A house for all peoples – P’kudei
The haftarah focusses on the dedication of the Temple, paralleling the sidra which deals with the completion of the tabernacle.
When Solomon celebrated the completion of the Temple he prayed for it to witness the spiritual yearnings of all the nations (I Kings 8:41-43).
Centuries later Isaiah put into the mouth of God the words, “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples” (Isa.56:7). No-one was debarred on the grounds of not being Jewish. Two criteria governed admission: a person had to practise justice and righteousness and be a believer in the One God.
Is it too much to hope that one day there will be a third Temple in Jerusalem in which people of all nations and faiths will join in acclaiming the One God who made us all, the One Father whose children we all are?