Heaven on Earth

So we just fasted to commemorate the murder of Gedaliah ben Ahikam.  After Eretz Yisrael had been virtually emptied of its Jews following the destruction of the First Temple, Gedaliah was appointed governor over the remnant that remained. Following his murder, those remaining Jews dispersed as well. We fast in mourning over the exit of the last Jews from our land, even while some may question the propriety of this fast since the establishment of the third Jewish commonwealth in Eretz Yisrael more than seventy years ago. In any case, the appropriate way of honoring Gedaliah would be to pack our bags and return to our land. Somehow we continue to linger in exile, cynically dismissing the obvious significance of the Fast of Gedaliah, together with the 10th of Tevet, 17th of Tammuz, and Tisha B'Av fasts.  Clearly, these four fasts of destruction are meant to remind us of the supreme value of Eretz Yisrael and of our sacred obligation to dwell in it.

During the Six Day War, many people took refuge in the bomb shelter basement of the Mir Yeshivah in  Jerusalem.  After the war, some bachurim went up to the roof of the yeshiva and found three bombs there. Miraculously they hadn’t detonated. Reb Chaim Shmuelevitz zt'l told the yeshiva students, "You probably think you were saved in the merit of your never-ending Torah and tefilot in the bomb shelter, but I know the real reason we merited this miracle. A mother and her five children were with us in the bomb shelter. Her husband abandoned her years ago, and since then she struggles to support her family all by herself. As bombs fell in Yerushalayim, I heard her say, 'Hashem, You know that I have all the reasons in the world to be angry with my husband. Nevertheless, I forgive him. And just as I forgive him, You should forgive and save us.' Her vitur and forgiveness is what saved us." (Torah Wellsprings, Yom Kippur 5783, Rabbi Elimelech Biderman, shlita)

The Zohar relates that Reb Abba saw a man, tired from his travels, lie down on a mound of earth. A poisonous snake approached the traveler, but, fortunately, a moment before the snake struck, a heavy object fell on the snake and killed it. When the man awoke, he saw the dead snake and understood that a miracle had saved him. When the man stood up, the mound of earth that he had laid on crumbled and fell down a cliff. He realized he was saved a second time because had the mound crumbled a moment earlier, he would have toppled down the cliff together with it.  Reb Abba approached the traveler and asked him, "What are your merits that Hashem performed these two miracles for you?" The man replied that he merited the miracles because he forgives his fellow man. "At night, before I go  to sleep, I forgive everyone who wronged me, and I seek to do kindness with them." Reb Abba cried and said, "Your deeds are greater than Yosef HaTzaddik's. Yosef forgave his brothe...

Rashi's commentary on Deuteronomy 30:3 includes the following: "The Divine Presence dwells with Israel in all the misery of their exile so that when they are redeemed, He ascribes redemption to Himself -- He shall return with them. Furthermore, the day of the ingathering of  the exiles is so important, yet so difficult, that it is as if He Himself must grab hold of their hands and drag them from their places." Ah yes, what a difficult time God has had dragging us to Eretz Yisrael.  We stubbornly refuse to  grant Him the redemption He so desperately wants for both us and for Him.

A community near Radin asked a bachur to join them for Rosh Hashanah because they wanted him to give over divrei Torah and mussar on Rosh Hashanah and to rouse them to teshuvah The bachur refused at first because he wanted to be with the Chofetz Chaim on Rosh Hashanah. The Chofetz Chaim told the bachur the following important message: "A mentch leibt nisht far zich — man doesn't live for himself." A person came down to this world to help others. The bachur went to the neighboring town for Rosh Hashanah. (Torah Wellsprings, Rosh HaShanah, 5783, Rabbi Elimelech Biderman shlita)

Rebbe Gedalyah Moshe of Zvhil zt'l asked someone why he wasn't going to a certain mussar drashah that many people were attending. The man replied, "I know myself. Even if the speaker inspires me to do teshuvah, the teshuvah won't last for long. Soon afterwards, I will return to my old ways." The Rebbe replied, "If someone swims up to a person drowning at sea, and says, 'I can save you for a half hour, but then you will fall back into the sea again,' would he accept the offer? Of course he would. So why shouldn’t you also seek to do teshuvah? It is worthwhile, even if it only lasts for a short while." (Torah Wellsprings, Ki Teitzei, 5782, Rabbi Elimelech Biderman, shlita)