The Torah Windows

Commemorating The Five Books of Moses
for the Washington Hebrew Congregation

THE NUMBERS (BE-MIDBAR) WINDOW
When the Jews reacted to the negative report brought back by the twelve spies and started to complain, God condemned them to wander for forty years. The length of their wandering was determined by the number of days the spies had been in Erez Israel. It also meant that no one would survive the wandering to enter the Land of Canaan except the spies Caleb and Joshua who had returned with positive reports.

This condemnation to wander is symbolized by the truncation and dropping of the amber band to the lower left of this window. The disjointed, chaotic movement of the band represents the disorientation experienced by the Jewish People during their wanderings and battles of survival.

This time of isolation and wandering is depicted by a gray “Shadow of the Wilderness” similar to the “Shadow of Captivity” in the Exodus (Shemot) Window. The Dichroic sparks that outline the “Shadow of the Wilderness” are a reminder that during their trials the Jewish People were not deserted by God. The lenses radiating downwards along the “flashes” or “bolts” into the shadowed, amber band symbolize the sustenance of Manna. The red glass is reminiscent of the battles of survival encountered during this period.

The amber band emerges from the “Shadow” in the lower right and is symbolic of the movement of the Jewish People from their wanderings upward towards the Promised Land.

The last section of the book of Numbers (Be-Midbar) ordains the use of a garment fringe with an azure thread. The thread is to serve as a reminder of the Covenant. The azure thread appears along the border in the upper right of this window.

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INTRODUCTION

THE GENESIS (BERESHIT) WINDOW

THE EXODUS (SHEMOT) WINDOW

THE LEVITICUS (VA-YIKRA) WINDOW

THE NUMBERS (BE-MIDBAR) WINDOW

THE DEUTERONOMY (DEVARIM) WINDOW