Here are a few more questions that I've been wondering about lately.
Why did Hashem decide that in 1948 we would lose the old city of Jerusalem and access to the Har Habayis? Why did we have to experience such an unbelievable miracle in 1967 with the re-unification? Why couldn't we just get it all at once?
There is a famous story quoted by the sefer Lev Eliyahu (Volume Shemos - Parshas Yisro p. 172) about the Chofetz Chaim. I'm now quoting directly from the sefer, which is a quote of the words of R' Elya Lopian (my own translation from the original Hebrew):
"I heard in London from the holy mouth of R. Elchanan Wasserman Zt'l, who said it in the name of the Chofetz Chaim ztvk'l, that our sages say that the war of Gog and Magog will be three times. At the time, it was after the first world war, and the Chofetz Chaim said that this war [that had just occurred] was the first Gog Umagog war. [He said that] in another approximately 25 years there would be another world war, which would make the first one look like nothing. Afterwards there will be a third Gog Umagog war - 'a time of trouble for Jacob, from which they will be saved.'"
I've always wondered - what is the idea of three wars? Obviously the first two have already passed. Is it possible that the first two had to do with MBY and therefore took place in the lands of Edom, affecting mostly Ashkenazic Jewry? Is it possible that we are witnessing currently the the third Gog Umagog war already - and it is connected to MBD and the world of Yishmael; hence the tremendous upheavals in the Arab world?
And how does Eretz Yisroel play into all this - it was spared from Hitler's wrath in WWII - and yet it seems to be center stage right now.
Other questions to ponder:
Why did the Ashkenazic world experience such religious devastation - being ravaged by the reform and conservative movements? Why did the Sephardic world not have so much infiltration - and largely remained either religious or traditional?
Why has Israel seemed to almost completely keep out the elements of the reform and conservative movements? And yet, why has Israel for the most part been ruled by Ashkenazic leaders who are irreligious?
Could there be a radical difference between what an MBY war of Gog Umagog looks like and an MBD war of Gog Umagog looks like? Is there any precedent for such a difference in previous examples of geulah/redemption? Are there any sources in the gemara for such a difference?
Showing posts with label Chofetz Chaim. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Chofetz Chaim. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 10, 2018
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
He will come, without delay
I present the third installment of the book צפית לישועה, Longing for Redemption. The Chofetz Chaim was the master of the mashal, and here you will find a very beautiful one helping us to understand how it is that the Galus is so long, and yet, "He will come without delay." I hope you enjoy.
Tzipisa Le'yeshua - Chapter 2
It is well known that anyone who does not believe in the coming of Moshiach is plagued with a sin that is too great to bear, because he lacks one of the thirteen fundamental beliefs of Judaism. Similarly, one who does not wait for Moshiach's arrival, for whatever reason despairing of ever seeing his times, is a 'close cousin' of the first sinner, and is considered a denier of the Torah. The Rambam says as follows (Hilchos Melachim 11), "Moshiach, the king, will arise in the future, and return the house of David to its former glory and power. He will build the Temple and gather the dispersed of Israel. All of the laws will return in his day as in previous times. Sacrifices will be brought, and the Shemitah and Yovel laws will be fulfilled as is detailed in the Torah. Whoever does not believe in him or does not wait for his arrival (meaning that he has despaired of Moshiach ever coming, for whatever reason), not only does he show contempt for all the other prophets, but in fact, he shows contempt for the Torah itself, and for Moshe Rabbenu. The Torah explicitly testifies about it, 'And Hashem your God will return your captivity and have mercy on you and return to gather you... If your dispersed will be at the edge of the Earth, from there He will gather you... and Hashem your God will bring you to the land...'"
Truthfully, we need to contemplate on times past in order to understand what will be in the future. When we left Egypt, Hashem promised us a number of good things. It thus says in Yehoshua (23), "And Yehoshua called out to all of Israel and said to them... you will know with all of your heart and soul that, of all the good Hashem promised to you, you received it all, without exception." Based on this, we can contemplate, even now, how certainly Hashem will fulfill the promises He made in the sections of the Torah which speak of redemption. It says, "Supple plants will dry out, but the word of our God will stand forever." Besides for the promises He said explicitly in the Torah, His promises about the future redemption were repeated through all His servants, the prophets - Yeshaya, Yirmiya, Yechezkel and in Trei-Asar. Each one contains prophecies about the future redemption, as well as the exalted level the people of Israel will enjoy at that time. All of them will attain the level of prophecy, as it says (Yoel 3), "And afterwards I will pour out my spirit on all flesh, and your sons and daughters will prophesy..." They furthermore write of all the honor that the people of Israel will receive from all the people of the world, as it says, "And they will bring an offering to Hashem, with all your brothers from the nations... as the children of Israel bring the offering in a pure vessel." And it says, "Your sons and daughters will be brought, carried on their shoulders." The verse encapsulated it by saying, "No eye has seen, but yours, God, that which will be done for those who wait for it."
The concept of the delay of the redemption was already hinted to us by Hashem Himself through the prophet Hoshea (3), "For many days the children of Israel sat and requested [the return of] Hashem their God, and their king David, and [they expressed] their fear to Hashem and [they awaited] the good of the end of days." Furthermore, it says, "If he tarries, wait for him." The explanation of this is that if a person would think that, heaven forbid, He has broken his promise with the people of Israel, it is not really true. Rather, "wait for him" - meaning, like someone waiting for an event he knows will certainly occur, as the verse says, "Supple plants will dry out, but the word of our God will stand forever."
And the verse finishes off, "He will certainly come with no delay." [This would seem to be a contradiction, as we just stated that "if he will tarry, wait for him."] This can be explained with a story. There was once a king who was angry with his son, and decreed that he would have to leave the palace for five years. The son was sent to a faraway land at the edge of the world that required years of travel to reach [as it was before the advent of modern modes of transportation]. Afterwards, the king regretted his decision, however he could not annul the decree. He pondered what could be done, and realized that even once the five years were up, it would still take a few years for the son to travel back home. The king therefore commanded that all the mountains standing in the path be razed, and that all the new means of transportation in the world be used to bring him back to the palace quickly. This way the prince's trip home would proceed without any unnecessary delay.
So it is with us. We have been spread out to the farthest reaches of the Earth, and every Jew will need to return from exile, as it says, "Each and every one of you will be gathered, children of Israel." Therefore, the gathering of the entire Jewish people should naturally take many years. But the truth is that it will not be that way. Hashem has made all the preparations in advance so the ingathering will not take longer than necessary.
This is what it means, "If he tarries, wait for him." If you would then think that the actual ingathering will take a long time, [especially now that he has taken so long to come] - the verse therefore says, "He will certainly come without delay." This means that when the designated time arrives, there will be no delay whatsoever at that point. This is what the verse refers to when it says, "Who are these that fly like a cloud?" This means that the ingathering will take place at a rapid pace, like a cloud moves quickly across the sky.
The very fact that the redemption is delayed has a straightforward explanation. The verse says [in reference to the Jewish people's return from the exile of Egypt] that "the fourth generation will return here, because until then, the sin of the Emori will not be complete." In that context, there were only seven nations, and nevertheless, it was necessary to wait several hundred years until their sins deemed them unworthy before the promise to Avraham could be fulfilled. In our times, the entire world needs to be purified, and all the nations need to come under the domain of Hakadosh Baruch Hu and His king Moshiach. This is stated in the verse in Daniel (7), "And to he will be given dominion, honor, and rulership." Therefore, it must take a substantial amount of time. Furthermore, the original redemption [from Egypt] only lasted for a limited amount of time, as it says in the holy works [of kabbalah], but the final redemption will be the end of all exile, with none to follow it. Therefore, all the rectifications must be completed for the blemishes in the people of Israel from the time they became a nation. The length of the exile serves to rectify all of this, and the exile acts as a great purifier, separating the evil from the good. This is what we find at the end of Daniel, "Great separations and purifications will occur..." This requires a lengthy amount of time.
