We
must always remember that Israel is chosen not because of the drops
of blood in our veins, but because of the drop of blood that binds us
to our covenant with Gd.
That
must always be at the forefront of every thought, every action and
every prayer we offer. Especially as we try and bring about
redemption, a redemption that Gd has promised, but not one that comes
without our effort. That is the covenant. If we are faithful to it,
to the action of redemption, then Gd will bring it to fruition. That
is the true meaning of returning. When we, as a nation, return to
our mission, then Gd will remove every obstacle from our path.
And
it's long past time that we return to the path of Redemption.
Redemption
will not fall out of the sky. Redemption must be earned. We must
strive for redemption, with every breath, with every ounce of
strength; with every thought and with every prayer. The prophets
gave us signs, but those signs are not predictions, parlor tricks to
share with friends or tweet to followers. Those prophesies are
prescriptions, plans of actions, that Gd demands we follow when the
signs are made manifest. It is true that the soul of the Temple will
descend from the Heavens, but only once the body is built by our
efforts, just as the souls of our children are delivered after the
consummation of the mitswah between husband and wife.
If
we want to bring redemption, truly want it, not as a slogan, nor as
dream, but as a tangible reality, then we need to develop large scale
action programs to make the dream a reality.
And
in order to develop these massive action programs, we need to dispel
a few old wives' tales that have become entrenched in our community.
First
is the myth that only time can solve our problems. That if we are
just patient, and wait, all will be be resolved with time, all the
injustices will dissipate, and the world order will be upturned.
That with time, and nothing else, everyone will magically become
transformed, recognize truth, discard their baser nature and then
society as a whole will be transformed into a mythical paradise.
I've heard this over and over again, as the “solution.” Those
that offer it are sincere, and are well intended, but I think those
who hold such views are severely mistaken, and in fact, through their
sincere but misplaced forbearance, they become one of the main
obstacles to redemption.
For
time is not, by it's very nature, a solution for the evils of the
world. At it's very best, time is neutral, but more often it is the
forces of evil, of ill will, that use time far more effectively than
the forces for good. Time wears the average good intended
individual down, distances him from the ultimate goal, from his dream
and gives him half measures and hollow compromises in its stead.
Time conditions us to accept the status quo, and offers us excuses
for postponing the realization of our dream. Time entrenches foreign
gods in our hearts, and normalizes a reality we should fight against.
Time numbs us to the injustices and the indignities we are subjected
to daily, until all we can do is look forward to a future time, when
it things might be different.
It
may be that our generation will be forced to stand before the True
Judge, not only for the evil perpetrated in our name, but for the
resounding silence and misplaced forbearance of good people who
demand that we wait on time to solve our ills. The forbearance of
Ribbi Zekhariah ben Avkulos did not only cause the destruction of the
Temple, and exile us from our Land, but it continues to prevent us,
restraining any endeavor which would effect our return.
I
would think that by now, we would acknowledge that Redemption does
not travel on the conveyance of inevitability, but only through
tireless struggle and persistent effort. Without hard work, time
becomes the ally of stagnation and status quo. Time follows the law
of entropy and unless we continue moving forward, any progress we
have made towards redemption will soon unravel.
We
must realize, we must internalize, that it is always the right time,
to do the right thing.
There
is another old wives tale that must be removed from our system like
the infectious virus it is. That is the myth that Torah must be
followed only through the desire and full free will of the
individual; that legislation, and compulsion can not bring our nation
to realize Redemption. There is a fable that is told among our
people these days that only love will bring the nation into
compliance with our covenantal responsibilities.
There
are many well meaning, but misguided people in our midst, who argue
that we need to change the heart, and one can't change the heart
through compulsion.
Now,
I will be the first to acknowledge that there needs to be a lot of
“heart changing” among our people, and I commend all those who
reach out to the heart of every individual they meet. There are many
who tirelessly work, going from heart to heart to free that beating
vessel from it's false constraints. Those teachers and individuals
that make it their life's work to transform and return the hearts of
Jews to their Maker are the vanguard of our nation.
But,
after saying this, let me offer the other side, that although it
might be true that moral feelings can't be forced, behavior can be
regulated. Even though the law can't change the heart, it can
restrain the heartless, and while compulsion can't make a person love
God or his Torah, it can create an environment that makes it possible
for me to fully serve God. It is true that law cannot change the
hearts of humanity, but as our sages have so often pointed out, it
can change the habits of our daily lives, and when you begin to
change a person's daily habits, the change of heart will soon follow.
Repentance
and returning to Gd is not a passive matter, not for the individual
and not for the nation. It is totally and completely active. And
even though it is a good thing to want for and to crave for it
always, that alone is not sufficient. While it is true that when we
begin to turn towards Gd, He will turn towards us, we must begin by turning
first. We must fulfill our covenantal responsibilities, in its
entirety, and fulfill all of the mitswoth as a nation, not just the
ones that appeal to us, or are easy for us, or are acceptable to the
nations of the world – all of the mitswoth.
When
we returned the first time as a nation, it wasn't a complete
redemption. In fact, Ezra describes it as only a 'taste' of
redemption. But, the first thing they did was to build an altar and
act as if it were a complete redemption. And even though we never
achieved complete redemption during the Second Temple period, the
more we acted as if it were a complete redemption, the greater taste
of redemption Gd gave us.
The
time has come, not to delay or to linger, but to build the redemption
with our own hands.
May
it be His will.
