The Mishkan – Today!
The general idea of the Mishkan is a “dwelling-place,” so to speak, for Hashem in this world.
ח. וְעָשׂוּ לִי מִקְדָּשׁ וְשָׁכַנְתִּי בְּתוֹכָם
“They shall make a sanctuary for me so that I may dwell among them” (Truma 25:8)
The Seforno (Parshas Yisro 20:21, and Truma 25:9) writes that originally (before the sin of the golden calf) there was no need for a Mishkan. Klall Yisroel was on such a high spiritual level to be able to connect directly with Hashem without any structures of gold and silver etc. That level of relationship, however, subsequently changed. The production of a Mishkan, the “intermediary” in the relationship between Kall Yisroel and Hashem, became a necessity. The Mishkan acted as such by being the place where prayer was accepted and Devine prophesy was given.
The Vilna Goan (פ’ לס’ יצירה פ”א מ”ח) as well expounds on this idea, that of the Mishkan being a means to connect with Hahsem. He compares the Mishkan, in this respect, to Torah and Mitzvos. We connect to Hashem with the Torah we learn and the Mitzvos we do. The Mishna in Avos (3:6) learns from the Passuk in Yisro (ibid.)בכל המקום אשר אזכיר את שמי אבוא אליך וברכתיך – “Wherever I permit my name to be mentioned I shall come to you and bless you,” that the Shechina dwells with even a single individual who sits and learns Torah. It is especially significant that the Mishna quotes the very same Passuk that the Seforno understands as describing the relationship between Klall Yisroel and Hashem before the sin of the golden calf. We can understand this with the words of the Vilna Goan. Learning Torah, like the Mishkan, is a vehicle through which to connect to Hashem. The Mishna specifically uses this Passuk in describing our connection with Hashem when using the medium of learning Torah to do so. Therefore it would emerge that based on the Serforno’s approach, that by means of our intermediaries we can connect to Hashem in a way similar to before the sin! There is a wealth of literature describing the heights and greatness of the connection between Klall Yisroel and Hashem when we learn Torah. The bottom line is, that even in our day – where because of our sins we lack a Mishkan or Beis Hamikdash to utilize in order to connect with Hashem – we still have Torah and Mitzvos.