Heaven forbid should we despair as a result of Moshiach's lateness, and specifically since the prophet told us about it from the beginning that "even if he tarries, wait for him, for he will certainly come..." Not one word of Hashem will be left unfulfilled, heaven forbid, as we say in the blessings after the Haftarah, "And not one of your words will be left unfulfilled." This concept should especially not be despaired of, as it is not only mentioned once, but it is mentioned numerous times in the many different prophets, as well as the many statements from the sages of the Gemara. It is a main foundation of the beliefs of the people of Israel, as we say in the first blessing [of the Amidah], "And He brings a redeemer to the sons of their sons." It is further incumbent upon us not to despair, especially in our times where the state of the people of Israel has reached an all-time low, both physically and spiritually. This is as the verse states, "Our soul has been brought down to the dust," which is reference to the soul of the people of Israel, as is clearly the state of the youth of our nation, "Our stomach has clung to the ground," which is reference to the lowly physical state of the Jewish people. Certainly we need to stand ready, waiting for salvation, in the language of the aforementioned verse, "Wait for him." This means we need to stand ready, as one would wait for a guest who is on his way. Who knows, perhaps he is already just around the corner.
Praiseworthy is the one who does not despair of waiting for the redemption, but gives heart for himself and his children to learn much Torah and perform many mitzvos, so that he not be embarrassed at that time. Only in the current state of the world, which is compared to night, do we find that all is concealed, and one can not see the advantage of the righteous one over the evil one. In the times of Moshiach, however, everything will be clear. This concept is found in the targum of Koheles on the verse, "In the end, all is heard." He translates this to mean that all that is done in the world will eventually be publicized. Each person will be honored according to the Torah and mitzvos that he has attained. This is underscored by the verse which refers to that time, "And you will return and you will see the distinction between one who served God and one who did not."
Tzipisa Le'yeshua - Chapter 2
It is well known that anyone who does not believe in the coming of Moshiach is plagued with a sin that is too great to bear, because he lacks one of the thirteen fundamental beliefs of Judaism. Similarly, one who does not wait for Moshiach's arrival, for whatever reason despairing of ever seeing his times, is a 'close cousin' of the first sinner, and is considered a denier of the Torah. The Rambam says as follows (Hilchos Melachim 11), "Moshiach, the king, will arise in the future, and return the house of David to its former glory and power. He will build the Temple and gather the dispersed of Israel. All of the laws will return in his day as in previous times. Sacrifices will be brought, and the Shemitah and Yovel laws will be fulfilled as is detailed in the Torah. Whoever does not believe in him or does not wait for his arrival (meaning that he has despaired of Moshiach ever coming, for whatever reason), not only does he show contempt for all the other prophets, but in fact, he shows contempt for the Torah itself, and for Moshe Rabbenu. The Torah explicitly testifies about it, 'And Hashem your God will return your captivity and have mercy on you and return to gather you... If your dispersed will be at the edge of the Earth, from there He will gather you... and Hashem your God will bring you to the land...'"
Truthfully, we need to contemplate on times past in order to understand what will be in the future. When we left Egypt, Hashem promised us a number of good things. It thus says in Yehoshua (23), "And Yehoshua called out to all of Israel and said to them... you will know with all of your heart and soul that, of all the good Hashem promised to you, you received it all, without exception." Based on this, we can contemplate, even now, how certainly Hashem will fulfill the promises He made in the sections of the Torah which speak of redemption. It says, "Supple plants will dry out, but the word of our God will stand forever." Besides for the promises He said explicitly in the Torah, His promises about the future redemption were repeated through all His servants, the prophets - Yeshaya, Yirmiya, Yechezkel and in Trei-Asar. Each one contains prophecies about the future redemption, as well as the exalted level the people of Israel will enjoy at that time. All of them will attain the level of prophecy, as it says (Yoel 3), "And afterwards I will pour out my spirit on all flesh, and your sons and daughters will prophesy..." They furthermore write of all the honor that the people of Israel will receive from all the people of the world, as it says, "And they will bring an offering to Hashem, with all your brothers from the nations... as the children of Israel bring the offering in a pure vessel." And it says, "Your sons and daughters will be brought, carried on their shoulders." The verse encapsulated it by saying, "No eye has seen, but yours, God, that which will be done for those who wait for it."
The concept of the delay of the redemption was already hinted to us by Hashem Himself through the prophet Hoshea (3), "For many days the children of Israel sat and requested [the return of] Hashem their God, and their king David, and [they expressed] their fear to Hashem and [they awaited] the good of the end of days." Furthermore, it says, "If he tarries, wait for him." The explanation of this is that if a person would think that, heaven forbid, He has broken his promise with the people of Israel, it is not really true. Rather, "wait for him" - meaning, like someone waiting for an event he knows will certainly occur, as the verse says, "Supple plants will dry out, but the word of our God will stand forever."
And the verse finishes off, "He will certainly come with no delay." [This would seem to be a contradiction, as we just stated that "if he will tarry, wait for him."] This can be explained with a story. There was once a king who was angry with his son, and decreed that he would have to leave the palace for five years. The son was sent to a faraway land at the edge of the world that required years of travel to reach [as it was before the advent of modern modes of transportation]. Afterwards, the king regretted his decision, however he could not annul the decree. He pondered what could be done, and realized that even once the five years were up, it would still take a few years for the son to travel back home. The king therefore commanded that all the mountains standing in the path be razed, and that all the new means of transportation in the world be used to bring him back to the palace quickly. This way the prince's trip home would proceed without any unnecessary delay.
So it is with us. We have been spread out to the farthest reaches of the Earth, and every Jew will need to return from exile, as it says, "Each and every one of you will be gathered, children of Israel." Therefore, the gathering of the entire Jewish people should naturally take many years. But the truth is that it will not be that way. Hashem has made all the preparations in advance so the ingathering will not take longer than necessary.
This is what it means, "If he tarries, wait for him." If you would then think that the actual ingathering will take a long time, [especially now that he has taken so long to come] - the verse therefore says, "He will certainly come without delay." This means that when the designated time arrives, there will be no delay whatsoever at that point. This is what the verse refers to when it says, "Who are these that fly like a cloud?" This means that the ingathering will take place at a rapid pace, like a cloud moves quickly across the sky.
The very fact that the redemption is delayed has a straightforward explanation. The verse says [in reference to the Jewish people's return from the exile of Egypt] that "the fourth generation will return here, because until then, the sin of the Emori will not be complete." In that context, there were only seven nations, and nevertheless, it was necessary to wait several hundred years until their sins deemed them unworthy before the promise to Avraham could be fulfilled. In our times, the entire world needs to be purified, and all the nations need to come under the domain of Hakadosh Baruch Hu and His king Moshiach. This is stated in the verse in Daniel (7), "And to he will be given dominion, honor, and rulership." Therefore, it must take a substantial amount of time. Furthermore, the original redemption [from Egypt] only lasted for a limited amount of time, as it says in the holy works [of kabbalah], but the final redemption will be the end of all exile, with none to follow it. Therefore, all the rectifications must be completed for the blemishes in the people of Israel from the time they became a nation. The length of the exile serves to rectify all of this, and the exile acts as a great purifier, separating the evil from the good. This is what we find at the end of Daniel, "Great separations and purifications will occur..." This requires a lengthy amount of time.
Heaven forbid should we despair as a result of Moshiach's lateness, and specifically since the prophet told us about it from the beginning that "even if he tarries, wait for him, for he will certainly come..." Not one word of Hashem will be left unfulfilled, heaven forbid, as we say in the blessings after the Haftarah, "And not one of your words will be left unfulfilled." This concept should especially not be despaired of, as it is not only mentioned once, but it is mentioned numerous times in the many different prophets, as well as the many statements from the sages of the Gemara. It is a main foundation of the beliefs of the people of Israel, as we say in the first blessing [of the Amidah], "And He brings a redeemer to the sons of their sons." It is further incumbent upon us not to despair, especially in our times where the state of the people of Israel has reached an all-time low, both physically and spiritually. This is as the verse states, "Our soul has been brought down to the dust," which is reference to the soul of the people of Israel, as is clearly the state of the youth of our nation, "Our stomach has clung to the ground," which is reference to the lowly physical state of the Jewish people. Certainly we need to stand ready, waiting for salvation, in the language of the aforementioned verse, "Wait for him." This means we need to stand ready, as one would wait for a guest who is on his way. Who knows, perhaps he is already just around the corner.
Praiseworthy is the one who does not despair of waiting for the redemption, but gives heart for himself and his children to learn much Torah and perform many mitzvos, so that he not be embarrassed at that time. Only in the current state of the world, which is compared to night, do we find that all is concealed, and one can not see the advantage of the righteous one over the evil one. In the times of Moshiach, however, everything will be clear. This concept is found in the targum of Koheles on the verse, "In the end, all is heard." He translates this to mean that all that is done in the world will eventually be publicized. Each person will be honored according to the Torah and mitzvos that he has attained. This is underscored by the verse which refers to that time, "And you will return and you will see the distinction between one who served God and one who did not."
