The Tabernacle
Well, I finished Exodus and read several chapters in Leviticus today...still trying to catch up!But one thing that struck me today was the description of the tabernacle. Being Assemblies of God, "tabernacle" is a familiar term. That is because many of our churches used to have Tabernacle in their name somewhere...such as Good News Tabernacle or (really popular several decades ago) Lighthous Tabernacle. I don't have any idea why this is so, since I grew up in another denomination and have no "roots" in the AG, so to speak. But my husband and I once even pastored one of those churches with Tabernacle as part of the name. ANYWAY, most of those churches have changed their names to something more modern. We still tend to call the sanctuary on our campgrounds the "tabernacle" though. I think the desire behind the name was that it be a place of God's "presence." Today I found the descriptions amazing. I've read them before, but this time I was picturing this large tent. A tent! But WHAT a tent! The beauty of it must have been breathtaking, at least when it was new. Gold everywhere...brilliant reds, blues and purples (my three favorite colors!) woven into curtains, even the "curtain rods" were beautiful gold.
I do some primitive camping with my husband where we live in lodges that are pre 1840 in design. It is WORK to put up our 12' by 15' white canvas lodge. It must have been quite an organized undertaking to erect and move and re-erect the tabernacle.
Our churches tend to be rather plain as churches go, unless they were purchased from a Lutheran or Episcopalian congregation that is moving elsewhere. (Grin.) I've never been one to find extremely ornate churches particularly helpful when it comes to worship of God, even though I can appreciate the beauty of churches and I love to look at church buildings of all kinds. But today as I pondered the tabernacle, the beautiful robes of Aaron and his sons, the jeweled breastplates--I thought of a beautiful cathedral--and I remembered my awe when I visited the Basillica of St. Joseph (I hope I have the name right) in Milwaukee.
I would LOVE to have seen the tabernacle and the vestments etc. when they were new. By King David's time, it must have been looking pretty sad.
posted by Dorcas (aka SingingOwl) @ 11:51 PM
3 Comments:
yeah I thought how ORGANISED they must have been to dismantle this, march somewhere new and then reassemblethe wholething BEFORE the rest of the camp arrived.
I'd be looking for the tent pegs :)
Makes the madness that is Greenbelt (www.greenbelt.org.uk)seem almost common place, really.
sad and bloody!
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