Part II
In the first part, HaRav Shapira noted that we have been
in a long golus and had to move whenever we forgot
about our uniqueness. Although there are many segulos
in Eretz Yisroel, there is danger as well. In particular
there is danger from the non-religious since one could
become close to them and learn from their ways. We have to
stick with Torah; without Torah we are blind!
It may seem as if we can see well, but the
truth is that without Torah we cannot see properly! Some
people are so spiritually sick that not only are they
"blind," but they even mistake light for dark, and vice
versa.
In addition to the desire to be like all the other nations
and to remove any restraining yokes, another factor lies at
the root of the behavior and nationalistic philosophy of the
founders of the Zionist State and their successors today,
namely the attitude that, "I am wiser and more advanced and
enlightened than my father and his father; therefore, the
acts of my ancestors do not concern me at all. On the
contrary, they are a reflection of obscurantist views and a
product of life in the Diaspora. I am enlightened,
discerning, and knowledgeable."
Chazal, when talking about the acharis hayomim, tell
us that this rejection of family traditions is the result of
the influence on the nefesh of the terrible suffering
during the ikvesa demeshicho. It is a decree on the
family traditions of the Jewish nation.
Until not long ago, family traditions and ways of life were
transmitted from father to son, and so on throughout the
generations. There was an uninterrupted link for centuries
of family traditions. This way the son knew everything he
had to about his past, and these traditions ensured
continuity for the Jewish family which survived essentially
unharmed.
Ever since the decree against the Jewish family came into
effect we see, to our sorrow, that this punishment has not
escaped even the best families. Everybody runs their own
lives, living an independent existence, cut off from his
family traditions and values. As a result, the main
guarantor of the Jewish family disappeared.
The Raavad writes about this at the end of Eduyos,
that we have been blessed and promised that "he [Eliyohu]
shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the
heart of the children to their fathers." In the time to
come, families will be reunited after the break in the chain
of the generations.
The Raavad goes on to quote Rav Dimi's statement in
Chagigah 14a, "Yeshaya pronounced eighteen curses
upon the Jewish people, but he was not pacified until he
pronounced upon them this posuk, `The child shall
behave insolently against the aged, and the base against the
honorable.' " At the end of Sotoh it says, "In the
ikvesa demeshicho insolence will increase, youths
will put old men to shame, the old will stand up in the
presence of the young." This is indeed an increase in
chutzpah, for young people to lord it over their seniors.
They will think that they are the ones who know best and
that they have to be the leaders of the world.
Unfortunately, we have seen this curse fulfilled in our
time. The young generation declares that the old generation
knows nothing and that only they have the truth.
This, however, is only the first part of the kloloh.
The second part states that "the old will stand up in the
presence of the young." The Raavad says that if there is a
great increase of chutzpah in the world, we can understand
that youngsters lord it over old people, but why should the
latter give honor to the young people? Who forces them to
behave in this way? And what are they honoring them for?
The Raavad answers that in the time of the ikvesa
demeshicho, the prevailing chutzpah will be so great
that even the elders, talmidei chachomim, will
respect it. They themselves will think that insolent
youngsters are deserving of respect; not that the chutzpah,
will choliloh attach itself to them, but the increase
of chutzpah in the world will affect them to the extent that
they take chutzpah into account.
This curse, adds the Raavad, is the most terrible one, as
Rav Dimi pointed out (see above). When this kloloh
becomes fulfilled, Moshiach will have to come: the
Jewish nation will not be able to live through this
curse.
What is wrong with honoring youngsters? What harm results
from honoring non-religious Jews? The answer is to be found
in the words of the novi Malachi (3:13), "Your words
have been all too strong against me, says Hashem. Yet you
say, `How have we spoken against You'? You have said, "It is
vain to serve Hashem; and what profit is it that we have
kept His charge?"
The obvious question is, if the Jewish people made this
terrible statement, what are they surprised about? Are they
not aware of what they said and how severe it is?
The answer lies in the continuation of the passage, in
Hakodosh Boruch Hu's answer to the Jewish people,
"And now we call the proud happy!" This means that praising
the wicked and giving them respect is the equivalent of
saying that it is vain to serve Hashem and that it is not
profitable to keep His Torah. We can now understand why it
is such a severe sin to praise Jews who do not keep Torah
and mitzvos.
Remember the Torah of My Servant Moshe
During this period we are going through, we have a duty to
strengthen our emunoh in the thirteen Articles of
Faith which we say every day, including the twelfth one: "I
believe with perfect faith in the coming of Moshiach
and, though he may tarry, I await him daily." The fact that
the Rambam included this statement as one of the Principles
of Faith means that whoever does not await Moshiach
daily with a perfect faith, is not a believer! (See also
what the Rambam says in his commentary on the mishna
at the end of Perek Cheilek in Sanhedrin
about the thirteen ikkorim and how he explains the
twelfth principle.)