Monday, February 8, 2010
Longing for Redemption - Part 2
Here is the continuation of the book צפית לישועה of the Chofetz Chaim. What follows is the rest of the first chapter which we began in the previous post.
However, the truth is that our sages of blessed memory also told us from the onset that not everyone would be at this exalted level, and that a new generation will arise that would be the exact opposite of the earlier ones. This generation will be at an extremely low spiritual level, and each person will behave as he sees fit (and they will not accept rebuke, as the mishna explains). Nevertheless, we must not view this with despair, because this very thing is a sign of impending redemption. The first group will bring about the redemption with their good deeds, and the second group will also play a role in bringing the redemption.
In previous generations, the generations went as they were supposed to, and all of the people of Israel continued in the tradition that was passed down from father to son, and the children received the lessons of faith and religion from their parents with love and devotion. (And as accords with proper moral conduct, which is a prerequisite for Torah, children would respect the wisdom of their parents and our Holy faith, the tradition of which was passed down through the generations going all the way back to the generation of the 600,000 men above the age of twenty, besides for the women and children, that stood at Sinai. They saw everything with their own eyes, as the verse says, "This day we saw that God will speak with man and he will live.") This is as we say in the prayers, "His words are alive and standing... upon our fathers and upon us and our children and all the generations..." All of the desire of both parents and children was only to have the merit of Torah and good deeds and to do the will of their Father in heaven. At that time, the pressure for the advent of the redemption was not as great, because the general condition of the faith was as it was supposed to be, and as the exile of the Jewish people continued, their merits only amassed more and more. This was from the patience they had, waiting and longing for Moshiach for such a long time, staying strong in their faith and longing for salvation. Like our sages say in Sanhedrin (97) that just as we are waiting, so Hakadosh Baruch Hu is waiting to redeem us, as the verse says, "Therefore Hashem will wait to show you favor..." So if we are waiting, and so is He, why has Moshiach not yet come? To make the reward even greater - this is why Hashem has not hastened the end.
However, this was all true when the transmission of the tradition of our religion and the roots of faith were strong, and there was no weakness in the fulfillment of the Torah and mitzvos in regards to faith. But in our times, so many people have abandoned the Torah path, our holy religion is desecrated with false ideas conveyed by the media that penetrates into the depths of the nation, and the flame of pure faith threatens to be extinguished in the hearts of the youth of Israel. Many have begun to refuse to accept the traditions of their parents, believing they are wiser than all the previous generations. Furthermore, the wise ones and holy people of previous times who sacrificed their lives to keep every detailed law - their honor is meaningless to them. They even have the gall to speak against the holy sages of the Mishna and Gemara, who in reality were like heavenly angels. Woe unto us that we have witnessed this in our times, the very fulfillment of our sages prophecy that "[in the steps leading to Moshiach,] brazenness will abound."
As a result of this attitude, parents do not have the ability to faithfully convey our tradition of love of Torah and mitzvos to their children. That being the case, there is no longer a positive aspect to the exile being lengthened, seeing as the tradition is being cut off, heaven forbid (and furthermore, we find the opposite, that children have a negative impact on their parents). Therefore Hashem must bring the redemption speedily, to open the eyes of the spiritually blind to again see with the light of Truth, for heaven forbid, Hashem will not leave his children to be pushed away, as the verse says, "Not one will be pushed away." For they are his children, the ones He took and has carried since days of yore, as the verse says, "And even this, when they are in the land of their enemies (meaning, that Hashem exiled Israel so they would better their ways when they are oppressed, and continue to do this even there, nevertheless,) I did not reject them nor find them disgusting, nor bring an end to them, nor annul my covenant with them." Our sages explained, "I did not reject them" refers to the days of the Chaldeans when I gave them Daniel, Chananiah, Misha'el and Azaryah. "Or find them disgusting" refers to the time of the Greeks, when I gave them Shimon Hatzadik and the Chasmonaim and sons. "Nor bring an end to them" refers to the days of Haman when I gave them Mordechai and Esther. "Nor annul my covenant with them" refers to the days of the Persians when I gave them those of the house of Rebbe, "For I am their God."
We thus find that the two types of people that will be in the end of times will both take part in bringing the redemption. The first group through its good deeds and the difficulties they endure, and the second group, through its bad deeds. Obviously, it is better to be part of the first group, to be among those doing good, and not among those doing bad. All this is hinted to in the Torah in Parshas Ha'azinu, which is also referring to the times of redemption (as our sages explained in Sanhedrin 97), as it says in the verse, "For Hashem will judge his people and have mercy on his nation, He will see that they have lost all hope and all seems lost." This is what it means when it says that "Hashem will judge his people" - he will have mercy in order to redeem them (as Rashi there explains). This is because his servants are in difficulty, and there is fear that "hope is lost" - this means that the people of Israel do not have the power to continue in their exile; "for all seems lost" - this means that those who hold onto their tradition have no more strength to hold on.
In a similar vein, our sages explain in Sanhedrin (ibid), based on this verse, that [Moshiach] ben Dovid will not come until there are many who will inform on others. This refers to the fact that the leaders will have no more power to uphold the tradition. Another explanation - "[Moshiach will not come until] there are very few students." Rashi explains that this means there will be very few who will return the people to the proper path. Thus we see that there will be those who will be faithful servants of Hashem, however, they will be few, and unable to prevent the rampant loss of faith on the part of their brothers. We find something similar in the verse (Yirmiyah 31) in regards to the time of redemption, "I shall plant the house of Israel, seeds of man and seeds of beast." And it is written in the Gemara (Sotah 22) that "seeds of beast" refers to people are not learned in Tanach, Mishna and Gemara. Again, we see that there will be two types of people, as we said, and both types will aid in advancing the redemption.
What we see here is that the state of the Jewish people in our times gives us every reason to hope, even moreso, for the revelation of the honor of Hashem in the world. This is the simple understanding of the verse, "I swear, so says Hashem, the world will be filled with the honor of Hashem." Therefore, every Jew needs to take heart and think deeply into what will happen when Moshiach will arrive - who will be respected and who will be deeply satisfied? Only one who has clung tightly to Hashem, despite the difficulties of the times. If despite the poverty and constant challenges, Jews remained faithful to Hashem and his Torah, the light of Hashem will shine brightly upon their faces, each one according to his level in knowledge of Torah and fulfillment of Mitzvos. This is what we find in Tanna D'bei Eliyahu (1), "What is the measure of the light of the Torah scholar and the righteous in the times of [Moshiach] ben Dovid and the world to come?" There it mentions a number of levels. There are those whose faces shine like the small stars, and those whose shine will be like the larger stars (as the verse says, "Those who act on behalf of the public are like stars forever"), while others shine with light like the moon at the beginning of the month, others like the tenth of the month, and others like the full moon. Still others' faces will shine like the sun in the early morning, and others like the sun at the third hour of the day... still others' faces will shine like the sun at midday. All of this is hinted to in the verse, "And his beloved ones are like the sun coming out in its strength."
A similar idea is stated there in chapter 5 as well, "The righteous will have honor and strength in this world and the next. How is this? Hakadosh baruch hu sits in His study hall, and the righteous of all generations sit in front of Him. Each one is given light upon his face according to the measure of Torah that is within him."
Also, be aware that according to the previous explanation, at the end of the exile there will be many incorrect ideas, and there will be those who will be separated from Torah and mitzvos. Therefore, those who strengthen themselves at that time to go in the paths of Hashem and to learn His Torah and fulfill His commandments will be referred to as Righteous ones. This is what the verse refers to when it says, "And your nation - all are righteous" - this refers to those who remain steadfast to Hashem and are not seduced by the sinners (this is what is written in the book Avakas Rochel by the student of the Rosh z'l).
Therefore, every person must now strengthen himself in his knowledge of Torah and fulfillment of mitzvos, because once Moshiach arrives, it will be called the 'years that have no desire.' As the verse says, "Remember your creator in the days of your youth, before the days of evil come; and then will come years that you will say, 'I have no desire in them.'" Our sages said that this refers to the times of Moshiach that have neither merit nor demerit, because the Evil Inclination will then be annulled.
