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Parshat Vayakel-Pikudei
By: Rabbi Moshe Goodman, Kollel Ohr Shlomo, Hebron

בס"ד

לשכנו תדרשו

Discovering the Holy Presence in Our Holy Land

וּכְב֣וֹד יְקֹוָ֔ק מָלֵ֖א אֶת־הַמִּשְׁכָּֽן

'Blessed are You HaShem our God Master of the Universe Who erects the borders of the Widow ('matziv gvul almana')'.

This blessing is said, at least on principle, on seeing houses of Israel 'settled', as brought in the Talmud. 'Settled' has various interpretations among the poskim. According to Rashi 'settled' refers to the same stature and beauty as was present at the Second Temple Era, while Rif limits this blessing to synagogues and batei midrash which represent the holy settlement of Israel. Neither the Rambam or the Shulhan Aruch mention the Rif's stipulation. Much of the Poskim are also of the opinion that this blessing should be said only in the Land of Israel, the Homeland of the Jewish People. The explanation of this blessing is that Israel in Exile are called a widow (see Lam.1), and therefore, when one sees the return of settlement in the Land of Israel one is to bless HaShem on the return of Israel to their Land.

One site which meets even the Rif's stipulation requiring specifically a synagogue or bait midrash in order to recite the fore-mentioned blessing, is the ancient synagogue adjacent to Jesse and Ruth's Tomb in the Admot Yishai neighborhood of Hebron. At this site one can see the cavity where the Aron Kodesh was placed in addition to other facets of a synagogue. How inspiring it is to pray at this synagogue, thereby continuing the prayers of all those before us who prayed in this inspiring air of Hebron, adjacent to Jesse's Tomb on whom it says, 'and a bud shall  sprout from stump of Jesse.' Indeed, today we are continuing Jesse and his son David's legacy. David all his life was devoted to paving the way for the building of the Temple, essentially a continuation of the Mishkan, which is described at length in this parsha.

One of David's crucial steps in this process, according to the Zohar, Arizal, and more, was David's reign in Hebron. When we pray at this mini-sanctuary adjacent to Jesse's Tomb in Hebron we can see ourselves as returning and re-'sprouting' this spiritual process stemming from Hebron towards the Temple, the Main Sanctuary, in our era - 'Leshichno Tidreshu - Seek the Holy Presence of the Temple Through Hebron!'

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Real Stories from the Holy Land #212

'My husband and I were childless for many years. We prayed very much and went to many tzadikim for blessing to bear children, but to no avail. However, one tzadik told us to start thanking HaShem for our situation, with faith that it is God's Will, instead of asking for children. So we did, and within a year we had a baby girl...'

Sources: Orach Haim 224, 10

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