The Liturgy of Parshas Shekalim

 Parshat Shekalim (with a nod to Mishpatim)

by Rabbi Avi Billet

Parshas Shekalim is the first of the 4 special Parshas read through the month of Adar (Shekalim is read before Rosh Chodesh, unless, as this year, Rosh Chodesh falls on Shabbos). 

The section of the Torah is the first few verses of Parshat Ki Sisa (Shemos 30:11-16) which speaks of the census and collection of ½ Shekel per male-over-20. Initially, in the wilderness, the silver was used for the construction of the Mishkan itself, while subsequently the money collected was primarily utilized to fund the daily offerings and the repair-the-Mikdash fund. 

The ½ Shekel is a custom still practiced today in the month of Adar, and has variant opinions of who should participate. As a custom, it is optional, as even the amount donated is not equivalent to ½ Shekel, but is 3 times the ½-coin of the local main currency. The Rama (OC 694:1) and Biur Halakha (s”v ויש ליתן) give examples of coins utilized for this purpose in different lands. In the USA, the custom is to use 3 half-dollars. 

Aside from reading the Maftir and the special Haftorah for Shekalim, there are two customs that are less practiced today that relate to Parshas Shekalim and liturgy. One is the recitation of a special “Shir Shel Yom” for the day, which is chapter 49 of Tehillim. (There are special Shir Shel Yoms for special days on the calendar, though the most widely practiced are Tehillim 30 on Chanukah, Tehillim 27 from Elul through Shmini Atzeres, and Borchi Nafshi (Tehillim 104) on Rosh Chodesh.) 

Reading through the middle verses of Tehillim chapter 49 (verses 6-19), one can see very clearly why this was selected: 

Why should I fear in days of misfortune? The iniquity of my heels surrounds me. Those who rely on their possessions and boast of their great wealth, a brother cannot redeem a man, he cannot give his ransom to God. The redemption of their soul will be too dear, and unattainable forever. Will he live yet forever and not see the Pit? For he sees that wise men die, together a fool and a boorish man perish, and leave over their possessions to others. In their heart, their houses are forever, their dwellings are for every generation; they call by their names on plots of land. But man does not repose in his glory; he is compared to the silenced animals. This is their way; folly is theirs, and after them they will tell with their mouth forever. Like sheep, they are destined to the grave; death will devour them, and the upright will rule over them in the morning, and their form will outlast the grave as his dwelling place. But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave, for He shall take me forever. Fear not when a man becomes rich, when the honor of his house increases, For he will not take anything in his death; his glory will not descend after him. Because in his lifetime he blesses himself, but [all] will praise you, for you will benefit yourself. (Translation from Chabad.org/library) 

One may ask, in what way is this clear? I understand that “you can’t take it with you.” What does that have to do with this kind of donation? We’re talking about a ½ Shekel! The Machatzis HaShekel, of all kinds of donations, is the greatest equalizer! The verse in the Torah says that the “wealthy may not give more, and the poor may not give less,” indicating that the donation is small enough that even the poor can afford it, and limited in that the rich may not simply write a blank check just because they can. They too are limited in their ½ Shekel donations. 

The answer to the question comes from the other custom that has largely fallen out of practice, so much so that two of the most recent siddurim that have been printed, by Koren and the RCA, don’t even include the liturgical passage related to this weekend, known as Yotzros. For Parsha Shekalim, the Yotzros do appear in the Artscroll Siddur starting on page 870. Even if a shul does not have the custom to say it, it doesn’t hurt to go through the prayer to see what our liturgy has to say about the subject of our Maftir and Haftorah. Similar to Tefillos Geshem and Tal, each Yotzer is recited at the beginning of the Chazzan’s Repetition of Mussaf, embedded within the opening blessings of the Shmoneh Esrei, and presented in a fashion similar to the opening of Chazaras HaShatz of the High Holidays! 

The Yotzer suggests that those who participated in the Golden Calf needed to “raise their level… As a redemption… Israel would be uplifted through giving Shekalim.” Then, in the context of the second blessing – gevurot – which includes references to resurrection of the dead, it says, “You (God) saw that [Haman] would be a snare and thorn; You advised Jews to announce to one another publicly that they should give shekels from Rosh Chodesh… [In this way] our contribution comes before that of our dreaded foe.” In a sense, the half-shekel is meant to serve as a kapparah (atonement) in advance of a decree for our destruction. It is, in a way, an investment in our salvation from an enemy. 

The contribution is “from [age] twenty and up, the age when they are eligible for Hevenly punishment and warning , and to join the ranks of war, by means of the half-shekel contribution, [they] annul their evil and sins… The silver shekels of atonement caused the nations to submit to Israel and were kept by God as a remembrance for each Jew.” 

כסף תת כופר הם מפקדים – They are commanded to gain atonement through contributing silver (shekels) 

The last paragraph of the yotzer is more of a lament and a dirge of what has been lost and what we hope to return to, but the second to last portion that is recited by the congregation includes this passage: “Moshe exclaimed… ‘What can a man give to redeem himself and attain the grace of Him Who gave him his soul?’ The Holy One, wanting to justify this people, showed Moshe a fiery coin in a vision; He taught him that they should give that coin without delay and tell them all what they should give. God, you did not burden us so heavily…” because the ½ shekel is so affordable. 

This is not an appeal as much as it is a reminder that we, the Jewish people, have always made generosity and Tzedakah a priority. If we are blessed to be able to give, we do so. We include the phrase בעבור שאנו נודרים לצדקה (“on account that we are pledging to tzedakah”) in our Mi Sheberachs and Kel Maleis throughout the year and when we recite Yizkor, as we are praying for the healing of our loved ones and friends, or for the atonement of the souls of the departed. 

The Ezras Torah luach, of which we all benefit from directly or indirectly, includes this paragraph in its reminders for Parshas Shekalim: "The foremost Rabbis of past generations instituted a wonderful practice whereby, on Shabbos Shekolim Shuls all over America conducted appeals for Ezras Torah, which was a holy bastion of relief and succor for thousands of families of Torah scholars, including Gedolim, Tzaddikim, widows, and children, whose poverty was relieved, to some degree, by the work of Ezras Torah. This practice must be maintained through the present, because these appeals have become a major source of income for Ezras Torah. Heaven forbid that this practice be changed or replaced."

One angle of Parshat Mishpatim aims resolving disputes over financial matters. We know that “money is the root of all evil.” At the same time, proper use of money, especially when given to support the needy or Torah institutions, and especially when we are blessed to have more than we need, has forever been tied with blessing and atonement. 

May we continue to be blessed to take the message of Parshas Shekalim to heart, and be granted blessing and goodness in our lives as a result.