However, the truth is that our sages of blessed memory also told us from the onset that not everyone would be at this exalted level, and that a new generation will arise that would be the exact opposite of the earlier ones. This generation will be at an extremely low spiritual level, and each person will behave as he sees fit (and they will not accept rebuke, as the mishna explains). Nevertheless, we must not view this with despair, because this very thing is a sign of impending redemption. The first group will bring about the redemption with their good deeds, and the second group will also play a role in bringing the redemption.
In previous generations, the generations went as they were supposed to, and all of the people of Israel continued in the tradition that was passed down from father to son, and the children received the lessons of faith and religion from their parents with love and devotion. (And as accords with proper moral conduct, which is a prerequisite for Torah, children would respect the wisdom of their parents and our Holy faith, the tradition of which was passed down through the generations going all the way back to the generation of the 600,000 men above the age of twenty, besides for the women and children, that stood at Sinai. They saw everything with their own eyes, as the verse says, "This day we saw that God will speak with man and he will live.") This is as we say in the prayers, "His words are alive and standing... upon our fathers and upon us and our children and all the generations..." All of the desire of both parents and children was only to have the merit of Torah and good deeds and to do the will of their Father in heaven. At that time, the pressure for the advent of the redemption was not as great, because the general condition of the faith was as it was supposed to be, and as the exile of the Jewish people continued, their merits only amassed more and more. This was from the patience they had, waiting and longing for Moshiach for such a long time, staying strong in their faith and longing for salvation. Like our sages say in Sanhedrin (97) that just as we are waiting, so Hakadosh Baruch Hu is waiting to redeem us, as the verse says, "Therefore Hashem will wait to show you favor..." So if we are waiting, and so is He, why has Moshiach not yet come? To make the reward even greater - this is why Hashem has not hastened the end.
However, this was all true when the transmission of the tradition of our religion and the roots of faith were strong, and there was no weakness in the fulfillment of the Torah and mitzvos in regards to faith. But in our times, so many people have abandoned the Torah path, our holy religion is desecrated with false ideas conveyed by the media that penetrates into the depths of the nation, and the flame of pure faith threatens to be extinguished in the hearts of the youth of Israel. Many have begun to refuse to accept the traditions of their parents, believing they are wiser than all the previous generations. Furthermore, the wise ones and holy people of previous times who sacrificed their lives to keep every detailed law - their honor is meaningless to them. They even have the gall to speak against the holy sages of the Mishna and Gemara, who in reality were like heavenly angels. Woe unto us that we have witnessed this in our times, the very fulfillment of our sages prophecy that "[in the steps leading to Moshiach,] brazenness will abound."
As a result of this attitude, parents do not have the ability to faithfully convey our tradition of love of Torah and mitzvos to their children. That being the case, there is no longer a positive aspect to the exile being lengthened, seeing as the tradition is being cut off, heaven forbid (and furthermore, we find the opposite, that children have a negative impact on their parents). Therefore Hashem must bring the redemption speedily, to open the eyes of the spiritually blind to again see with the light of Truth, for heaven forbid, Hashem will not leave his children to be pushed away, as the verse says, "Not one will be pushed away." For they are his children, the ones He took and has carried since days of yore, as the verse says, "And even this, when they are in the land of their enemies (meaning, that Hashem exiled Israel so they would better their ways when they are oppressed, and continue to do this even there, nevertheless,) I did not reject them nor find them disgusting, nor bring an end to them, nor annul my covenant with them." Our sages explained, "I did not reject them" refers to the days of the Chaldeans when I gave them Daniel, Chananiah, Misha'el and Azaryah. "Or find them disgusting" refers to the time of the Greeks, when I gave them Shimon Hatzadik and the Chasmonaim and sons. "Nor bring an end to them" refers to the days of Haman when I gave them Mordechai and Esther. "Nor annul my covenant with them" refers to the days of the Persians when I gave them those of the house of Rebbe, "For I am their God."
We thus find that the two types of people that will be in the end of times will both take part in bringing the redemption. The first group through its good deeds and the difficulties they endure, and the second group, through its bad deeds. Obviously, it is better to be part of the first group, to be among those doing good, and not among those doing bad. All this is hinted to in the Torah in Parshas Ha'azinu, which is also referring to the times of redemption (as our sages explained in Sanhedrin 97), as it says in the verse, "For Hashem will judge his people and have mercy on his nation, He will see that they have lost all hope and all seems lost." This is what it means when it says that "Hashem will judge his people" - he will have mercy in order to redeem them (as Rashi there explains). This is because his servants are in difficulty, and there is fear that "hope is lost" - this means that the people of Israel do not have the power to continue in their exile; "for all seems lost" - this means that those who hold onto their tradition have no more strength to hold on.
In a similar vein, our sages explain in Sanhedrin (ibid), based on this verse, that [Moshiach] ben Dovid will not come until there are many who will inform on others. This refers to the fact that the leaders will have no more power to uphold the tradition. Another explanation - "[Moshiach will not come until] there are very few students." Rashi explains that this means there will be very few who will return the people to the proper path. Thus we see that there will be those who will be faithful servants of Hashem, however, they will be few, and unable to prevent the rampant loss of faith on the part of their brothers. We find something similar in the verse (Yirmiyah 31) in regards to the time of redemption, "I shall plant the house of Israel, seeds of man and seeds of beast." And it is written in the Gemara (Sotah 22) that "seeds of beast" refers to people are not learned in Tanach, Mishna and Gemara. Again, we see that there will be two types of people, as we said, and both types will aid in advancing the redemption.
What we see here is that the state of the Jewish people in our times gives us every reason to hope, even moreso, for the revelation of the honor of Hashem in the world. This is the simple understanding of the verse, "I swear, so says Hashem, the world will be filled with the honor of Hashem." Therefore, every Jew needs to take heart and think deeply into what will happen when Moshiach will arrive - who will be respected and who will be deeply satisfied? Only one who has clung tightly to Hashem, despite the difficulties of the times. If despite the poverty and constant challenges, Jews remained faithful to Hashem and his Torah, the light of Hashem will shine brightly upon their faces, each one according to his level in knowledge of Torah and fulfillment of Mitzvos. This is what we find in Tanna D'bei Eliyahu (1), "What is the measure of the light of the Torah scholar and the righteous in the times of [Moshiach] ben Dovid and the world to come?" There it mentions a number of levels. There are those whose faces shine like the small stars, and those whose shine will be like the larger stars (as the verse says, "Those who act on behalf of the public are like stars forever"), while others shine with light like the moon at the beginning of the month, others like the tenth of the month, and others like the full moon. Still others' faces will shine like the sun in the early morning, and others like the sun at the third hour of the day... still others' faces will shine like the sun at midday. All of this is hinted to in the verse, "And his beloved ones are like the sun coming out in its strength."
A similar idea is stated there in chapter 5 as well, "The righteous will have honor and strength in this world and the next. How is this? Hakadosh baruch hu sits in His study hall, and the righteous of all generations sit in front of Him. Each one is given light upon his face according to the measure of Torah that is within him."
Also, be aware that according to the previous explanation, at the end of the exile there will be many incorrect ideas, and there will be those who will be separated from Torah and mitzvos. Therefore, those who strengthen themselves at that time to go in the paths of Hashem and to learn His Torah and fulfill His commandments will be referred to as Righteous ones. This is what the verse refers to when it says, "And your nation - all are righteous" - this refers to those who remain steadfast to Hashem and are not seduced by the sinners (this is what is written in the book Avakas Rochel by the student of the Rosh z'l).
Therefore, every person must now strengthen himself in his knowledge of Torah and fulfillment of mitzvos, because once Moshiach arrives, it will be called the 'years that have no desire.' As the verse says, "Remember your creator in the days of your youth, before the days of evil come; and then will come years that you will say, 'I have no desire in them.'" Our sages said that this refers to the times of Moshiach that have neither merit nor demerit, because the Evil Inclination will then be annulled.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Longing for Redemption
The following is the first part of a translation I am posting. It is a short composition that I found in the complete writings of the Chofetz Chaim. It is entitled צפית לישועה - Longing for Redemption. It is quite an interesting little piece, and he addresses some of the issues we have dealt with here, but of course with the great depth of a Gadol Hador. I hope you enjoy.
