Religious people are often accused of having an 'Edifice Complex,' meaning that they focus their aspirations and energies more on the infrastructure of religion, than on its essence. Jews are certainly not immune to this. Although many smaller synagogues around the world and in Israel are entirely functional, most congregations seem to aspire to build a grand edifice that will presumably instill pride in the hearts of their members...and also presumably, draw in new members. Both presumptions are, by and large, affirmed by the way people react to these edifices once constructed.
In Israel today, where population growth is a major feature of national life, large Orthodox synagogues as grand and imposing edifices are popping up all over. There's one just around the corner from where I live, and it's not the only synagogue of its type in the city.
When I refer to the essence of religion, I mean the definition of the great sage, Hillel the Elder. Asked to explain the essence of Judaism while standing on one foot, he said: "That which is hateful to you, ddo not do to your neighbor. That is the whole Torah; the rest is commentary." (Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Shabbat 31a) This is the normative definition of the essence of Judaism; the great sages of some other religious traditions formulated their essence in similar terms, for example Christianity.
On the surface, and assuming that one agrees with this encapsulation of the essence of Judaism, it would seem that the enterprise of building religious edifices is at best extraneous, and at worst a distraction. But then we have, in this week's Torah portion (Exodus 25:8), a famous dictum:
ועשו לי מקדש ושכנתי בתוכם/Let them build me a sanctuary, so that I can dwell among them
If the essence of Judaism has nothing to do with building edifices - and it doesn't - then why is Hashem telling Moses that His ability to dwell amongst the people Israel requires a sanctuary? And make no mistake about it, we are talking about a physical sanctuary here; in the seven verses leading up to this proclamation, Hashem has laid out specific instructions as to what materials the Israelites must bring as offerings. These are all the materials that went into the building of the Tabernacle, the original movable sanctuary.
I have struggled with this verse, because the Judaism I've practiced has always been an iconoclastic sort; I've said on many an occasion that the most moving services I'd attended or led were either in very plain surroundings, in my own home, or au naturel. Grand or opulent surroundings, in my experience, tend to get in the way of deeply felt worship, at least in my experience. And the effort to create such spaces - and maintain them - gets in the way of focusing on Hillel's Golden Rule. Again, at least in my experience.
And yet. I've attended services in makeshift synagogues located in homes or storefronts, where the shabbiness of the surroundings interfered, at least for me, with my own ability to focus on the worship. So even if one doesn't think that grandness or opulence is required, at the end of the day, the surroundings do matter.
So there is something in human psychology at the very least, that is addressed in let them build me a sanctuary, so that I can dwell among them. What we really need to do is to create a sanctuary within our hearts. But when we make the effort to create a visible, usable sanctuary, that does help the process.
In my religious travels, visiting various congregations not only Jewish but of other faiths in my quest to understand the nexus between G-d and man, I've observed that congregations respond to surroundings which enhance the worship experience. For some groups this means an opulence in their sanctuary, while for others this means a functionality that is still handsome in a more utilitarian way. But the main thing is that these surroundings serve as visual reminders to the enduring traditions of reaching for G-d and seeking His will.
I therefore have accepted the Edifice Complex as being not only understandable, but necessary in the proper context. We should not be ashamed of the impulse to build visual - and useful - monuments to our desire to live out our faith. I just hope that the Building Fund won't come knocking on my door too often! Shabbat shalom!
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