The Temple Institute: A Tale of Faith and Dedication

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Adar 29, 5765/March 10, 2005
he following email arrived this week in my mailbox:
am sending you this quick note to let you know that I have just come back from the Post Office, where I mailed you an envelope containing our last payments towards the Shulchan Lechem HaPanim (Table of the Showbread). I was told it would take it about 3-4 business days to get to Israel. I planned this way so that, with Hashem's help, it would be getting into your hands on the same day that we made our first payment 5 years ago: 29 ADAR I, 5760 (March 6, 2000). I hope and pray it will be so."
hus concludes a truly remarkable tale of faith and dedication. The story begins some time before 29 Adar I, 5760. After many months - years - of research into ancient Jewish sources, The Temple Institute embarked upon the construction of the golden Table of the Showbread - the Shulchan Lechem Hapanim. This golden table had for a thousand years, sat within the Kodesh - the sanctuary - of the Holy Temple, alongside two other golden vessels: the golden Menorah, and the golden Incense Altar. The Showbread Table, along with the other precious vessels, were plundered by the Romans in the year 70 ce, when they razed the Holy Temple, and took off with its vessels.
ow, nearly 2000 years after the cessation of the Temple service, The Temple Institute stood poised to recreate the Table of the Showbread. Only one small detail stood between our intentions and our ability to fulfill those intentions: funding. After some heartfelt discussions we decided to plunge ahead: surly if it is G-d's will, as we believe it is, that His people busy themselves with preparations for the rebuilding of the Holy Temple, then He would provide. We embarked upon our task, and working side by side with skilled woodworkers and metallurgists, we realized our goal: the completion of the Table of the Showbread. But still we hadn't located any source of the vast amount of funding necessary to finance the project: $50,000.00. I commenced to writing a newsletter in which I announced the completion of the Table, mentioning our modest "act of faith, " and sent out the letter to what was at the time a stillÊsmall list of supporters and subscribers. Not long after, a letter arrived in the mail, and in it was a check. The sender wrote that when she received my newsletter, she was moved by our expression of trust in G-d's providence, and immediately called up a small circle of friends, and shared it with them. This small group of friends had been getting together on a regular basis for some time, studying together, discussing, exploring their faith and beliefs, their spiritual goals. When she read to them the letter they quickly decided that they would take upon themselves the entire funding of the building of the Table. Not being people of independent means, they could not simply write check for $50,000, and mail it off in the morning. Instead, they informed me that they had set themselves a goal of raising the entire amount of money over the next few years. They had but one demand that we must abide: that their extraordinary effort would remain anonymous.
oon the checks began arriving, week after week, month after month; in increments both large and small. The checks were often accompanied by beautiful letters of support and encouragement for our efforts at The Temple Institute, and in light of the increasing violence we were facing here in Israel. As the months and years passed, their goal of $50,000.00 began looking less like a dream and more and more like an ever approaching accomplishment. Their lives moved on, with the ups and downs that characterize life, but their checks continued to arrive at regular intervals, and eventually their goal of raising the entire amount of $50,000.00 drew within reach.
nd that brings us back to the beginning of our narrative: the check we received today. Precisely five years after they dated their first check, this check completed their mission. It goes without saying, the enormity of the sacrifice and dedication that this small group of sincere and selfless people took upon themselves. What must be noted is the enormity of the message of spirit and faith, love, fellowship and vision their endeavor has broadcast - and this message is "more precious than fine gold."
here is no more fitting date for the conclusion of this monumental effort than today - the 29th of Adar I - the eve of Adar II, in which all men and women of the nation of Israel are called upon to provide the annual half-shekel contribution for the upkeep of the Temple offerings. This small group of friends, who prefer anonymity to flattery are truly an inspiration. We are filled with awe.
	o our dear friends: We have kept our promise to protect your anonymity, but we at The Temple Institute know who you are, and we know that you will also be reading this newsletter. Your entry into our lives and aspirations has been an extraordinary blessing for all at The Temple Institute, and for your people, the people of Israel, and your friendship we will always cherish: to you we dedicate the completed Table of the Showbread.
	he Table of the Showbread, laden each day with twelve loaves of showbread, was a source of material abundance and blessing for the people of Israel. That you have chosen this particular vessel to serve as a vehicle for your selfless dedication to the G-d of Israel, reveals your most profound and holy nature. May G-d bless you and reward you for all that you have done, and we know, will continue to do, so that He may have a house in which to dwell.

Rabbi Chaim Richman THE TEMPLE INSTITUTE

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