Dirt. The politicians sling it, the kids track it into our house all over the carpet, and we all trample on it. Dirt is not a desirous thing.
Yet, one of the first things that the Jewish were commanded following the Ten Commandments in this week’s Parsha, was the Mitzva they should have an earth-filled altar when the tabernacle would later be built.
Why an earth-filled altar, and why does this mitzvah land in the prime real-estate of several verses after the Ten Commandments?
Dirt, explain the kabbalists, represents the inanimate; the cold lifeless aspects of our life. Apathy and overall coarseness. However, on a higher level, when we use our willpower and determination to overcome these challenges, we have achieved a humble and lofty service of G-d. This service represents our struggle and toil to bring life and meaning, warmth and vitality into the world we live in.
The altar in the temple was not placed on pillars of marble – by Torah law it must be placed on terra firma. Our service of G-d begins with the simple struggles of life, and from there it rises. There are no ‘Ivory Tower altars’ in the Temple. Only altars built on bedrock of courage and willpower, Mizbeach Adama – Earth-filled Altars.
This past Shabbat, we mourned the loss of Ariel Sharon z”l, the former Prime Minister of Israel. Arik Sharon was an accomplished citizen and soldier who sacrificed much for the defense of Israel. Prickly as a Sabra, he was called “The Bulldozer” -- both by his admirers and his detractors.
But all agree that Ariel Sharon z”l did what he felt was right, and to that end he was undeterred. He was a bulldozer. Nothing would stand in the way of what he identified as the right thing for Israel. He was an earthmoving bulldozer, a man of extreme dedication and will.
In the context of our parsha, let us learn a lesson. How many of us have set goals, but never realized them? How many of us have tried to build lofty dreams, but never got them off the ground? Let us build our lives, our living altar to G-d, with strong will and determination, with self-sacrifice and with love for Eretz Yisrael and for Am Yisrael.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Yisroel Hecht
For more about Ariel Sharon and his relationship with the Rebbe, click here.