Ki Tisa (Mitzvot) For more teachings on this portion, see the
archives to this blog, below at March 2006. This week’s parasha
is best known for the dramatic and richly meaningful story of
the Golden Calf and the Divine anger, of Moses’ pleading on
behalf of Israel, and the eventual reconciliation in the
mysterious meeting of Moses with God in the Cleft of the
Rock—subjects about which I’ve written at length, from various
aspects, in previous years. Yet the first third of the reading
(Exod 30:11-31:17) is concerned with various practical mitzvot,
mostly focused on the ritual worship conducted in the Temple,
which tend to be skimmed over in light of the intense interest
of the Calf story. As this year we are concerned specifically
with the mitzvot in each parasha, I shall focus on this section.
These include: the giving by each Israelite [male] of a half-
shekel to the Temple; the making of the laver, from which the
priests wash their hands and feet before engaging in Divine
service; the compounding of the incen