The Torah portion for this Shabbat, Behaalotecha, includes a beautiful description of the Israelite encampment in the wilderness. During the day, a Divine cloud would rest over the tabernacle, while at night, the cloud would appear as a fire, always signifying to the people God’s presence in their midst.
The Torah tells us that the Israelites would make camp in a specific pattern. The tabernacle was always in the center of the camp, and the tribes would camp around it, in a pre-determined order. The people, recently liberated slaves, traveling to an unknown promised land, would be comforted by the central presence of the tabernacle, a tangible connection to God.
We live anxious frenetic lives at an incredibly uncertain and frightening time in our society. Many of us seek something to “center” us, to give us comfort and stability. Perhaps today is the day that we will seek to expand our spiritual selves, in order to provide the “centering” and grounding that we all crave and deserve. I encourage us all to consider prayer, meditation, study, even simply moments of quiet and silence to center ourselves, just as did the ancient Israelites.
From Rabbi Doug Sagal aka “the Boxing Rabbi”