Community Torah Corner, March 8, 2024

In order to graduate from my high school, I had to complete 40 hours of community service every year, totaling 160 hours of giving back to the community before leaving school and going out into the world. I spent time organizing a blood drive, distributing food at a food bank and cleaning up parks. We were receiving external motivation in the form of a requirement to instill a lifelong value of giving our time to our community. We did it because we were expected to, told to, not because we wanted to.

In last week’s parsha Aaron tells the people to take theirs and their family’s gold and give them to him in order to make the golden calf, and they do as they are told. They give because they are told to give. In this week's parasha the Israelites are told to contribute toward the Mishkan with gold and silver and copper and acacia wood, and they do so generously. What then is the difference between giving to Aaron the high priest when he asks you to and giving to Moses, the leader of the new Israelite nation when he asks you to?

When speaking about the donations to the Mishkan, the language for who and how to donate is נְדִ֣יב לִבּ֔וֹ, one whose heart is generous translated as whose heart is so moved and נָדְבָ֨ה רוּח֜וֹ one whose spirit is generous or one whose spirit is so moved.

It is up to the people to choose how much to give to this cause. While this sounds like a dangerous way to fundraise, it actually works. The artisans tell Moses, “The people are bringing more than is needed for the tasks entailed in the work that יהוה has commanded to be done." It is in this way, where people could decide how much to give that they give more than was needed. They need to be told to stop. The people give as much as was needed for the golden calf, but the Mishkan overflowed with donations from the heart and from the spirit of the people.  

Additionally, we learn that the share of the work is distributed amongst those who are most skilled and knowledgeable. Everyone was able to bring their unique skill sets, the best of themselves to the task. In the story of the golden calf, it was up to Aaron and him alone what to gather, what to create, and how to do so. When more people with diverse perspectives and skills can contribute we know the end result will be far more impressive. The Diversity and Inclusion Speakers Agency says that cognitive diversity drives innovation by up to 20% and that racially diverse teams report a 35% increase in performance compared to their competitors. Bringing in material goods is important to start the work but the more and the more varied the stakeholders, the more impressive the product will become. 

What is unique about building the Mishkan is that everyone who wants to be there is there. Everyone wants so much to be included and to be contributing that they actually run out of things to bring. It is through this idealized way of creating and only through this that God’s house could come into being.

External motivation can work, but it has its limits. Self motivation especially when shared within a group mentality can push us to do really amazing things for and with our communities. We must first know ourselves, our intentions and our strengths and then seek out others who can complement us, adding something we do not have. May we give of our best and true selves, connecting with God and with others so that we can create lasting change in our world.