Chapter 1
In our times, we see that in many places our religion has been greatly weakened, to the point where children, from a young age, are disconnected from the study of Hashem's Torah, an event which did not occur in previous times. When we look into this well, the reasons for this involve a number of different matters. The main reason is a weakening in the fundamental beliefs of Judaism - the belief in an Eternal World to come, ultimate reward and punishment, in the advent of Moshiach, and the ultimate goals and roles of the Jewish people as described in the Torah. These very matters are what has given the Jewish people the fortitude to undergo many difficulties throughout the generations, and to stand up for their faith unstintingly, both for themselves and their children. It would have been greater for a father to watch his son be slaughtered in front of his very eyes for the sake of Hashem, rather than watch his child be raised in a world of affluence that veered away from the true path of Torah and Mitzvos.
In our times, the Satan has succeeded, through the aid of his many minions, in weakening the roots of faith from within the people of Israel, whether it is in regards to the concept of reward and punishment, or the words of the prophets describing our lofty goals. When they see the difficulties they must endure each day, they can not help but think that Hashem has hidden Himself from us completely. This causes them to give up hope of ever seeing the redemption, and they do not wait for the Heavenly Kingdom at all. Each person thus develops rationalizations that he must support his family, whether it will be in a permitted or forbidden manner.
Beyond this, we find that even straight and good people, when they see the spiritual degeneration of others who have thrown off the obligations of the Torah, and who have made light of stringent matters (for example the desecration of Shabbos, about which the Torah says "those who desecrate it will die" and family purity, which the Torah equates with all forbidden relations), the hearts of these faithful people fall within them and they give up hope. They say to themselves, "How can we hold out our hope in such a generation that Hashem will have mercy, despite the way His people desecrate His Torah in such a horrible way?" As a result of this, their hope is completely weakened, and they do not believe they can even try to help anyone else from falling into the deep pit of spiritual destruction.
Therefore, I felt an obligation upon myself to give the proper perspective on this matter, which is truly the opposite of what one might have thought. The truth is that in our times, there is actually more reason to believe that the redemption is close, and therefore more reason to hope for an imminent salvation. This is despite the impression one would get from reading the Torah's description of the state of the Jewish people immediately prior to the redemption. In Parshas Nitzavim, where it describes this condition, the Torah says that the redemption will occur when we will "all return to Hashem to listen to His voice according to all the commandment that He commanded, with all our heart and all of our souls - we and our children." Then Hashem will "return our captivity, etc." The way things look today, our generation would not seem to fulfill this condition at all. This could give one cause to give up hope, as we wrote before, but the resolution to this difficulty will be given shortly.
In truth, this very question can be posed in regards to numerous statements of chazal themselves, that were given over in the Mishna and Gemara in regards to the signs of the times before the redemption. These descriptions do not paint a positive picture at all, as we find at the end of the Mishnayos of Sotah and Sanhedrin (97). There it states that in the steps leading to Moshiach (עקבתא דמשיחא), brazenness will abound, etc., and there will be no room for rebuke. The young will embarrass their elders, elders will stand [in respect] before children, a son will curse his father, a daughter will rise up against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. A man's enemies will be the members of his own household, etc. The list there continues; The wisdom of the sages will be rejected, those who fear sin will be viewed with disgust, the Truth will be hidden. In Sanhedrin it states that this means that the truth will 'line up and leave,' in other words, the Truth will be emptied from the world to a greater extent with each passing day. It says there further that [Moshiach] Ben Dovid will not come... until there are many who will inform on others; as well as many other similar ideas, some of which are based on verses in the Torah and prophets. We see that all of these have been fulfilled in our generation (and also all the concepts in regards to extreme poverty have also occurred).
All this would seem to be very difficult to understand in light of the fact that the Torah itself seems to say that the Jewish people will look completely different in the age before the advent of Moshiach. At that time, the Torah says we will return to Hashem, as it states explicitly, "And it will be when these things come upon you... the blessing and curse, and you will return to Hashem your God, and you will listen to His voice etc. Then Hashem will return your captives etc." These verses represent the promise of Hashem that it will indeed be so, as the Ramban explains.
There are a number of different approaches that can help us understand this matter (see the gemara there in Sanhedrin 97B and 98), but the simplest understanding, which explains this on the most elemental level, is that really both aspects are true. At the end of time, immediately prior to redemption, there will be two types of people. Both types will help to hasten the redemption, as we will explain.
There will be a portion of the people of Israel who will strengthen themselves to serve Hashem with all of their hearts and all of their souls; both themselves and their children. These are the ones who have perfect faith in the traditions of our people, who serve Hashem in this generation. They do so despite the rampant secularization that has risen to try to stamp out and destroy religious observance through the many books and media that are available, as well as the designs of the Evil Inclination himself which lead one to follow his desires for physical pursuits. All of these forces cause many to disdain their obligations to Heaven and the study of Torah and the performance of Mitzvos. At such a time, there are those who remain steadfast to the faith of Israel, who redouble their efforts to keep all the laws of the Torah, without letting themselves become weakened. Likewise, they teach their children to hold onto the Torah of Hashem, not to stray to the right nor to the left from that which it says. Certainly, the level of this group is extremely high, for maintaining this commitment involves tremendous self-sacrifice. Not only must they go against the tide, but they are derided by others, even more than the derision that was experienced by previous generations, for steadfastly clinging to the faith of their forefathers. We can understand their great level in light of the statement that is found in Avos D'rebbe Nosson. There it states that "One [mitzvah performed] with pain is equal to one hundred [mitzvos performed] without pain." Thus, one who serves Hashem in our times is pure and clean, because he receives no honor for his observance. If anything, he is ridiculed by certain types of people.
There are also those that are determined to provide their children with a proper Jewish education. In order to do so, they accept upon themselves to live a life of financial pressure all their lives, eking out a living, much of which is given to pay the tuition of their children. This is all to insure that their children will be given a strong background in the Torah of Hashem. They do not go to far off places where it is easier to make a living, but rather, remain where they are, solely to guarantee that their children will receive a proper education in Torah and fear of Hashem. We can certainly say that this is considered 'returning to Hashem with all one's heart and soul.'
And similarly, there are the young individuals who who hear the call of Hashem, and devote their days and nights to studying the Torah of Hashem. They allow their faces to turn dark from a lack of food, in their quest to be attached to the Torah of Hashem and His mitzvos with all of their efforts and desire. When there are many who would disturb and ridicule them, they strengthen themselves to uphold their covenant of holiness in Torah and service of Hashem, and all their commitment to all that is written in the Torah and prophets. All of this is holy to them, and their exalted level rises up greatly at a time such as this. These young men of Israel withstand the test of difficult times, and despite the difficulty they endure, strengthen themselves to keep the laws of Hashem with all of their ability. They force themselves to live with crusty bread and a bit of water so that nothing improper should enter their mouths. Thus, despite their hunger and thirst, they continue in this way for days and years, without heaven forbid rebelling against Hashem. Rather, they focus on what they lack in Torah and mitzvos, and that which they must strive to improve spiritually. Is this not "returning to Hashem with all of one's heart and all of one's soul?" Their service of Hashem is perfectly complete, and the merit of any one of them alone would bring many others to be judged for good.
Similarly, we see that the holiness of the nation of Israel remains, despite the difficulties that continue to plague us with each passing day. We see this in those who strengthen themselves with all of their souls to keep the laws of the Torah, both they and their children, and they come to pray, weeping and confessing in front of Hashem, all this while declaring Hashem's righteousness. They set times to learn, and despite their poverty and difficult circumstances, continue to have mercy on others and to perform acts of kindness, with all their ingenuity. In regards to all of these people, it is easy to apply the verse, "and it will be when these matters come upon you, the blessing and the curse that I placed before you, and you will return to your heart, etc... and you will hear His voice as all I command you today, you and your children, with all of your heart and with all of your soul." These people who remain steadfast to their faith return to their hearts and know the great gravity of Hashem's service and the Mitzvos that are incumbent upon them, and they sacrifice in order to fulfill the Torah, both they and their children.
To be continued...
Chapter 1
In our times, we see that in many places our religion has been greatly weakened, to the point where children, from a young age, are disconnected from the study of Hashem's Torah, an event which did not occur in previous times. When we look into this well, the reasons for this involve a number of different matters. The main reason is a weakening in the fundamental beliefs of Judaism - the belief in an Eternal World to come, ultimate reward and punishment, in the advent of Moshiach, and the ultimate goals and roles of the Jewish people as described in the Torah. These very matters are what has given the Jewish people the fortitude to undergo many difficulties throughout the generations, and to stand up for their faith unstintingly, both for themselves and their children. It would have been greater for a father to watch his son be slaughtered in front of his very eyes for the sake of Hashem, rather than watch his child be raised in a world of affluence that veered away from the true path of Torah and Mitzvos.
