Chazal explain that the Shitim wood from which the walls of the Mishkan were made were from trees that did not bear fruit (Shemos Rabba 35:5). There is a lesson to be derived from this statement. It is not the structure that bears fruit; even the most beautiful building will not produce the spirit of Judaism. Buildings are but mere edifices of wood and stone, architectural monuments to mankind; but without the people inside, they are nothing. The Shitim wood of the Mishkan will not produce observant Jews and Torah scholars. It is the teaching that goes on inside which produces the Torah Jew. “Make for Me a Sanctuary”, but h,bfau ofu,c, the glory of Hashem comes from the people in the Sanctuary. We may have the finest teachers, the greatest thinkers, the most prolific scholars, masters in their respective subjects, who are capable of producing the finest fruit, but without children to receive the teachings, they have nowhere to plant the seeds. The endeavor of every Jew should be to build such a sanctuary so that Hashem’s glory will noticeably abide in our midst.
