Celebration of Freedom

Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz

The Seder is the highlight of the Yom Tov of Pesach, and regardless of what is going on outside, Jewish families everywhere sit around a table and celebrate our freedom from Mitzrayim so many years ago. Regardless of our financial situation, all Jews are like kings and queens at the Seder, from the way we lean to the way we set up our tables and the way we conduct ourselves that night.

For thousands of years, it has been this way. In times of war and in times of peace, in times of depression and suppression, in ghettos and barracks, Jews have been extending themselves in unimaginable times in incredible ways to celebrate our exodus from Mitzrayim.

We do this because recognizing that Hashem took us out of Mitzrayim is the bedrock of our faith, as is the recognition that despite whatever condition we are in as we observe Pesach, we are there because Hashem willed it so for our betterment.

It was in the merit of our faith in Hashem that we were redeemed back then, and it will be in the merit of our emunah that we will be helped out of any unfortunate situation we find ourselves in. Therefore, certainly, if things are going well for us, and even if not, we have no reason to let anything impact our joy as we celebrate Yetzias Mitzrayim.

Pesach is the Yom Tov of emunah, a time to celebrate it, reinforce it, and transmit it to our children and those under our influence.

This is why the Haggadah is centered around the matzos, not only because it represents cheirus, freedom (see Tosafos, Pesochim 108), but also because it represents emunah.

Repeatedly, the Torah refers to the Yom Tov of Pesach as Chag Hamatzos. In davening and Kiddush, we also refer to the Yom Tov as Yom Chag Hamatzos.

The idea that matzah represents the theme of Pesach is reinforced as we begin the recitation of the Haggadah by raising the matzah and reciting Ha Lachma Anya. We say that the matzah we are about to partake of is the same matzah that our forefathers ate. We conclude by saying that this year we are here, in golus, but next year we will be in Eretz Yisroel. Now we are enslaved, but in the coming year we will be free.

The first time the Bnei Yisroel ate matzah was when they left Mitzrayim. Writing about that time, the Yalkut Shimoni in Parshas Beshalach says, “Lo nigalu Yisroel ela b’zechus emunah, shene’emar, ‘Vaya’amein ha’am.’” The Jews were redeemed from Mitzrayim because of their deep belief in Hashem.

The Zohar refers to matzah as “michla demehemnusa,” food of emunah. We can understand that to mean that upon eating the matzah while leaving Mitzrayim, the Bnei Yisroel were infused with emunah, and through that emunah, they merited to be saved from Mitzrayim.

The idea that those who believe in Hashem and place their faith in Him see salvation is presented in pesukim, Chazal, Rishonim and Acharonim. It is the way we should lead our lives if we wish to merit success in all we do.

The Ramban (Emunah Ubitachon 1) points out that the posuk in Tehillim (37:3) states, “Betach baHashem va’asei tov - Have faith in Hashem and do good,” instead of stating, “Do good and trust in Hashem.” This is because bitachon is not dependent on a person’s good actions.

The Brisker Rov would say that the degree to which Hashem will deal with us mercifully correlates to the amount of faith we have in Him. He said this is clearly expressed in the posuk (Tehillim 33:21) states, “Ki vo yismach libeinu ki vesheim kadsho botochnu yehi chasdicha Hashem aleinu ka’asher yichalnu loch.”

Rabbeinu Bachya writes explicitly (Kad Vekemach, Bitachon) that the Jews were redeemed from Mitzrayim in merit of their belief. He cites the posuk in Tehillim (22:6) of “Eilecha zo’aku venimlotu,” and says that the reason they were saved was because “becha votchu velo voshu,” they believed.

The Meshech Chochmah, on the posuk of “Ushemartem es hamatzos” (Shemos 12:17), writes that when the Bnei Yisroel will be shomer the matzos (and other mitzvos of Nissan), Hashem will be shomer the night of the Seder to redeem them.

Rabbeinu Yonah writes in Mishlei (3:26) that a person who trusts in Hashem is saved from a tzarah even if he deserved the tzarah. A person’s bitachon prevents the problem from afflicting him. As the Yalkut says in Tehillim (32), “even a rasha who has bitachon is surrounded by chesed.”

