In Parsha Terumah we read about the design and construction of the walls of the Mishkan (Desert Tabernacle).
The Torah tells us that they were beams made of acacia wood with protruding pieces that fit into sockets, and connected them with adjoining beams. There was a hole in the center of each beam to allow for an internal central beam that went through all the boards. The Mishkan walls were designed to be taken apart and put together quickly as the Jews traveled. It may have been the world’s first Lego! For all this to work properly, the beams had to be carefully calculated, precisely made and exactly measured so that the sockets would fit just right, and all the holes had to be in the right place for the center beam to align correctly.
And then there’s the Chassidic commentary on Acadia Wood, which is “Atzei Shittim” in Hebrew. The Hebrew word Shittim (as the Talmud notes) is related to the word Shtus, which means silliness, folly or nonsense. As Israelis say, “Shtuyot!” Not exactly the most complimentary connotation. So why does G-d insist that we build the Temple from “Shittim” acacia wood? Chassidus explains that there’s two types of crazy. There’s irrationality below reason, and irrationality above reason. Not all crazy is crazy. You say a person is crazy in love, or is crazy about a noble cause, and that’s quite laudable. We call it crazy because we can’t explain it. It transcends all reason and logic and calculations. To create a dwelling place for G-dliness in our world, logic and reason only go so far, it needs a little passion, fervor, idealism, that trumps reason and logic, and goes way beyond them.
The Mishkan Walls have a dual-message for us. On one hand, yes, we ought to be calculated, rational and have a plan, our thoughts measured and carefully considered. On the other hand, we need to get out of our comfort zone and go a little crazy for an ideal. Judaism ought to evoke within us a driving passion, a burning desire and dedication to get good things done.