Demolition As the Precursor to Building: Architectural Lessons for Judaism
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Torah Guidance in Ms. Elisheva [Ellie] Levi Challenging Times Elisheva [Ellie] Levi, AIA, LEED AP is a licensed architect in New York City. She designs schools, hospitals and other institutional work. She is a frequent lecturer at Yeshiva University’s Millie Arbesfeld Midreshet Yom Rishon and the OU Women's Initiative and was the founding president of the American Friends of Bat Melech, a domestic violence shelter in Israel as well as the founder of the Kol Kallah fund for Yad Eliezer. DEMOLITION AS THE PRECURSOR TO BUILDING: ARCHITECTURAL LESSONS FOR JUDAISM The Spiritual Effect of the of demolition involved: ground teshuva process during the month of Architectural Process clearing, earthworks removal to dig Elul that culminates forty days later deep for foundations and piping, at Yom Kippur. True repentance is a very architectural process or the demolition of miscellaneous long process — it involves breaking by which new buildings on-site structures to make way for the old habits and repairing broken are constructed involves new project. In other words, there is relationships. The sound of the Emany phases of design. The most never something newly constructed shofar heard at Rosh Hashanah, the memorable, of course, is the that does not involve the destroying teruah — the repeated, broken short construction phase. However, one of or clearing out of something that blasts — also signifies this breaking the critical phases of design, which preexists it. process. And when we are done with precedes construction, is called the In this respect, architecture can serve our brokenness, and have resolved demolition phase. It usually occurs as a real-time model for the spiritual to build ourselves anew, the first when a building or portion thereof process of building ourselves anew mitzvah we are given on motzei Yom is going to be renovated — the old that Judaism promotes in various ways Kippur is to go outside and engage in is cleared to make way for the new. — and particularly at holiday times. a real construction project: building a Even when constructing an entirely For instance, when we start the new sukkah, which functions as a tangible new building there is always a level year in Tishrei, first we engage in a symbol of our rebirth. 13 Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary • The Benjamin and Rose Berger CJF Torah To-Go Series • Shavuot 5780 Similarly, when we start the new year of conceit that may have lingered once heard is that Moshe understood in Nissan, we break something old among the Jews for having resided in immediately how unforgivable this in order to discover our newly freed (and even contributed to the building sin would be in the eyes of Hashem, selves; before we tell our freedom up of) Egypt’s great metropolises and therefore decided to literally “cast story in the Maggid section of the was broken in the Jewish people. his lot” with the Jewish people by Pesach seder, we must first do the The message was clear: a desolate shattering the Luchot — i.e., doing Yachatz ceremony — breaking of environment was superior to even something unforgiveable himself by the middle matzah in half. This the greatest of metropolises as a place breaking the holy handiwork of God symbolizes how we must break down to build up the chosen nation of Himself. In so doing, he created an our slave mentality in order to arrive Hashem. argument on behalf of the Jewish at a free man’s mentality. people: if Hashem couldn’t forgive Shavuot is also a holiday that involves Breaking Through Sin and them, then He also wouldn’t forgive 6 In a demolition phase as a precursor to a Breaking to Rebuild Moshe for this devastation. essence, Moshe forced Hashem’s hand new construction phase. Let’s look at in forgiveness in order to be left with its history in order to see how. Even though the Jews felt the enormity of their privilege in a nation. being designated Hashem’s am Breaking Down Barriers After Moshe broke the Luchot, the segulah — the people chosen to next thing he did was to destroy the receive and live the Torah — they When Am Yisrael first received the Golden Calf — he grinds it up and Torah at Sinai, the first historical nevertheless experienced a tragic forces the Jews to drink its ashes. The “Shavuot,” they were taken into downfall soon thereafter. After his point is that Moshe purposely broke a desert as the setting for this monthlong spiritual encounter with things in order to forge a path toward momentous occasion. The Gemara God post-Matan Torah, Moshe rebuilding. In his mind, these were must abruptly hasten his return to in Eiruvin 54a explains that a desert necessary acts of destruction in order is a place of