֶׁר נָדַב לִבָּם אֹתָם לְהָבִיא לְכָל הַמְּלָאכָה אֲשֶׁר צִוָּה הָשֵׁם לַעֲשׂוֹת בְּיַד משֶׁה הֵבִיאוּ בְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל נְדָבָה לַהָשֵׁם:

“Every man and woman whose heart inspired them to generosity to bring for all the work that Hashem had commanded to make, through Moshe, the children of Israel brought a gift for Hashem” (Shemot 35:29).