"At last they rode over the downs and took the East Road, and then Merry and Pippin rode on to Buckland and already they were singing again as they went. But Sam turned to Bywater, and so came back up the Hill, as day was ending once more. And he went on, and there was yellow light, and fire within; and the evening meal was ready, and he was expected. And Rose drew him in, and set him in his chair, and put little Elanor upon his lap. He drew a deep breath. 'Well, I'm back,' he said."
-Return of the King, J R R Tolkien
The epic Lord of the Rings, both the book and the movie, end the same way. After a long and dangerous series of adventures, facing desperate situations and fearsome monsters, we return with Sam Gamgee to his home, to his wife and his daughter. Why does the story end this way? Why end the high fantasy narrative with the domesticity of Sam at home?
A dwelling place is also the focus of this week's Torah reading, parashat Terumah. After the exodus, the drama of the red sea, and the revelation of Sinai, the time has come, God tells Moses, for the people to build a sanctuary for the divine, so that God can dwell among the people:
-Exodus 25
א וַיְדַבֵּר יְהוָֹה אֶל-משֶׁה לֵּאמֹר:
ב דַּבֵּר אֶל-בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְיִקְחוּ-לִי תְּרוּמָה מֵאֵת כָּל-אִישׁ אֲשֶׁר יִדְּבֶנּוּ לִבּוֹ תִּקְחוּ אֶת-תְּרוּמָתִי: ג וְזֹאת הַתְּרוּמָה אֲשֶׁר תִּקְחוּ מֵאִתָּם זָהָב וָכֶסֶף וּנְחשֶׁת:.... וְעָשׂוּ לִי מִקְדָּשׁ וְשָׁכַנְתִּי בְּתוֹכָם:
ב דַּבֵּר אֶל-בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְיִקְחוּ-לִי תְּרוּמָה מֵאֵת כָּל-אִישׁ אֲשֶׁר יִדְּבֶנּוּ לִבּוֹ תִּקְחוּ אֶת-תְּרוּמָתִי: ג וְזֹאת הַתְּרוּמָה אֲשֶׁר תִּקְחוּ מֵאִתָּם זָהָב וָכֶסֶף וּנְחשֶׁת:.... וְעָשׂוּ לִי מִקְדָּשׁ וְשָׁכַנְתִּי בְּתוֹכָם:
Unlike Sam in Lord of the Rings, this isn't the end of the story but a new beginning, a new chapter in the relationship between Israel and God, in which God will dwell among us (indeed this week opens a huge chiasm that takes us through the end of the book of Exodus, but I might write more on this another time).
But there are similarities here: after all the drama of the ten plagues, the fear and exultation at the splitting of the Red Sea, after the Torah has been proclaimed from Sinai, why do we move to an image of setting up a home for God?
In this way, the Ugaritic Baal Cycle, that I have already written about here, may provide a useful counterpoint. This Canaanite epic poem tells the story of Baal, the Storm God, and his ascension to king of the gods. His first battle is with Yam (that means Sea), and Baal emerges triumphant, having carved the body of Yam into pieces. The very next scene is about Baal's demand for a house to live in:
"Then exclaims Mightiest Ba'al... says the Rider on the Clouds: "Kothar-wa-Khasis (the artisan god), Hurry! a house surely build. Hurry, raise a palace. Hurry, the mansion let be built. Hurry, let be raised the palace in the midst of the Heights of Tsaphon, let the house cover a thousand fields, ten thousand tracts, the palace."
After the slaying of the sea monster Yam, Baal too wants a home, just as God, after splitting the sea before the Israelites, also demands a home.
But there are some strong differences between Sam's return and Baal's new home, with the Exodus narrative somewhere in between.
Sam's home is domestic, family-focused, and small scale. Baal's home is a palace, designed to emphasise his power, his position, his victory over Chaos. Sam's main character trait is his loyalty to Frodo - he isn't a great warrior, but a confidante, servant and friend. Baal is the Rider on the Clouds, the one who slew the monster. Sam's return home at the end of Lord of the Rings marks the victory of the normal, quiet life of the Hobbits against the spread of the evil forces of Sauron, showing that the idyllic life of the first few chapters still remains unspoiled despite all that has happened. Baal's new home represents a new order, a new hierarchy established now that the Storm God has ascended to his rightful place.
So what about God? Is the tabernacle a domestic house, with God and the Israelites living in close relationship? Or is it a victory palace, establishing God as the mighty warrior who has defeated all His enemies?
Is this mishkan, the dwelling place, a return to the idyllic past of the Garden of Eden in which God will walk among human beings? Or is it a new hierarchy, a new order, that has never been seen in the world?
Despite the similarities between the Biblical text in general and the Baal Cycle of the Ugarit, I actually think that Terumah is closer to Sam Gamgee's home than Baal's.
Baal calls upon the artisan God, Kothar-wa-Khasis, the same god who made the weapons that slew Yam, to build his new palace - but God wants the offerings of the people. It is the Israelites who give all the raw materials that are needed to build the mishkan. While Baal builds his home on a mountain top, God wants the Tabernacle to be at the heart of the camp - it is precisely so God can dwell "among them", among the people, not above the people.
Today, our communities, homes and synagogues have to be our Tabernacles, places for God to dwell among the people. These institutions and buildings can sometimes seem intimidating, as if they are above the people, a place of judgement and hierarchy.
But I believe that the message of Terumah is that these dwelling places have to be built from the people, and be among the people. Our communities should not be built by an outside entity, imposed upon the people, but need to arise out of relationships with the people who are there, constructed from their donations, whatever their heart moves them to give.
If we structure our communities in this way, with the holiest place at the centre of a web of relationships instead of at the top of a hierarchy, then I believe God can truly dwell among us.
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