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After the recent series of terrible incidents which took the lives of so many of our Jewish brethren and wounded countless others, each and every one of us finds himself flooded with a barrage of questions.
What shall we do now? Should we go to war or should we wait? Should we hope for peace or be pessimistic? Is my family safe in Eretz Yisroel or should I escape to the "guarantees" of Chutz L'Aretz?
We listen to the news and are fed with pre-planned responses. We hear of a suicide bomber and think of revenge. What should a Jew's response be to these terrible events?
Firstly, he should remind himself that no matter what happens, Hashem, in His Omnipotence, is the One Who decides and allows for the most simple to the most complex occurrences, however good or bad they may appear in our eyes.
Nothing happens by chance. If something bad happens to the Jewish people it is a wake-up call to do teshuva and to become stronger Yirei Shamayim.
If, upon hearing of a terrorist attack, we are filled with rage toward Arabs or feelings of revenge, we should double check to see if our response does not indicate that we are upset with the “happenings” in the region.
On this, the Rambam states (Hilchos Ta'anios 1:3), that one who considers a terrible occurrence to have happened as part of the natural course of events, has forged a way of wickedness, which will only bring upon him more and more difficult times.
Rather, says the Rambam (ibid 1:2-3), difficult times descend upon the Jewish people as a result of their sins, and these difficulties are meant to awaken a person to his unacceptable behavior and lead him to do teshuva and correct his ways. This turnabout itself will change the course of events and remove the difficult times from him and his people.
As a nation, we are engulfed by difficult times, by tragedies, by great loss. Also, among us are individuals whose pain is more acute as a result of what has happened.
Our initial response has to be a Jewish one. We have sinned, as a nation, as a group, as individuals. Please Hashem, open our eyes to our sins and their severity and give us the strength and the guidance to do teshuva! We don't believe in happenstance. We know You are a loving G-d, Who controls and directs each and every act in the world, and You only bring us difficult times in order to awaken us to do teshuva. This is the ultimate act of kindness, for it allows us to correct our ways in this world, so that we can prepare for ourselves a better place in the World-to-Come, whose smallest benefit is infinitely greater than the greatest reward in this world.
May Hashem guard us from further tragedies and may we merit to do teshuva without them.
Reflections is written by Rabbi
Yona Vogel, Rosh Yeshiva, Machon Daniel
Layout & Design: Lev Seltzer