humility, because it is an the nation. There he sees the idol to begin the process by which Am open space of passage for anyone — it worshipping ceremony of the Chet Yisrael could receive the second set of is a trampled upon place. The Gemara HaEgel unfolding before his eyes, and Luchot. His actions were a spiritual his reaction is to immediately and in Nedarim 55a, advocates for the demolition that led to the making of receiving of the Torah in a desert in decisively throw down the Luchot. a renewed nation, one that is able to order to parallel this environment’s The Luchot were thus shattered to ascend once again to holiness. smithereens. key feature — making oneself hefker A fascinating question lingers about — a prerequisite for proper Torah The commentaries vary in explaining the smashing of the Luchot. What adherence. The desert is a leveler why Moshe did this. Some claim that happened to the stone pieces? Where of ego and thus the ideal setting for his arms weakened and he could not did they go? The Midrash tells us that 1 receiving the Torah. Interestingly, it physically support the weight of the Moshe actually collected them and 2 also served to unbundle the chaos of Luchot anymore. Others claim that placed them in the Aron Hakodesh.7 the concentrated urban environment Moshe did this intentionally and in After the Jews received the second 3 that the Jewish people resided in for anger. Perhaps he sought to create a set of Luchot, these pieces were then over two centuries. concrete symbol of the desecration placed beside the shards of the first of what the people did — their Egypt was an empire of myriad and together they were carried with idolatrous festival destroyed any peoples in residence and in passing, Bnei Yisrael for 40 years in their holiness they had attained at Sinai.4 engaged in travel and in business. travels throughout the desert. They were no longer deserving of It was a place where might was the precious Luchot that functioned This raises another question: why measured by glorious architectural as the contract between them and did Moshe save the shards? After all, wonders known the world over. Hashem, since that contract was now we have a tradition to bury sheimos By entering a vast, wild, untamed nullified by their treacherous actions.5 — once-holy objects that lose their and unclaimed desert, any spirit A more unusual explanation that I ability to function for their intended 14 Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary • The Benjamin and Rose Berger CJF Torah To-Go Series • Shavuot 5780 use. Why didn’t Moshe just bury the informs our aspiration for ultimate over and over again in different times shards of the first Luchot instead of redemption and permanence of place. and in different places is behavior saving them? modeled for us by our ancient I posit that the answer is that Moshe Building a Way Forward ancestors with their Holy Tabernacle. sought to create a concrete symbol of Another interpretation of Moshe’s what it takes to rebuild. It may involve We know that after the Chet HaEgel, actions during the miluim period is building upon the ashes of sin but that the Jewish people are given the offered by Rabbi Baruch Simon. The sin — no matter how enormous — command to build the Mishkan as a repeated dismantling and re-erection does not preclude us from succeeding way of filling their need for a physical of the Mishkan for seven days was 10 in rebuilding. In other words, Moshe mode of relating to God. And now, illustrative of the teshuva that the did not advocate for a total erasure after our spiritual demolition phase, people needed to undergo after the of the memory of sin by burying the we can enter into a construction Chet HaEgel. Only once they fully shards. He preferred to compel the phase. finished this process — breaking nation to remember their sins as a their habit for idol worship, breaking precursor to the rebuilding process. The process of building themselves down in teshuva — could Carrying the shards of the first set of the Shechinah rest upon the Mishkan Luchot along on their 40-year sojourn anew is never completely on the eighth day.12 in the desert was emblematic of the achieved. We must strive In fact, David Hamelech yearned to need to be vigilant in all matters of to attain holiness as an build the Jewish nation’s ultimate holiness. The central location of these edifice, the Beit HaMikdash, of which shards of our sins within the very ever-unfolding process. the Mishkan was simply its precursor. core of the Jewish encampment while But, tragically, he was not granted traveling, and in the holiest of places permission to do so. It makes sense when encamped and the Mishkan But the Mishkan was never meant then that he wrote in Tehillim 51 that was erected, made this message to be permanent.