|
Parshat Pekudei opens with a detailed accounting of every material needed for the Mishkan, down to the hooks: “And out of the one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five [shekels] he made hooks for the pillars, and he covered the tops and banded them” (Shemot 39:28). Why mention hooks, of all things? After all, they seem far less significant than the beams, curtains, and gold. Yet, the Torah asks us to focus on these tiny hooks. Why?
Rav Soloveitchik explains that these hooks symbolize the small details without which Judaism cannot stand. Without them, the larger mission of Judaism falls apart. The Rav notes that many people wonder why we obsess over details. Why not create a system that frees us from difficult mitzvot when circumstances are tough? He recalls an Orthodox student seeking help when his university president refused to allow him to reschedule an exam on Shabbat. The president was puzzled—why not grant a one-time dispensation? "Why invest so much effort on halakhic minutiae?" he asked.
Explaining why Judaism is so detail-oriented can be hard, especially when those details seem trivial to some. But Rav Soloveitchik teaches that without these small elements, the bigger picture is lost. Chazal even teach that Moshe himself lost sight of the importance of the details—he literally forgot the hooks! It was only when God illuminated his eyes that Moshe saw the hooks shining “like the stars in the sky” (Yalkut Shimoni, Pekudei 415).
This means Moshe realized that without the hooks, the Mishkan itself couldn’t stand. The small details are what hold up the structure, and without them, the larger principles of the Mishkan—and Judaism—would collapse.
In Judaism, details aren’t pedantic; they’re foundational. They’re what bind us to the Torah, allowing us to preserve and live the traditions of our ancestors. The hooks may seem insignificant when compared to the beauty and grandeur of the rest of the Mishkan, but in actuality, it is the hooks that make holiness possible. Many will ask, “If you focus on the small specifics, won’t you lose sight of the bigger picture?” The answer is simple: without the details, how can you see the bigger picture?
Judaism understands that the grand depends on the small. It’s the tiny details that hold us together as Jews and allow us to build a Mishkan of holiness, where God’s presence dwells in our midst.
Shabbat Shalom!
-Rabbi Dan
| 
