The Torah portion this week, parsha Terumah, (Exodus/Shemot 25:1-27:19) takes a departure from the narrative of Moshe and the sons of Israel, or mixed multitude now in the wilderness near Mount Sinai, to begin the exposition of something that will play a major role in events that will play out next.

This is the first installment of instructions that begin with "take an offering" (terumah) from every man whose heart makes him willing, to begin the construction of the mishkan, or tabernacle.

The Erev Shabbat overview of the whole parsha :

https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/SSM-2-24-23-Terumah-teaching-podcast-x.mp3

The Sabbath day teaching this week begins with the concept of the 'pattern' that YHVH says He would show Moses. Many who have studied this portion share a similar sentiment, that without being shown, even though the text description is detailed, to actually BUILD the mishkan seems like an almost impossible task.

And the same might be true for dealing with the challenges we face today. Which leads to a common question:

"Terumah: Have We Been Shown the Pattern?"

https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/CooH-2-25-23-Terumah-Have-we-Been-Shown-the-Pattern-podcast-xxx.mp3

 

The combined two-part podcast is here: