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26 Iyar 5759 - May 12, 1999 | Mordecai Plaut, director Published Weekly
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Statement by HaRav Aharon Leib Steinman

This statement was delivered by HaRav Aharon Leib Steinman at the UTJ campaign rally in Yerushalayim.

It is written in the novi (Mal'achi 3), Oz nidberu yirei Hashem ish el rei'eihu, vayaksheiv Hashem vayishma, vayikoseiv sefer zikoron lefonov, leyirei Hashem ulechoshvei shemo, then those who fear Hashem spoke to each other, and Hashem listened and He heard, and He wrote a book of remembrance before Him, to those who fear Hashem and honor His name."

"Vayaksheiv Hashem." We know that no move that a person makes is lost! Every move, every tiny thing a person does is not hidden from HaKodosh Boruch Hu. But here it specifically writes, "Hashem listened," to imply that even though Hashem supervises everything, and a person is responsible for everything he does his entire life -- here specifically the novi writes "vayaksheiv" to imply that this is special, that when yirei Hashem speak to each other, Hashem gives special attention.

Here, where a multitude of bnei Yisroel gathered to do something for kevod Shomayim, it is undoubtedly in the category of vayaksheiv Hashem.

The Bach asks in hilchos Chanukah (670): Why is it that on Purim, there is feasting and simcha, but on Chanukah there is not. Why was Chanukah not established as a day of feasting and simcha like Purim? The Bach says: It seems that on Purim, the main reason for the decree was because they enjoyed [Achashverosh's] feast. So, it was decreed that they be killed and destroyed physically, because they enjoyed forbidden food and drink and forbidden feasting and simcha.

When they did teshuvah, they afflicted their souls, like Esther said, "Go and gather all the Jews and do not eat and do not drink for three days." Therefore [Purim] was established as a day of feasting to remember the main miracle.

But on Chanukah, the decree was because "they were negligent in the service (of Hashem]," so the decree was to nullify the avoda, like it says in the Beraissa that the korbon tomid was nullified. He also said that they have one mitzva, that if you nullify that mitzva, they are already lost. Which one? Lighting the menora about which is written, leha'alos ner tomid -- as long as they light it, they are constantly standing.

The Greeks went and defiled all the oils. When the Jews did teshuvah and were moser nefesh for the avoda, and Hashem saved them through the Cohanim, who do the avoda in Hashem's house. Therefore, the miracle was also done with the candles and [the yom tov] was only established to praise and to thank, which is avoda shebaleiv.

The Bach brings proof from Chazal that they decreed to nullify the korbon tomid, and about the matter of the menora, but he does not bring proof of the fact that they were negligent in the avoda. Perhaps he had proof of it, but he does not mention it. He just brings proof that it is written in Chazal that they canceled the avoda but does not prove that this was because they were negligent.

The words of the Bach imply that if we see that there are decrees, we know that it must be that first they stumbled, cholila, and were negligent in this matter and then there are decrees. If we see that there are decrees on the avoda, there must have been some negligence in the avoda. Otherwise, as long as Klal Yisroel was strong in the avoda, there could not have been a decree to nullify the avoda. If we see a decree to nullify the avoda, it is a sign that there was negligence.

Unfortunately, we all know that the streets today are full of incitement against the Torah and bnei Torah, talmidei chachomim and those who keep Torah and mitzvos. It was never so prevalent like now that from every side, from the entire world, we hear incitement against Torah observant Jews. And why is this? If we see it, it is a sign that the defect is negligence!

The chillul Hashem prevalent today is probably because there is negligence in making a kiddush Hashem. The solution is to strengthen ourselves in kiddush Hashem. The only thing we can do against the matter is to do the opposite. If it was negligence that caused chillul Hashem, we have to make a kiddush Hashem.

And what is a kiddush Hashem? It is well known that the Steipler zt'l used to always say that the reason to vote is not so much to determine how many representatives there are in the Knesset. The main thing is that each person expresses that he wants Klal Yisroel to act according to the Torah. This is worth more than anything. The main thing is that Jews are screaming, we want Klal Yisroel to be under the Torah's direction. This is a kiddush Hashem! And this is what is being demanded of us.

The main thing that is being demanded is that a person should not say, what is the difference if I vote or not; it will be the same thing, one person less or one person more. This is not true. Every vote is a kiddush sheim Shomayim; through this he says that he wants those who go in the way of Hashem, that listen to the opinion of chachomim, when he votes for them. This is called a kiddush Hashem! And this is what we must do to rectify the chillul Hashem that is in the street today.

Everyone knows that it is not a matter of one vote more or less. No! Each vote counts! A king is glorified in a multitude of the nation. When a man says that he wants those who want to act according to the way of Hashem, he makes a kiddush Hashem, and this will rectify the chillul Hashem.

And with this Hashem should help that the prosecution should really stop, and we should be zoche that Klal Yisroel will be uplifted and lift up the horn of the Torah and Yisroel, and we should be zoche to everything good with the coming of the go'el tzedek.


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