In our times, the Satan has succeeded, through the aid of his many minions, in weakening the roots of faith from within the people of Israel, whether it is in regards to the concept of reward and punishment, or the words of the prophets describing our lofty goals. When they see the difficulties they must endure each day, they can not help but think that Hashem has hidden Himself from us completely. This causes them to give up hope of ever seeing the redemption, and they do not wait for the Heavenly Kingdom at all. Each person thus develops rationalizations that he must support his family, whether it will be in a permitted or forbidden manner.
Beyond this, we find that even straight and good people, when they see the spiritual degeneration of others who have thrown off the obligations of the Torah, and who have made light of stringent matters (for example the desecration of Shabbos, about which the Torah says "those who desecrate it will die" and family purity, which the Torah equates with all forbidden relations), the hearts of these faithful people fall within them and they give up hope. They say to themselves, "How can we hold out our hope in such a generation that Hashem will have mercy, despite the way His people desecrate His Torah in such a horrible way?" As a result of this, their hope is completely weakened, and they do not believe they can even try to help anyone else from falling into the deep pit of spiritual destruction.
Therefore, I felt an obligation upon myself to give the proper perspective on this matter, which is truly the opposite of what one might have thought. The truth is that in our times, there is actually more reason to believe that the redemption is close, and therefore more reason to hope for an imminent salvation. This is despite the impression one would get from reading the Torah's description of the state of the Jewish people immediately prior to the redemption. In Parshas Nitzavim, where it describes this condition, the Torah says that the redemption will occur when we will "all return to Hashem to listen to His voice according to all the commandment that He commanded, with all our heart and all of our souls - we and our children." Then Hashem will "return our captivity, etc." The way things look today, our generation would not seem to fulfill this condition at all. This could give one cause to give up hope, as we wrote before, but the resolution to this difficulty will be given shortly.
In truth, this very question can be posed in regards to numerous statements of chazal themselves, that were given over in the Mishna and Gemara in regards to the signs of the times before the redemption. These descriptions do not paint a positive picture at all, as we find at the end of the Mishnayos of Sotah and Sanhedrin (97). There it states that in the steps leading to Moshiach (עקבתא דמשיחא), brazenness will abound, etc., and there will be no room for rebuke. The young will embarrass their elders, elders will stand [in respect] before children, a son will curse his father, a daughter will rise up against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. A man's enemies will be the members of his own household, etc. The list there continues; The wisdom of the sages will be rejected, those who fear sin will be viewed with disgust, the Truth will be hidden. In Sanhedrin it states that this means that the truth will 'line up and leave,' in other words, the Truth will be emptied from the world to a greater extent with each passing day. It says there further that [Moshiach] Ben Dovid will not come... until there are many who will inform on others; as well as many other similar ideas, some of which are based on verses in the Torah and prophets. We see that all of these have been fulfilled in our generation (and also all the concepts in regards to extreme poverty have also occurred).
All this would seem to be very difficult to understand in light of the fact that the Torah itself seems to say that the Jewish people will look completely different in the age before the advent of Moshiach. At that time, the Torah says we will return to Hashem, as it states explicitly, "And it will be when these things come upon you... the blessing and curse, and you will return to Hashem your God, and you will listen to His voice etc. Then Hashem will return your captives etc." These verses represent the promise of Hashem that it will indeed be so, as the Ramban explains.
There are a number of different approaches that can help us understand this matter (see the gemara there in Sanhedrin 97B and 98), but the simplest understanding, which explains this on the most elemental level, is that really both aspects are true. At the end of time, immediately prior to redemption, there will be two types of people. Both types will help to hasten the redemption, as we will explain.
There will be a portion of the people of Israel who will strengthen themselves to serve Hashem with all of their hearts and all of their souls; both themselves and their children. These are the ones who have perfect faith in the traditions of our people, who serve Hashem in this generation. They do so despite the rampant secularization that has risen to try to stamp out and destroy religious observance through the many books and media that are available, as well as the designs of the Evil Inclination himself which lead one to follow his desires for physical pursuits. All of these forces cause many to disdain their obligations to Heaven and the study of Torah and the performance of Mitzvos. At such a time, there are those who remain steadfast to the faith of Israel, who redouble their efforts to keep all the laws of the Torah, without letting themselves become weakened. Likewise, they teach their children to hold onto the Torah of Hashem, not to stray to the right nor to the left from that which it says. Certainly, the level of this group is extremely high, for maintaining this commitment involves tremendous self-sacrifice. Not only must they go against the tide, but they are derided by others, even more than the derision that was experienced by previous generations, for steadfastly clinging to the faith of their forefathers. We can understand their great level in light of the statement that is found in Avos D'rebbe Nosson. There it states that "One [mitzvah performed] with pain is equal to one hundred [mitzvos performed] without pain." Thus, one who serves Hashem in our times is pure and clean, because he receives no honor for his observance. If anything, he is ridiculed by certain types of people.
There are also those that are determined to provide their children with a proper Jewish education. In order to do so, they accept upon themselves to live a life of financial pressure all their lives, eking out a living, much of which is given to pay the tuition of their children. This is all to insure that their children will be given a strong background in the Torah of Hashem. They do not go to far off places where it is easier to make a living, but rather, remain where they are, solely to guarantee that their children will receive a proper education in Torah and fear of Hashem. We can certainly say that this is considered 'returning to Hashem with all one's heart and soul.'
And similarly, there are the young individuals who who hear the call of Hashem, and devote their days and nights to studying the Torah of Hashem. They allow their faces to turn dark from a lack of food, in their quest to be attached to the Torah of Hashem and His mitzvos with all of their efforts and desire. When there are many who would disturb and ridicule them, they strengthen themselves to uphold their covenant of holiness in Torah and service of Hashem, and all their commitment to all that is written in the Torah and prophets. All of this is holy to them, and their exalted level rises up greatly at a time such as this. These young men of Israel withstand the test of difficult times, and despite the difficulty they endure, strengthen themselves to keep the laws of Hashem with all of their ability. They force themselves to live with crusty bread and a bit of water so that nothing improper should enter their mouths. Thus, despite their hunger and thirst, they continue in this way for days and years, without heaven forbid rebelling against Hashem. Rather, they focus on what they lack in Torah and mitzvos, and that which they must strive to improve spiritually. Is this not "returning to Hashem with all of one's heart and all of one's soul?" Their service of Hashem is perfectly complete, and the merit of any one of them alone would bring many others to be judged for good.
Similarly, we see that the holiness of the nation of Israel remains, despite the difficulties that continue to plague us with each passing day. We see this in those who strengthen themselves with all of their souls to keep the laws of the Torah, both they and their children, and they come to pray, weeping and confessing in front of Hashem, all this while declaring Hashem's righteousness. They set times to learn, and despite their poverty and difficult circumstances, continue to have mercy on others and to perform acts of kindness, with all their ingenuity. In regards to all of these people, it is easy to apply the verse, "and it will be when these matters come upon you, the blessing and the curse that I placed before you, and you will return to your heart, etc... and you will hear His voice as all I command you today, you and your children, with all of your heart and with all of your soul." These people who remain steadfast to their faith return to their hearts and know the great gravity of Hashem's service and the Mitzvos that are incumbent upon them, and they sacrifice in order to fulfill the Torah, both they and their children.
To be continued...
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
The Chofetz Chaim on living in Israel part 2
Before we continue with some thoughts and stories from the Chofetz Chaim about Eretz Yisrael , it is important that we understand that there are two things going on in these stories, that at first may seem to be a contradiction. The first is that the Chofetz Chaim had a tremendous love for Eretz Yisrael and a desire to live there. On the other hand, he clearly despised the spiritual destitution that was to be the legacy of those who wanted to create a 'new Judaism' on the foundation of the country of Israel and the language of Hebrew. Thus, he loved Eretz Yisrael, but strongly opposed the separation of the land from the Torah. As we saw previously, he said that the land of Eretz Yisrael is like the body of the Jewish people, and the Torah is like the soul. This recognition of Eretz Yisrael's greatness also means that there is a great responsibility, as well, for those who live in its holy borders. We must bear all these thoughts in mind as we read the following.
One time, they read him an article from a newspaper, in which one of the 'maskilim' expressed his hope that in the end Eretz Yisrael would be an independant country like Bulgaria, which was established on the ruins of Turkey. The Chofetz Chaim burst out crying and said, "Does this matter make sense? We are suffering for one thousand eight hundred years, our blood flows like water, we increase our prayers and supplications for a respite from the difficulties of the exile, and here they satisfy themselves with only a small amount? They have completely forgotten about the roles our prophets set out for us, and the promises of our holy Torah."
On the Chofetz Chaim's love for Eretz Yisrael:
The following story reveals how great was the Chofetz Chaim's longing to go up to live in Eretz Yisrael. In the year 5640 (1880), in the tna'im (prenuptial agreement) with his son-in-law Harav Hagaon R' Aharon Cohen Zt'l, the Chofetz Chaim accepted responsibility to support him for a number of years, as was the custom then. He explicitly stipulated that his son-in-law would not have the right to prevent him from going up to live in Eretz Yisrael during that time period. Furthermore, in the year 5864 (1894), when he married his second wife, the daughter of Harav hagaon R' Hillel z'l from the city of Lapi, he stipulated that if he decides to go up to live in Eretz Yisrael, his wife must do so as well. In his final years, in the year 5687 (1927), he had already prepared himself to move to Eretz Yisrael, and he had packed all of his belongings and sent them to Warsaw, when his wife suddenly became ill, and he was forced to push off his passage until she became well. It was ordained from heaven that he was held back, and in the end he was buried in Radin, the city in which he had spread Torah all of his life, and from which his Torah and halachic direction had gone out to all of the Jewish people through his great books - Chofetz Chaim, Mishna Brura on Orach Chaim, Lekutei Halachos on Seder Kodshim, Ahavas Chesed, and more.
One time he told those close to him, while speaking of the greatness of Eretz Yisrael, that if someone would be sitting in a remote place and would say something negative about the king, albeit not in his presence, if the king would find out about it, he would be severely punished. But when someone enters the courtyard of the king and has such audacity right in front of him, this is a sin that can not be atoned for...
See the Ramban (Beraishis 19:5) in regards to the story with Sodom, and these are his words, "And know that the judgment on Sodom was because of the greatness of Eretz Yisrael, since it is included in the inheritance of Hashem, and it can not stand abominations. When it spits out an entire nation [i.e. the seven nations of Canaan] because of their abominations, as a prelude, it spit out this nation [of Sodom] who were evil in their relationship with heaven and with man. This led to a destruction of heaven and earth, to the point where the earth would never be relieved of its desolation there. They had become prideful as a result of the great good they had received [as Sodom was an extremely fertile area, comparable to the Nile area in Egypt], and Hashem saw fit that it should be a sign for the rebellious ones of the Jewish people that would inherit it in the end. This was contained in the warning to them - [if they would veer from the proper path, the land would be destroyed with] sulfur and salt that would consume the land, like the destruction of Sodom and Amorah etc. This is important to understand, for there were other nations who did great evil at that time, and they did not receive such punishment [as the inhabitants of Sodom], because it was the greatness of this land that led to this, for it is the palace of Hashem."
Who is wise and will understand this, how much it is necessary to be careful in one's actions of Mitzvos in the Holy Land, the palace of the king. This is what it says in Tehillim (105), "And he gave them of the land of nations [i.e. Eretz Yisrael]... in order that they keep his laws and protect his commands." The great Torah personages in the Holy land, who protect those who learn Torah and keep the mitzvos with all of their strength, they are the mighty ones who sustain the Yishuv.
One time we heard how the Chofetz Chaim expressed his anguish about the leftists in Eretz Yisrael, "Could it be that something good will come out of the left, that the Divine Presence will rest on their actions?"
The Chofetz Chaim was once shown a newspaper article that had been written by a certain writer. It contained the idea that one could be a good Jew even without the Torah. The Chofetz Chaim then distributed an important piece in which he proved that the continuation of the Jewish people is only dependent upon the Torah and Jewish commitment to it, and not on connection to a country or language. If we do not keep the Torah, the country and language will not save us. Our forefathers lived in the land, and they were exiled because of their sins, as the prophet says (Yechezkel 39), "And the nations knew that the Jewish exile was the result of their sins, for they rebelled against Me, and I hid my face from them and gave them into the hands of their enemies."
It is a grave mistake that these people make, to think that the Torah and mitzvos are secondary matters and are unconnected to the building of the land. Remember the words of the Torah (Vayikra 18:21), "That the land not vomit you out when you contaminate it, as it vomited out the nations before you." Eretz Yisrael is the palace of the king, one who sins there sins a great sin, and the danger [that results from sin] is much greater there!
The son of the Chofetz Chaim, Harav R' Leib zt'l, would tell over that when the British announced the Balfour declaration in regards to Eretz Yisrael, the Chofetz Chaim saw in this a type of אתערותא דלעילא (awakening from above) in regards to the redemption, and he spoke then of the Ohr Hachaim on the verse "וקם שבט בישראל" - "and a rod shall rise in Israel." [There the Ohr Hachaim speaks about the two possibilities in regards to the redemption. It can come miraculously, if the Jewish people merit it, or it can come in a natural way, if they do not. This part of the passuk refers to the redemption coming in a natural way in the merit of the tzaddikim of the Jewish people, who are referred to as Yisrael.] He said, however, that he was worried that the 'frei' would destroy it [as a result of their bad deeds], heaven forbid. He would also say that were many times in the past that had been opportunities lost for the redemption as a result of the destructive deeds of the generation.
One time, they read him an article from a newspaper, in which one of the 'maskilim' expressed his hope that in the end Eretz Yisrael would be an independant country like Bulgaria, which was established on the ruins of Turkey. The Chofetz Chaim burst out crying and said, "Does this matter make sense? We are suffering for one thousand eight hundred years, our blood flows like water, we increase our prayers and supplications for a respite from the difficulties of the exile, and here they satisfy themselves with only a small amount? They have completely forgotten about the roles our prophets set out for us, and the promises of our holy Torah."
On the Chofetz Chaim's love for Eretz Yisrael:
The following story reveals how great was the Chofetz Chaim's longing to go up to live in Eretz Yisrael. In the year 5640 (1880), in the tna'im (prenuptial agreement) with his son-in-law Harav Hagaon R' Aharon Cohen Zt'l, the Chofetz Chaim accepted responsibility to support him for a number of years, as was the custom then. He explicitly stipulated that his son-in-law would not have the right to prevent him from going up to live in Eretz Yisrael during that time period. Furthermore, in the year 5864 (1894), when he married his second wife, the daughter of Harav hagaon R' Hillel z'l from the city of Lapi, he stipulated that if he decides to go up to live in Eretz Yisrael, his wife must do so as well. In his final years, in the year 5687 (1927), he had already prepared himself to move to Eretz Yisrael, and he had packed all of his belongings and sent them to Warsaw, when his wife suddenly became ill, and he was forced to push off his passage until she became well. It was ordained from heaven that he was held back, and in the end he was buried in Radin, the city in which he had spread Torah all of his life, and from which his Torah and halachic direction had gone out to all of the Jewish people through his great books - Chofetz Chaim, Mishna Brura on Orach Chaim, Lekutei Halachos on Seder Kodshim, Ahavas Chesed, and more.
One time he told those close to him, while speaking of the greatness of Eretz Yisrael, that if someone would be sitting in a remote place and would say something negative about the king, albeit not in his presence, if the king would find out about it, he would be severely punished. But when someone enters the courtyard of the king and has such audacity right in front of him, this is a sin that can not be atoned for...
See the Ramban (Beraishis 19:5) in regards to the story with Sodom, and these are his words, "And know that the judgment on Sodom was because of the greatness of Eretz Yisrael, since it is included in the inheritance of Hashem, and it can not stand abominations. When it spits out an entire nation [i.e. the seven nations of Canaan] because of their abominations, as a prelude, it spit out this nation [of Sodom] who were evil in their relationship with heaven and with man. This led to a destruction of heaven and earth, to the point where the earth would never be relieved of its desolation there. They had become prideful as a result of the great good they had received [as Sodom was an extremely fertile area, comparable to the Nile area in Egypt], and Hashem saw fit that it should be a sign for the rebellious ones of the Jewish people that would inherit it in the end. This was contained in the warning to them - [if they would veer from the proper path, the land would be destroyed with] sulfur and salt that would consume the land, like the destruction of Sodom and Amorah etc. This is important to understand, for there were other nations who did great evil at that time, and they did not receive such punishment [as the inhabitants of Sodom], because it was the greatness of this land that led to this, for it is the palace of Hashem."
