The Tent — The Tabernacle

The Invitation: “They shall make a sanctuary for me, that I may dwell in their midst. Exodus 25:8

The Gift: 34 Then the cloud covered the meeting tent, and the glory of the LORD filled the Dwelling. 35 Moses could not enter the meeting tent, because the cloud settled down upon it and the glory of the LORD filled the Dwelling. Exodus 40:34-36

 So often as time passes a word that has taken on the shades of the holy loses its original intent and is forgotten. The simple roots that speak so eloquently are also lost. So it is with tabernacle: Today an ornate gold structure that houses the Blessed Sacrament. The Holy of Holies in a Catholic Church declaring the presences of the Lord in “Blessed Sacrament” a reminder “I will be with you until the end of times. Originally the word in Hebrew Tabernacle — (1.) A house or dwelling-place (Job 5:24; 18:6, etc.). (2.) The human body (2 Cor. 5:1, 4); a tent, as opposed to a permanent dwelling. (3.) The sacred tent (Heb. mishkan, “the dwelling-place”); the movable tent-temple which Moses erected for the service of God, according to the “pattern” which God himself showed to him on the mount (Ex. 25:9; Heb. 8:5). It is called “the tabernacle of the congregation,” rather “of meeting”, i.e., where God promised to meet with Israel (Ex. 29:42); the “tabernacle of the testimony” (Ex. 38:21; Num. 1:50), which does not, however, designate the whole structure, but only the enclosure which contained the “ark of the testimony” (Ex. 25:16, 22; Num. 9:15); the “tabernacle of witness” (Num. 17:8); the “house of the Lord” (Deut. 23:18); the “temple of the Lord” (Josh. 6:24); a “sanctuary” (Ex. 25:8).

There was a Tent that served as a center of worship during the sojourn in the desert. Such a Tent has parallels in ancient and modern Arabian institutions. The tent of the sand–dweller was made from a long piece of goat’s hair cloth about five or six feet wide. How simple is the dwelling of the Lord. As they leave Egypt the people following Moses, a simple nomadic tribe responds to the presence of Yahweh in their life.  “They shall make a sanctuary for me, that I may dwell in their midst. (Exodus 25:8) The tabernacle was so constructed that it could easily be taken down and conveyed from place to place during the wanderings in the wilderness. The image of the tent is important. Prior to the sojourn in the desert the Holy places of the Patriarchs were specific places. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, are said to have founded several sanctuaries throughout what was then known as Canaan. These sanctuaries usually marked places where God had manifested himself to the Patriarchs. These were places where it had proved possible to meet with God, and such places were marked with an altar and sacrifice. Such places became holy places for the family. After the descendants of Jacob escaped from Egypt and made their way back to the land of the patriarchs, however, the Israelites had a portable sanctuary: the Tabernacle or Tent. In the earliest traditions, it was a place where Moses consulted Yahweh to learn his will through the sign of a cloud descending upon the tent God declared his presence among the people. He literally dwelt in their midst. As they journeyed so God journeyed with them.

During this Holy Week I invite us to use the image of The Tent/Tabernacle and the sojourn in the desert to aid us in preparing for Easter. On Holy Thursday each of our sister churches will process to St. Mary’s we will place the Blessed Sacrament in a replica of a Bedouin tent, the original Tabernacle. With this image we recall that the Lord has chosen to dwell in our midst. This dwelling is movable it is not stationary. Let us move with the Lord, wherever He may lead us even if he leads us to Golgotha. If we stay fixed in one place no matter how sacred we could get left behind. Each night of Holy Week is a different meditation. From Monday with the Chrism Mass (the Universal Church) to Wednesday Parish Penance Service, (The Healing Church) to Holy Thursday’s Mass of the Last Supper (the Servant Church) and time spent in Gethsemane (the Praying Church) to Good Friday’s Meditation of the Cross (the Empty Church), the Vigil of Holy Saturday, (The waiting Church) To Easter Sunday (New Life Church). Each day’s meditation is a different sojourn in the Desert. Come, walk with the Lord. This time He’ll supply the tent and His Presence.