Vayakheil Pikudei: doing it right

These parshioth recount, in decreasing levels of detail,the construction of the Mishkan: the portable locus of the ultimate sacred.  The text repeats, for each  completed object, that the work was done in accordance with the instructions. This principle of adherence to instructions, in the absence of clarity of purpose, becomes a core Orthodox value.  The perfection of ritual,  with endless argument about details, is the stuff of religious observance.

There is a military aspect to this kind of thinking and behavior.  A grand mission is imagined, greater than the individual  or small group.   The best contribution one person can make is to perform her task perfectly. 

Vayakheil and Pekudei describe the actual construction and accounting of the Mishkan.  The instructions were recorded in Teruma and Titzaveh.  In between is the golden calf.  The instructions were originally  for a bridal palace.  When it is finally  constructed the Mishkan has become  an apology  for infidelity.  The apology for infidelity never ends. The Israelites have been begging for forgiveness ever since.  Every expiation is tied  to the great act of forgiveness,  tying every transgression to the   great transgression.

Consequently,  the construction of the Temple  becomes the centerpiece  of hope. Having the building is not the point.  Reconstructing the Mishkan would mean that we had finally made peace with Gd

Should the symbol become the mission?