We must realize that Moshiach will come "suddenly to
his temple" (Malachi 3:1). The novi is telling
us that today, at any time, we will suddenly lift up our
eyes and see Moshiach standing in front of us. If we
realize this fully, and feel intensely that he will come all
of a sudden, the way we conduct ourselves and our daily
routines will be adjusted accordingly to prepare for this
sudden event.
The Brisker Rov, may his merit protect us, derived the
obligation to anticipate the yeshu'oh during every
part of the day from the posuk, "We await Your
salvation every day" (or, "the whole day").
"I await him daily." The Chofetz Chaim zt"l explained
this to mean that we are not to give up hope even for a
moment that Moshiach will come. The gemora
says that if someone accepts upon himself nezirus to
come into effect on the day that Moshiach comes, he
is forbidden to drink wine immediately, in case
Moshiach comes on the day he makes the neder
of nezirus. We see clearly from this gemora
that there is a real possibility that he may come at any
time, and every day we must be ready and prepared for
him.
He also said that if all Klal Yisroel will await his
arrival, he would surely come, and if he has not yet come,
it means that we are not genuinely anticipating him. To
believe in his imminent arrival is not some exalted level
which we should strive to achieve; it is an obligatory
fundamental article of faith! This, then, is our first
responsibility in these times, while we await the arrival of
Moshiach Tzidkeinu.
How should we prepare ourselves for his coming? We must not,
choliloh, adopt any innovations in our lives. All our
actions must be only in accordance with the Torah, as it
says at the end of Malachi, "Remember the Torah of
Moshe My servant, which I commanded in Chorev. Behold, I
will send you Eliyohu . . ." This means that we are to
prepare ourselves for Moshiach's arrival by
remembering the Torah. This preparation has tremendous
value, because the Torah protects and saves us from the
birth pangs of the Moshiach.
The Or Hachaim Hakodosh comments on the posuk in
parshas Vayechi, "Binding his foal unto the vine, and
his ass's colt unto the choice vine, he washes his garments
in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes," that there
are two types of scenarios for the arrival of
Moshiach. If the Jewish people toil in the mitzva of
limud haTorah, Moshiach will appear in full glory and
majesty, without their having to undergo the suffering of
chevlei haMoshiach. But if they, chas
vesholom, neglect the study of Torah during this time,
they will have to endure physical and emotional
suffering.
It is only if we are loaded with Torah that we can welcome
Moshiach Tzidkeinu, because ever since the time Torah
was given to us there have been no innovations and there
never will be. When Moshiach comes too, nothing will
change for us. We will have the same Krias Shema, the
same mincha and ma'ariv, the same charity and
chesed, and the same limud haTorah. There will
not be even one innovation! Our whole task consists of in
observing old, eternal mitzvos, and it will always remain
so.
When we merit the arrival of Moshiach, events will
take place which seem like incredible innovations: the
Nations of the World, and anyone amongst us who is unworthy,
will arrive through caves and clefts of the rock out of
recognition and awe of Hashem's grandeur in the world, and
the salvation of Klal Yisroel will become an
established and irreversible fact. It sounds like a state of
affairs totally different than anything that we can relate
to, but it will actually be nothing essentially new!
The Targum on Shir Hashirim (8:1), "Oh that you were
as my brother, that sucked the breasts of my mother!" says
the following: "In that time the Melech Hamoshiach
will be revealed to Knesses Yisroel, and the Jewish
people will say to him, `Come, be our brother, and let us go
up to Yerushalayim, and we will absorb your words of Torah,
like a child suckles his mother's breasts!" The
"brotherliness" of the Moshiach towards us will
consist of our going up with him to Yerushalayim to hear his
Torah. Our thirst and desire for the dvar Hashem, for
chiddushei Torah will be as intense as the suckling's
desire for his mother's milk. This will be our greeting to
Moshiach, "Teach us ta'amei haTorah!" We want
to greet him with the same unchangeable Torah!
"Torah tzivoh lonu Moshe." Nothing about this will
change! We pray to Hakodosh Boruch Hu, "Renew our
days as of old." "As of old" refers to the revelation of
taamei haTorah. Our sole possession is the Torah, and
our whole task is to observe it.
"Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; but we will
make mention of the name of Hashem." The real battlefield is
inside each one of us, in our anticipation of Hashem's
salvation. It has become patently obvious that we will not
be saved by their actions or their army. The battlefront is
not there! The yeshu'oh will come from the botei
medrash, the chadorim, the yeshivos -- and from
every Jewish household where the children are educated in
Torah and pure yiras Shomayim.
Since matan Torah, the Jewish nation has not survived
by natural means, but only by virtue of the Torah and its
blessings. We do not expect salvation from this or any other
government: we rely solely on our Father in Heaven to
protect us in the merit of our studying His Torah and of our
prayers to Him.
