Sacred Veil at Temple Judea
In Judaism, that which is most sacred is purposefully covered or veiled from view, cloaked in mystery and ripe for contemplation and discovery.
Torah scrolls, mezuzot parchments hung on doorposts, and the challah of the Sabbath are all covered by veils- veils which often allow a glimpse of what is being protected.
At Temple Judea, the most sacred spaces are enveloped by a laser-cut metal veil of Hebrew letters. Texts, in Judaism, and the very letters of the alphabet, are filled with hidden meanings. Even the space between the letters (the space for interpretation) has been considered by scholars to be as important as the words themselves.
Carved into the veils are the letters of Torah rising up, recalling the Eleh Ezkerah and Rabbi Haninah ben Teradion’s amazing vision. As he died a martyr’s death, wrapped in the Torah, chanting the Shema, he claimed the parchment was burning but the letters of Torah were flying free, never to be eradicated.
The metal veils, with light glowing through by day and streaming out at night, reflecting and refracting on adjacent surfaces, create an oscillating effect of light and shadow- floating, dream-like letters begging for interpretation.
The chapel, the spiritual and spatial core of the campus is wrapped in these veils much in the way a prayer shawl lays gently across one’s shoulders while in prayer.
