B"H
THOUGHTS FOR THE TENTH OF TEVES
Dear Friends:
There is
a drought in Israel .
As I write,
just after Chanukah, some rain has begun to fall, but it
is the first since the rainy season began many weeks ago. The
land is dry and Lake Kinneret is
low. When a drought occurs, historically our response
would be to declare a fast, because tribulation comes only
in response to our spiritual condition. In other words,
if something goes wrong, we are to look inside ourselves
and fix the problems. Six days a week we beg G-d to
bless our year with rain, so that our crops may grow and
we may live. An entire Talmud Tractate (Taanis)
deals with the cause and response to drought conditions and,
in general, conditions of "national distress" [1] among
the children of Israel . G-d
tells us plainly in the Shema that if we "turn astray" He
will "restrain the heaven so there will be no rain."
This Sunday's
fast day, the Tenth of Teves, commemorates events surrounding
the destruction of the Temple . However,
the entire period of exile has been and remains a time of
distress. Fasting and repentance have been designated
by our prophets and sages as an appropriate response to our
troubles. If Israel does
not receive rain during its season, then we must help the
situation by causing rain to fall from our eyes in the form
of tears, because there is a deficiency in us which is causing
the lack of rain.
My dear friends,
we are now reading in the Weekly Parshios, the account
of the descent of the children of Israel into
Egyptian slavery. The Torah is the prototype for all
future events, and so this descent into slavery is the prototype
for all future exiles, including our current exile, which
has lasted almost two thousand years from the destruction
of the Second Temple . The
descent into slavery in Egypt was
caused ostensibly by famine in the land of Israel . Famine
is caused by lack of rain. As we say three times a
day in the Shemoneh Esrei, "bless this year and ...
its crops ... and send dew and rain as a blessing onto the
face of the land, and satisfy us from Your bounty...."
But what
was really behind the descent into slavery? Clearly
one event set the stage for all our troubles then and forever:
the contention among the children of Israel ,
which culminated in the sale of Joseph by his brothers. Our
rabbis tell us in the Talmud (Tractate Yoma) that
our present exile is caused by "sinas chinom," causeless
hatred among the children of Israel . This
is demonstrated very clearly by the events surrounding the
first exile of our Nation. Jealousy and hatred among
the brothers caused the first exile; jealousy and hatred
are causing all our present troubles.
Yes "all"!
My dear friends,
we are at the brink of cataclysmic events. The worldwide
enemies of our people are strengthening themselves. If
we want to survive, let alone receive the blessings of our
Father in Heaven, it is mandatory that we act as one family,
placing ourselves totally under the dominion of the Almighty
G-d Who has given us a set of rules at Mount Sinai by which
we can save ourselves.
When the
airline of Israel ridicules the
basis of our national existence, how do we expect to survive?
When the
government of Israel ridicules
the basis of our national existence, how do we expect to
survive?
But let's
get even more basic. What about me?
Let's say
I am walking down the street and I see another Jew, do I
greet that Jew? Do I greet him as if I care about him,
as if I am happy to see him, as if he is my beloved brother? Does
he return the greeting?
My dear friends,
I do not hold myself up as an example. My faults, weaknesses
and failure to observe the Torah as it should be observed
are sources of the greatest pain to me. I am not saying
that I have the proper love and respect for my fellow Jew.
But I know
one thing: if I do NOT demonstrate my love for him and my
interest in him and my concern for him as well as my complete
subservience to our Father in Heaven then I KNOW in my deepest
being that I will not survive. On a worldwide basis,
our nation can only survive if we children of Israel realize
that our survival is based on subservience to G-d and an
attitude that we are one family whose love for each other
is a prerequisite for the survival of that family.
The attitude
of the other nations toward us is a perfect reflection of
the internal attitude within our national family. If
we act toward each other with respect and familial love,
then the nations of the world will respect us and seek our
blessing. If we act toward each other with hostility,
G-d forbid! .... you fill in the rest.
Every day
in the morning prayers, we say the following words concerning
the angels surrounding the presence of G-d: they stand "at
the summit of the universe and proclaim with awe, together,
loudly the words of the living G-d and King of the universe....
Then they all accept upon themselves the yoke of heavenly
sovereignty from one another and grant permission to one
another to sanctify the One Who formed them, with tranquility,
with clear articulation and with sweetness. All of
them as one proclaim His holiness...."
Why did the
Men of the Great Assembly choose to describe the love and
deference the angels exhibit toward each other and mandate
that we repeat it each day?
It is a lesson
for us, the children of Israel ,
who are supposed to imitate these angels in our daily conduct. Do
you say we cannot act like angels? Do you say we cannot
reach that level? Well, in fact we can reach a higher
level, because angels have no free will but we do. If
we use our free will to praise G-d in unity, as one family,
one nation, the way the angels do, then we will reach an
even higher level than they!
But "My people
did not heed My voice and Israel did
not desire Me. So I let them follow their heart's fantasies,
they follow their own counsels. If only My people would
heed Me, if Israel would walk in
My ways, in an instant I would subdue their foes and against
their tormentors turn My hand." [2]
My dear friends,
this is not fantasy; this is reality. We look for every
stratagem and device, every political game plan we can think
of. Are we militarily strong? Are our enemies
weak? Are we demonstrating against the president of Iran ? Are
we demonstrating at the U. N.? Is the press covering Israel fairly? Are
we for Bush? Are we against Bush? Are we supporting
the correct party in the U. S. and
in Israel ?
My dear friends,
it is all "havail havalim... vanity of vanities."
On Sunday,
December 31, the Tenth Day of the Month of Teves, let torrents
of tears rain from our eyes. Let us weep for our inadequacies,
let us weep for the gulf that exists between brothers and
sisters among the children of Israel and
for the gaping gulf that exists between us and our Father
in Heaven. Perhaps G-d will accept our prayers and
our tears. Perhaps He will heal us and send rain upon Eretz
Yisroel. Perhaps He will send Moshiach ben Dovid and
the Final Redemption for which we all yearn from the depths
of our shattered hearts.
May we see
it soon in our days! With blessings,
Roy S. Neuberger