Who is wise and will understand this, how much it is necessary to be careful in one's actions of Mitzvos in the Holy Land, the palace of the king. This is what it says in Tehillim (105), "And he gave them of the land of nations [i.e. Eretz Yisrael]... in order that they keep his laws and protect his commands." The great Torah personages in the Holy land, who protect those who learn Torah and keep the mitzvos with all of their strength, they are the mighty ones who sustain the Yishuv.
One time we heard how the Chofetz Chaim expressed his anguish about the leftists in Eretz Yisrael, "Could it be that something good will come out of the left, that the Divine Presence will rest on their actions?"
The Chofetz Chaim was once shown a newspaper article that had been written by a certain writer. It contained the idea that one could be a good Jew even without the Torah. The Chofetz Chaim then distributed an important piece in which he proved that the continuation of the Jewish people is only dependent upon the Torah and Jewish commitment to it, and not on connection to a country or language. If we do not keep the Torah, the country and language will not save us. Our forefathers lived in the land, and they were exiled because of their sins, as the prophet says (Yechezkel 39), "And the nations knew that the Jewish exile was the result of their sins, for they rebelled against Me, and I hid my face from them and gave them into the hands of their enemies."
It is a grave mistake that these people make, to think that the Torah and mitzvos are secondary matters and are unconnected to the building of the land. Remember the words of the Torah (Vayikra 18:21), "That the land not vomit you out when you contaminate it, as it vomited out the nations before you." Eretz Yisrael is the palace of the king, one who sins there sins a great sin, and the danger [that results from sin] is much greater there!
The son of the Chofetz Chaim, Harav R' Leib zt'l, would tell over that when the British announced the Balfour declaration in regards to Eretz Yisrael, the Chofetz Chaim saw in this a type of אתערותא דלעילא (awakening from above) in regards to the redemption, and he spoke then of the Ohr Hachaim on the verse "וקם שבט בישראל" - "and a rod shall rise in Israel." [There the Ohr Hachaim speaks about the two possibilities in regards to the redemption. It can come miraculously, if the Jewish people merit it, or it can come in a natural way, if they do not. This part of the passuk refers to the redemption coming in a natural way in the merit of the tzaddikim of the Jewish people, who are referred to as Yisrael.] He said, however, that he was worried that the 'frei' would destroy it [as a result of their bad deeds], heaven forbid. He would also say that were many times in the past that had been opportunities lost for the redemption as a result of the destructive deeds of the generation.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
The Chofetz Chaim on living in Israel
I came across a very interesting piece in the sefer חפץ חיים על התורה, which is a collection of the teachings of the Chofetz Chaim on the parsha. It was put together by Rabbi Shmuel Greineman, who clearly knew the Chofetz Chaim personally. At the beginning of the book, he printed the following letter from the Chofetz Chaim:
To my esteemed friend, the great rav Shmuel Greineman,
I am quite surprised that I was not informed any further as regards our previous correspondance, which I recall fondly, whether the project we discussed had been distributed far and wide. Certainly there would be at least some benefit for all. I am of a similar mind to you, as we both worked on this mitzvah, and it is like a person who who planted a vineyard, which Baruch Hashem was successful and produced fruit, and yet he is lazy in regards to collecting it. Therefore, my friend, find the addresses and send it out to all. In this merit, we will both be mentioned as part of the assembly of Israel on the holy festival for good and blessings. If there are any costs, I will pay.
Your friend who blesses you with all the best,
Yisrael Meir Hacohen (The Chofetz Chaim)
The following is a piece the Chofetz Chaim wrote on next week's parsha, Parshas Bo, concerning the proper Torah Hashkafa on the concept of living in Eretz Yisrael
ארץ זבת חלב ודבש שמות" י״ג:ה׳" "A land of milk and honey"
The Torah and Eretz Yisrael are two things Hashem acquired in His world. Their connection to each other is like the soul to the body. The soul is the Torah, while the body is Eretz Yisrael.
The soul can not exist on its own - it needs a body. The body itself is just a clump of dirt, dust of the earth, and is in need of a soul.
The soul of the Jewish people is the Torah, and its body is the land of Israel. The soul certainly can not survive without a body, and all the commandments that are dependant on The Land can not be fulfilled without Eretz Yisrael. Our nation can not last in exile, and it is forbidden for us to remain here, nor to go elsewhere to be involved in business. Here they attempt to catch us and accuse us, nevertheless we live and survive, if but in difficulty.
But Eretz Yisrael without Torah is nothing but a clump of earth, a body without a soul. Only the two of them together are good, like the statement of the prophet Yeshaya (42), "He spreads out the land and its offspring, and gives a soul to the nation upon it."
Rav Shmuel Greineman, in the footnotes on this vort, brings down a number of stories of the Chofetz Chaim, in regards to his thoughts on Eretz Yisrael. These stories are very interesting, and I hope to post more over the next few days. For now, here is the first one.
The Chofetz Chaim never let his mind wander from the mitzvah of settling Eretz Yisrael.
I remember, in the winter of 5678 (1918), when the Chofetz Chaim was told about the tremendous joy that spread throughout Jewish homes in reponse to the Balfour declaration. The Chofetz Chaim burst out crying, and said, "What does joy accomplish? Hashem promised us that we would 'burst forth westward, eastward, northward, and southward.' This is a guaranteed document that Hashem will pay up in its appointed time.
"Now people have come and only admit to a small part of Hashem's document, and everyone is getting excited as if the redemption has almost arrived!
"People are ready to be satisfied with a small amount... They don't expect more... Woe unto us!" And he continued to cry.
The more things change, the more they stay the same.
To my esteemed friend, the great rav Shmuel Greineman,
I am quite surprised that I was not informed any further as regards our previous correspondance, which I recall fondly, whether the project we discussed had been distributed far and wide. Certainly there would be at least some benefit for all. I am of a similar mind to you, as we both worked on this mitzvah, and it is like a person who who planted a vineyard, which Baruch Hashem was successful and produced fruit, and yet he is lazy in regards to collecting it. Therefore, my friend, find the addresses and send it out to all. In this merit, we will both be mentioned as part of the assembly of Israel on the holy festival for good and blessings. If there are any costs, I will pay.
Your friend who blesses you with all the best,
Yisrael Meir Hacohen (The Chofetz Chaim)
The following is a piece the Chofetz Chaim wrote on next week's parsha, Parshas Bo, concerning the proper Torah Hashkafa on the concept of living in Eretz Yisrael
ארץ זבת חלב ודבש שמות" י״ג:ה׳" "A land of milk and honey"
The Torah and Eretz Yisrael are two things Hashem acquired in His world. Their connection to each other is like the soul to the body. The soul is the Torah, while the body is Eretz Yisrael.
The soul can not exist on its own - it needs a body. The body itself is just a clump of dirt, dust of the earth, and is in need of a soul.
The soul of the Jewish people is the Torah, and its body is the land of Israel. The soul certainly can not survive without a body, and all the commandments that are dependant on The Land can not be fulfilled without Eretz Yisrael. Our nation can not last in exile, and it is forbidden for us to remain here, nor to go elsewhere to be involved in business. Here they attempt to catch us and accuse us, nevertheless we live and survive, if but in difficulty.
But Eretz Yisrael without Torah is nothing but a clump of earth, a body without a soul. Only the two of them together are good, like the statement of the prophet Yeshaya (42), "He spreads out the land and its offspring, and gives a soul to the nation upon it."
Rav Shmuel Greineman, in the footnotes on this vort, brings down a number of stories of the Chofetz Chaim, in regards to his thoughts on Eretz Yisrael. These stories are very interesting, and I hope to post more over the next few days. For now, here is the first one.
The Chofetz Chaim never let his mind wander from the mitzvah of settling Eretz Yisrael.
I remember, in the winter of 5678 (1918), when the Chofetz Chaim was told about the tremendous joy that spread throughout Jewish homes in reponse to the Balfour declaration. The Chofetz Chaim burst out crying, and said, "What does joy accomplish? Hashem promised us that we would 'burst forth westward, eastward, northward, and southward.' This is a guaranteed document that Hashem will pay up in its appointed time.
"Now people have come and only admit to a small part of Hashem's document, and everyone is getting excited as if the redemption has almost arrived!
"People are ready to be satisfied with a small amount... They don't expect more... Woe unto us!" And he continued to cry.
The more things change, the more they stay the same.
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