Welcome to Embrace Shabbat. This week’s parsha includes the tefillah of Shema Yisrael. There is a beautiful Chatam Sofer that connects the first passuk of Shema Yisrael to a hierarchy of Kedusha in the world. When describing how G-d created the world, the Gemara (Ketubot) says: אף ידי , my hand . G-d used “a hand” in creating the world. However, when it comes to creating the Beit HaMikdash, it says כוננו ידך , your hands (in plural). When juxtaposed, these two pessukim show that HaKadosh Baruch Hu put twice as much power into the Mishkan as He did into the world itself. While G-d dwells in both, the Mishkan emerges as much holier than the world. Moving upward in this hierarchy of Kedusha, Shabbat falls above both the world and the Mishkan. When confronted with the choice between building the Mishkan/Mikdash on Shabbat and keeping Shabbat, Shabbat trumps building. This “kedusha hierarchy” is indicated within the word שמע . The ש stands for שבת , the מ stands for מקדש/משכן , and ע stands for עולם . Shabbat is above the מקדש/משכן , which is above the עולם . Next in the hierarchy lies ישראל , the Jewish people. If a person has a choice between Chillul Shabbat and saving a Jewish soul, they should save the Jewish soul. Accordingly, in the first passuk of Shema, after the word שמע comes ישראל . And then, above all, is ה' אלוקינו ה' אחד . This has implications for how a Jewish person should approach Kedusha: first a person must recognize G-d in the world. Then, they should look for G-d in the Mikdash and Mishkan (which today refers to our shuls). Then, find G-d in Shabbat. Finally, connect to the Jewish people and ה' אלוקינו ה' אחד . On Shabbat we say אַתָּה אֶחָד וְשִׁמְךָ אֶחָד וּמִי כְּעַמְּךָ יִשְׂרָאֵל , You are One and Your name is One and who is like the Jewish people. When the Jewish people go through Shabbat, they reach that level of connection to HaKadosh Baruch Hu, ה' אלוקינו ה' אחד . Similarly, on Friday night, we start off Lecha Dodi with the words ה ' אֶחָד וּשְׁמו אֶחָד לְשֵׁם וּלְתִפְאֶרֶת וְלִתְהִלָּה ּ . We mention Hashem’s Oneness in connection to Shabbat to show this concept. Hashem is recognized first as dwelling in the world, then in dwelling in the Mishkan/Mikdash, then in dwelling in Shabbat, and at the highest level, in the Jewish people themselves, as Chazal teach ושכנתי בתוכם . It doesn’t say בתוכו , “G-d dwells in the Mishkan,” but בתוכם , in the Jewish people. The Jewish people is a place of dwelling where ה' אחד is recognized. Shabbat provides the Kedusha to help us reach that level. Have a Shabbat Shalom.