| |
 |
|
|
|
Bechukotai Taken from HaMaayan/The Torah Spring edited by Shlomo Katz The Book of Vayikra closes with laws pertaining to the land of Israel, most notably, the commandment to observe sabbatical years in which the land lies fallow. The Torah foresees a time when the Shemittah will not be properly observed, and it therefore warns, in Parashat Bechukotai, of the dire punishment that will befall Bnei Yisrael for this. The three essays in this issue relate the verses of this Parasha to the events of our day. The first was written in Budapest in 1943, not long before its author was murdered by the Germans; the second in 1967, shortly after the Six Day War; the third in 1910, in an article encouraging Jews to study and observe the neglected laws of Shemittah. "And you will plant your seeds for naught, for your enemies will eat them." (Vayikra 26:16) G-d told the prophet Yechezkel: "I passed by you, and I saw you wallowing in your blood, and I said to you, 'With your blood you shall live.' I said to you, 'With your blood you shall live'." Yechezkel, in this prophecy, foresaw our condition in exile - especially in Europe - where we toiled with our blood and sweat in all walks of life for the betterment of the societies in which we lived. In the end, we saw fulfilled the words of the verse: "And you will plant your seeds for naught, for your enemies will eat them." The prophet calls to us in G-d's name: "I said to you, 'With your blood you shall live.' I said to you, 'With your blood you shall live'." All of the energies that you have previously devoted to building other societies, you should devote to building your own land and people. (R' Yissachar Shlomo Teichtel, HY"D: Eim HaBanim Smeichah, p.219) "And I will turn my anger towards you, and you will be smitten before your enemies, and your enemies will subjugate you [literally: "among you"]..." (Vayikra 26:17) On the phrase, "your enemies...among you," Rashi comments, "Your enemies will come from among you. When the gentile nations rise up against the Jews, they seek to deprive the Jews only of their visible [i.e. material] riches, but when the enemies come from among you, they seek to deprive you of that which is hidden." "That which is hidden" refers to that which is within our hearts, i.e. our desire to serve Hashem faithfully. When we see our enemies attacking in this manner, we may be sure that the "War of Gog and Magog," the precursor to the redemption, is rapidly approaching. The Midrash says that Haman considered Pharaoh to be a fool, for Pharaoh sought to kill only Jewish boys, thus leaving the girls to marry and have children. Haman said, "I will kill them all." In the future, Gog and Magog will say, Haman was a fool, for he attacked the Jews who are protected by G-d. We, Gog and Magog will say, will attack Hashem himself. How can this be?! If Gog and Magog recognize Hashem's existence, don't they realize that they can't fight Him? If they don't acknowledge Him, why bother fighting Him? The answer is that Gog and Magog do recognize Hashem and they acknowledge His special relationship with us. When they plan to fight Him, they really mean that they will attack our relationship with Him. How? By attacking the Torah and Mitzvot that tie us to Hashem and protect us. Hashem has given great powers to Gog and Magog and to their partner, the "Yetzer Hara". It is not surprising, therefore, that in their last desperate effort to defeat us, they are able to attract and mislead allies from "among us," and turn them into our enemies. ((R' Yoel Teitlbaum, the "Satmar Rav": Al HaGeulah V'Al HaTemurah, ch.63) "I will make the land desolate...And you I will scatter among the nations...During all the days of her desolation, the land will rest; those sabbaticals that it did not observe while you were on the land, it will observe now." (paraphrased from Vayikra 26:32-35) Upon being exiled, the Jewish people were freed of any national concerns; they rather turned their eyes and hearts heavenward. Jews were no longer preoccupied with the same concerns that draw the attention of the other nations, and at the same time, Jews ceased to chase after the idols [literal and figurative] of the nations. The spirit of Hashem prompted the Jew to recognize the value of every soul, and particularly, the spiritual worth of the Jewish nation. The Torah was appreciated more than fine gold and silver, just as in the nation's youth. Because of their holy faith, the Jews in exile went to martyrdom with love and happiness. The Jew in exile always turned towards his land [Israel], but not as one who yearns for his home because it satisfies his hunger and his other physical needs. The Jew looked towards his land with a gaze filled with holiness; he looked towards its inner nature as the land that complements his yearning for G-d. The time of the redemption is hidden. Who is privy to G-d's secret, knowing when the land and the nation will have been completely purified, that beloved time when the land and the nation will be reunited? Our sages have said that there is no greater sign of the onset of the redemption than the fulfillment of the verses: "And you, mountains of Israel, give forth your branches, present your fruits to my nation, Yisrael, for they are near to arrive." "And the cities will be settled and ruins will be rebuilt, and I will increase men and animals on the land and they will multiply..." (R' Avraham Yitzchak HaKohen Kook: Introduction to Shabbat HaAretz) |
