Dear Ilan,
With great trepidation I write to you of two world shaking
events that took place yesterday, Shabbos Mishpotim.
Both involved men by the name of Ilan (lehavdil bein
chaim lechaim), both men with great interests in
aerospace and both events had to do with Shabbos.
In Johannesburg, Ilan the son of committed traditional Jewish
parents who are slowly building their involvement in
Yiddishkeit, kept his first Shabbos as a bar mitzvah.
He read his maftir and haftorah, pronouncing
each word clearly. He then said over his drosho on the
parsha most eloquently, demonstrating his intellect
and excellent language abilities. The drosho had been
prepared over a number of weeks, in sessions he held with his
father and his community rabbi. Ilan, for the first time, saw
during those sessions, the beauty and unbelievable depth in
the Torah and saw how the meforshim analyze and
explain the text with magnificent insights. The venue of the
day's seudahs were decorated with model airplanes,
alluding to Ilan's great passion for flying and related
matters.
Unfortunately on this very day another Ilan lost his life in
the skies over Texas, leaving behind a widow and orphans --
indeed a sad event for any fellow Jew to hear about. This man
had worked hard to make his mission worthwhile for the Jewish
nation.
Within the limits of his background, he identified a number
of deeds that he believed would contribute to unity of his
nation. He organized kosher food for his trip, he had special
containers with wine provided so that he could make
Kiddush on Shabbos, and he took a memento of the
Holocaust, with which the secular Jewish world would identify
in their quest to "never forget."
This mission generated much discussion about halocho
in space, whether Shabbos applies, what time does it start
and end and what would be the times of davening. Ilan
was interviewed about his wine and the kiddush and so
the world was connected to ideas of Judaism on a massive
scale. Some commented that the "life and death nature" of the
work would exempt a Jew from the laws of Shabbos, but others
questioned whether one was allowed to deliberately put
oneself into such a situation.
To compare any of us with a person in that holy generation
that accompanied Moshe Rabbenu in the desert would be
ludicrous and forbidden. However one cannot fail to see a
connection with an incident that is recorded in the Torah at
the end of Parshas Shelach. A certain person (known as
the mekoshesh eitzim) transgressed Shabbos in a well
publicized fashion.
His motivation is widely discussed, but however it is
explained, he is credited with bringing a great
sanctification to Hashem's name in the world. He was executed
for his actions and so the nation for all generations learnt
that the laws of Shabbos are far more than a nice national
custom. They saw them now as the foundation of the existence
of a Jew and something that no man can take lightly.
It will need the great rabbis of our generation to give a
view as to reasons why things happen and I am sure even they
would hesitate to give judgmental opinions on a Jew after he
has gone to the eternal life, where the true judgment takes
place. However, one feels such a strong impression of the
Hand of G-d in this event that I comment and I hope that it
is for the benefit of Ilan Ramon z'l.
The world paid attention to a Jew who was acting Jewish. The
world was going to celebrate the beauty of small Jewish
"traditions" and the upholding of Jewish pride. The world was
going to say that Shabbos can be celebrated with a sip of
wine. As the Columbia came back into the atmosphere,
where there are no longer doubts of when it is or isn't
Shabbos, it disintegrated and this famous Ilan became a
symbol for us all, that Hashem demands commitment from us,
even to the point of mesirus nefesh, giving up our
lives.
And back in Johannesburg, our Ilan (lbcl'c) must learn
that every Ilan (translated as "tree") must keep its roots in
the ground. His flying should be to go to places of better
Torah opportunities and to do mitzvas. He should always be
fortunate to be close to a source of water (to which the
Torah is compared), so that this Ilan will grow to be a giant
tree with its branches reaching to the Heavens.
Love and mazaltov,
Your Uncle Shraga
