This Shabbat is called Shabbat Shekalim, which is marked on the first Shabbat before the beginning of the month of Adar (or in a leap-year, like this year, Adar II) and comes approximately six weeks before Pesach. It is marked by a special maftir (concluding) Torah reading, “This is what everyone who is entered in the records shall pay: a half-shekel by the sanctuary weight—twenty gerahs to the shekel—a half-shekel as an offering to Adonai… You shall take the expiation money from the Israelites and assign it to the service of the Tent of Meeting;” (Exodus 30:13 & 16) This is a liturgical reminder of the half-shekel tax that was assessed on all Hebrews to pay for the upkeep and maintenance of the Temple, when it stood in Jerusalem. The Temple, its surrounding mikvaot (ritual baths and the roads leading to it all had to be prepared for the Passover holiday, one of the three pilgrimage holidays (Hagim) when the people would come to Jerusalem. The six weeks gave enough time for the Jewish communities outside of the Land of Israel, like Sura and Pumbedita in Bavel (modern Iraq) and Alexandria in Egypt, to collect the tax and send it to Jerusalem. Shabbat shekalim reminds us of the connection of the Jewish people to the Land of Israel that has existed for more than three-thousand years. For much of that time there has been a large Jewish community outside the Land and only recently, have we once again established a thriving Jewish community in the State of Israel. Shabbat Shekalim reminds us that a strong relationship between Israel and worldwide Jewish communities is essential for the growth and health of the Jewish people, as it has been throughout much of our history.
Vayakhel, Exodus 35:1-38:20, 30:11-16, Parashat Hashavua for Shabbat March 9, 2024, Shabbat Shekalim
March 7, 2024 by Dean Kertesz • Drashot
This Shabbat is called Shabbat Shekalim, which is marked on the first Shabbat before the beginning of the month of Adar (or in a leap-year, like this year, Adar II) and comes approximately six weeks before Pesach. It is marked by a special maftir (concluding) Torah reading, “This is what everyone who is entered in the records shall pay: a half-shekel by the sanctuary weight—twenty gerahs to the shekel—a half-shekel as an offering to Adonai… You shall take the expiation money from the Israelites and assign it to the service of the Tent of Meeting;” (Exodus 30:13 & 16) This is a liturgical reminder of the half-shekel tax that was assessed on all Hebrews to pay for the upkeep and maintenance of the Temple, when it stood in Jerusalem. The Temple, its surrounding mikvaot (ritual baths and the roads leading to it all had to be prepared for the Passover holiday, one of the three pilgrimage holidays (Hagim) when the people would come to Jerusalem. The six weeks gave enough time for the Jewish communities outside of the Land of Israel, like Sura and Pumbedita in Bavel (modern Iraq) and Alexandria in Egypt, to collect the tax and send it to Jerusalem. Shabbat shekalim reminds us of the connection of the Jewish people to the Land of Israel that has existed for more than three-thousand years. For much of that time there has been a large Jewish community outside the Land and only recently, have we once again established a thriving Jewish community in the State of Israel. Shabbat Shekalim reminds us that a strong relationship between Israel and worldwide Jewish communities is essential for the growth and health of the Jewish people, as it has been throughout much of our history.