The House of Peace – the Mishkan – Lessons for Peace at Home

In Torah Reading / Parasha Ki Tisa – Hash-m commands Moshe / Moses to build a Mishkan / Tabernacle for Hash-m’s Presence to dwell.

Hash-m tells Moshe to collect half a Shekel coin for each person of Bnai Yisrael / the Children of Israel to make a census. The weigh of a Shekel the coin is 20 Geras. So Half a Shekel Coin is 10 Geras. The Half shekel coin amounted to 10 Geras – was an allusion that the Jews sined against all the 10 commandments – by worshiping the idol of the golden calf. A person should learn to correct themselves from just a light allusion.

When we build a house for ourselves -we use good quality materials. When Hash-m commands us to build a House every single part is infused with Holiness and meaning.

The Half-Shekel coins were used to make the silver sockets – in which the columns of the Mishkan stood upon. All the coins were melted to form a whole. One message is that a family should have the goal of doing what’s good for the family – putting their self interests aside when necessary.

The Builder was Bezalel ben Uri Ben Hur. Hur tried to stop the Jew from building the golden calf. Instead of listening – they killed him. Bezalel could have said – I am not going to build this mishkan for Israel to build receive an atonement – they killed my grandfather. He did not bear a grudge. Do we absolve, let go and forgive or do we keep hatred in the recesses of our hearts?

To enter certain parts of the Mishkan a person had to be purified with the Ashes of the Red Heifer / Para Aduma. A person was who sprinkled upon became Pure – while the sprinkler – became impure. A person who wants peace must be willing to back down to make bring others up.

The Parasha starts will Ki Tisa – When you count. Literally it means – when you uplift. To have peace one should try to start with words that uplift. Your goal should be to uplift the other – not to bring them down.

BE TECH SAFE & SMART – 15 Suggestions

Image

TECH SAFE & SMART


1. Choose LOW Head/ Body EMF / SAR Phone < (less than 1 SAR)

2. Good Night. Sleep Tight. Don’t Let the Wifi Bite. Turn Off Wifi @ Night.

3. Keep Phone in MU-Metal/Shielded case or Box

4. Replace Killing Time with “Productive Time” or “Connecting Time”

5. Keep Emergency & Important Numbers Handy

6. Monitor & Reduce App/Phone Time Use

7. Turn ON Airplane Mode when Possible

8. Turn Off Un-needed Services – like GPS, Wifi, Bluetooth – especially when sleeping

9. Filter Phone / Internet or get a Simple Flip Phone

10. Don’t Text/Surf/Hold Phone & Drive or Ride

11. Don’t Use Laptop on Your Lap

12. Keep Phone Away from You to Better Concentrate

13. Turn OFF PHONE when with Family & Friends

14. Distance Phone from Head and body – When Talking & Sleeping or Carrying

15. Don’t Use Phone Extended Periods Close to Head & Body

The Real Disadvantage of TV

I like statistics. Provided they are true, they help you decide more or less in an unbiased way.

I can drum up many statistics about TV. But I won’t.

Waiting for a minyan at our neighborhood synagogue I asked myself, why some people avoid the synagogue? I thought – in previous decades the synagogues were full.

What happened?

What happened? Before the center of one’s family life was the family and the synagogue. The synagogues and the Mitzvot allowed a family to connect in a positive, wholesome way.

The yetzer hara – evil inclination – said I’ll take care of that. I will replace the center of one’s family life with electronic media.

Today, walk into the average home – and the center of their life is centered around the TV.

Those who realize this will choose family over the screen. The synagogue over the social media.

In many Orthodox Jewish homes the TV is absent but family connection is not. They center around the coffee table to connect rather than having a screen that serves as an intermediary between them .