I wanted to share some of Rav Hirsch's thoughts[i] regarding the aron. The luchos were made of stone. Stone does not change. Rav Hirsch writes[ii],

The Law is not meant to progress or develop, having been given in its final form, engraved on tablets of stone. Not the Law, but we ourselves are the tree that can and should develop in never ceasing progress and self-refinement. The Law is the fountain of living waters near and through which we mature and flourish.

The Torah does not change. The Torah stays the same. It is our job, through the aron, to guard the never changing Torah.

The aron was made from a combination of gold and wood. Gold symbolizes perfection; it is the most precious metal. Rav Hirsch writes[iii], ‘Gold and silver are considered the most precious possessions and are most eagerly sought by man.’ Regarding the aron we find an emphasis on pure gold, “v'tzipisa oso zahav tahor,” ‘and you should overlay it with pure gold.’ The aron represents perfection and purity. At the same time, the aron is made of wood. Wood symbolizes growth[iv],

The tree is the most natural metaphor for any long, continued, steady process of maturation. It symbolizes hope that will find its realization over a long period of time and through dedicated effort. However, the blossoming, the progress, and the life span of the tree are dependent on external factors, particularly the availability and proximity of water and whether the tree can absorb that water in sufficient quantities. Hashem and His Law represent the well-spring of living waters, and man as the tree that draws from them his strength, his substance, his life, and his good fortune, without which he wood whither and die.

Am Yisroel's job is to guard the perfect, pure, never-changing Torah. We have to guard the Torah from outside influences. If we do that, as individuals and as a nation, then we will grow and flourish and develop like a tree.

Rav Hirsch concludes[v],

Purity and firmness, everywhere in life…, these are the prerequisites, these the golden limits within life, like a tree, must continuously grow and unfold from the soil of the Law…

If Israel will only devote itself to proving its firmness and strength by preserving the purity of its life, it will become immune to any attack.

Rav Hirsch fought against the Reform movement. The Reform movement, building on non-Jewish ideologies, developed the notion that we have to update and modernize the Torah to fit into the new realities of the modern world. This, of course, was a tragic mistake. Rav Hirsch explains that no, we have to adjust our lives to fit the old, never changing, golden-pure Torah. And if we do that, we will succeed.

This is a challenge all of us face, to maintain the old, pure mesorah within the modern world. We have to know that our job is to preserve. If we live our lives the way our great-great-grandparents did, we are going to be okay; we will survive and continue to serve our purpose as the Am HaNivchar, as the guardians of Hashem's Torah until Moshiach comes Bimhera B’yameinu.

[i] All of the citations are taken from ‘The Collected Writings of Rav Hirsch, Vol. 3.’

[ii] p. 186

[iii] p. 170

[iv] p. 182. Rav Hirsch quotes from Tehillim Perek 1, “K'eitz shasul al palgei mayim,” like a tree, planted by rivers of water, that yield its fruit in due season, and whose leaf does not withers; whatever he sets out to do will prosper.”

[v] p. 187