![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
THIRD ALIYAH. Adin Steinsaltz writes: 'Toward the end of the previous section, the Torah stated in general terms: "The Children of Israel shall encamp, each in his camp, and each at his barrier, according to their hosts" (1:52). The following chapter [Chapter 2] details their encampment based on the four directions of the compass, which signals a change in their style of encampment. Until this point, the camp had traveled in a haphazard fashion. It can be assumed that the members of each tribe stayed close to each other, and would travel and encamp together, though there may have been exceptions. However, once the Tabernacle, situated in the heart of the camp, is constructed, the arrangement of the encampments of all the tribes in relation to each other becomes fixed.' (p. 736)
In the Book of Numbers, the Israelites will spend many years wandering in the wilderness, guided by God. No doubt they will encounter many different kinds of landscapes and terrain in that time, and will have to negotiate the disposition of various resources and obstacles - water, grazing land, rocky areas, and so on. What will remain fixed is their relationship to one another.
In a changing and often hostile external world, the community's greatest resource is its unity - the relationships among its people. Building relationships takes time and consistency. By following a fixed arrangement of the camps, the same people are assured of living close to the same people, and will have the chance to bond with their neighbors over time. The natural landscape may change from month to month and year to year, but the people and families are assured of knowing their place amongst one another - and before the presence of God. [287]
In the Book of Numbers, the Israelites will spend many years wandering in the wilderness, guided by God. No doubt they will encounter many different kinds of landscapes and terrain in that time, and will have to negotiate the disposition of various resources and obstacles - water, grazing land, rocky areas, and so on. What will remain fixed is their relationship to one another.
In a changing and often hostile external world, the community's greatest resource is its unity - the relationships among its people. Building relationships takes time and consistency. By following a fixed arrangement of the camps, the same people are assured of living close to the same people, and will have the chance to bond with their neighbors over time. The natural landscape may change from month to month and year to year, but the people and families are assured of knowing their place amongst one another - and before the presence of God. [287]
