Terumah 5771

In this week's parsha, G-d instructs Moshe (Moses) to tell the people to make a sanctuary dedicated to Him. The parsha contains directions for designing and furnishing the sanctuary, including making a menorah. G-d tells Moshe: "You should make a menorah of pure gold, hammered out [from a single piece of gold]…see and make, according to their form that you are shown on the mountain."

A story in the Midrash teaches that Moshe has great difficulty visualizing the exact appearance of the menorah, so G-d shows him a menorah made of fire. Even after observing this, Moshe still is concerned that he will not be able to make the menorah according to G-d's specifications.

G-d tells Moshe, "All you must do is cast the bar of gold into the fire. Give it one blow with the hammer and a finished menorah will emerge." Moshe takes a kikar of gold, throws it into the fire and prays. "Master of the Universe, the gold is in the fire. Do with it as You wish." Immediately, the complete menorah appears out of the fire. (The Midrash Says, vol. 2, p. 262)

Thus, the menorah is completed with Divine intervention.

Why does Moshe need to see the menorah in order to construct it?

The Torah used the word ur'ay when it means for Moshe to observe G-d's menorah of fire. This unusual construction of the Hebrew verb lirot (to see) can also be found in psalm 128, which alludes to the blessing of receiving nachas, pleasurable pride, from one's children: "And you will see sons of your sons, peace upon Yisrael." Our Sages teach that children, life, and livelihood require Divine intervention, just as the making of the menorah does.

HaRav Ze'ev Weinberg provides the formula for achieving nachas from one's children. Its key ingredient is "vision." We parents must have a vision, an image, of what we want our children to be like when they grow up. We must set specific goals based on Torah values, and we must give our children an education that will provide the means to achieve these goals. We must turn our homes into sanctuaries in which G-d's presence can be felt, reserving places and times for prayer and Torah study. Finally, we must hope and pray that we parents will be worthy of receiving nachas from our children.

The rest is up to G-d.