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Parashat Terouma Ex. 25:1 à 27:19
11-12 fev. 2005 / 3 Adar Alef 5765

"There I will meet with you and I will commune with you, from above the ark cover, from between the two Cherubim which are upon the ark of testimony." (Exodus 25:22)

Allow me to share a memory.  When I was a college student studying in Israel, I went on a brief vacation to Athens, Greece.  I recall one evening wandering the city near the Parthenon, meeting another American several years older than me, and sitting talking for several hours.  I do not remember his name, nor have I ever seen him again.  I do not believe he was Jewish.  But that brief encounter and evening of conversation was influential in pushing me towards a decision I had been considering, to become a rabbi.  A chance encounter with a total stranger pushed by life in the direction it was meant to go.

This idea is already found in the Bible.  Joseph became lost in his attempt to find his brothers.   "A certain man found him and behold, he was wandering in the field, and the man asked him, what do you seek.  And he said, I seek my brothers."  (Genesis 37:15-16)   The man pointed Joseph towards his brothers, who threw him into a pit, leading to a series of events which would result in the Israelites' enslavement in Egypt.  A chance encounter with a stranger changed the course of history. 

Many New Age thinkers would reply that this is not surprising.  There are no coincidences, whatever happens is what was meant to happen.  We meet who we need to meet at each particular moment in life.   I am not sure that I totally share the New Age outlook, but I believe there is a touch of truth to the idea of spiritual encounters.

There are certain souls to whom we are connected in a profound way.  Perhaps it is the soul of our spouse or lover, the soul of our parents or children, or some other family member.  Perhaps it is the soul of a close friend and confidant.  Or perhaps it is the soul of a person we meet by a chance encounter, who helps us correct the trajectory of our lives.  God sends such people to us to help our soul fulfill its particular mission on earth.  Perhaps there are people we meet because, on some spiritual level, we are meant to meet them.  We are already connected to them on a spiritual level.

There is a new book on the bestseller list by Mitch Albom, the author of Tuesdays with Maury.   The book is entitled The Five People You Meet in Heaven.  It tells the story of an elderly man killed in a tragic accident, who then meets a series of people in the next world.  Each person explains his or her role in the life of this man.   In heaven he learns the purpose of his life and the meaning of his encounters with a series of individuals.   He discovers a spiritual connection with other people that goes beyond this physical life.

According to the Torah, humans are created from the dust of the earth, and then animated by the breath of God.  Each of us has a physical reality, a body which is born, lives for a certain period, and eventually dies.  But each of us also has a spiritual reality, a part of us which goes beyond the physical.  It is the part of us that exists after our physical selves are gone.  As the Bible teaches, the dust returns to the earth from where it came but the spirit returns to God.  

People also encounter other people on this spiritual level.  We have soulmates, people who are connected to us in a way that goes beyond the physical.   We encounter certain people in our lives, sometimes for a moment and sometimes for a lifetime, who are connected to us in a deep and profound way.   They have the ability change our lives.