The Chofetz Chaim (Sheim Olam, Nefutzos Yisroel 9) quotes the Vilna Gaon, who said that bitachon is not dependent upon a person’s merits. Anyone who maintains strong belief is protected by his bitachon and Hashem acts charitably with him.

Bitachon is not something that is reserved only for tzaddikim. Any one of us, no matter our level, can have perfect emunah and bitachon. When faced with a problem, when it appears as if life is being tough with us, we all have the ability to trust in Hashem and be helped.

Matzah is the symbol of Pesach because it encompasses all the messages of the Seder. As we consider and contemplate the exalted moment when our forefathers left Mitzrayim, we eat the very same matzah, unchanged in formula and taste, at the very moment they did, on the same night, year after year, century after century. With this matzah, we became a nation. We gave up avodah zorah, left the shibbud Mitzrayim, and emerged as bnei chorin.

This is as discussed by the Rambam, who writes (Hilchos Chometz Umatzah 7:1), “There is a mitzvas asei to discuss the miracles that were performed for our forefathers in Mitzrayim on the evening of the 15^th of Nissan, as the posuk says, ‘Zachor, remember the day you left Mitzrayim…,’ and the posuk states, ‘Vehigadeta levincha,’ to tell your children [about the miracles Hashem performed for us then] on that night, meaning the night on which matzah and maror are placed before you.”

The Ramban at the end of Parshas Bo discusses the centrality of sippur Yetzias Mitzrayim in Jewish belief and reminds us that just as Hashem publicly performed miracles for the Jews in Mitzrayim, so does He perform miracles for us every day of our lives. Those who follow the mitzvos are rewarded, and those who do not are punished.”

This is the foundation of Jewish belief and what we refer to as Hashgocha Protis. When we sit at the Seder and retell the stories of the many miracles that took place at that time, we increase our emunah and bitachon, and that engenders more zechuyos for us. This is another indication and explanation of the statement of the Zohar that matzah is michla demehemnusa, the food of faith.

This may be why we begin the Haggadah with the declaration of “Ha lachma anya di achalu avhasana b’ara d’Mitzrayim.” We proclaim that this is the bread that our forefathers ate in Mitzrayim, when they were still poor and lacking in their observance of mitzvos, as well as in their emunah and bitachon in Hashem. Upon eating the matzah, they were strengthened in their emunah and belief in Hashem and thus merited redemption from slavery.

Thus, we advise people who are lacking in faith, “Kol ditzrich yeisei veyeichol. Join us and partake of the matzah, michla demehemnusa. Doing so will infuse you with faith.” Then we can say, “Hoshata hocha leshanah haba’ah b’ara d’Yisroel.” Those who are still needy and lacking in their faith will, by eating the matzah, become strengthened in emunah and bitachon and worthy of the geulah sheleimah bekarov. “Hoshata avdi leshanah haba’ah bnei chorin.” Before partaking of the matzah and discussing the exit from Mitzrayim, we are slaves to our desires. After the matzah and reliving the geulah experience, we become free.

This ties in with the message of vehigadeta levincha, which, as we saw in the Rambam, is a primary obligation of the Seder night. The mitzvah is to speak to the children and grandchildren in a way that engenders love and interest in the message of the Torah.

When we sit at the Seder and recount the Mitzrayim experience, we must do so in a way that impacts our children and leaves a lasting impact, ensuring that the children will pass on the tradition to their children.

We need to view ourselves as if we have now been let out of Mitzrayim as free people and keep in mind that this night is all about our children, infusing them with joy, happiness, knowledge, and the beauty of our mesorah. We are part of the chain that began at Krias Yam Suf and continued through the midbar, Eretz Yisroel, Bovel, Spain, Portugal, Yemen, Iraq, Iran, Egypt, Morocco, Germany, Lithuania, Italy, Hungary, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Ukraine, Russia, England, France, Auschwitz-Birkenau, and the United States, until our current homes.

Even Jews who have veered from the Torah way of life hold a Seder, eat matzah, drink four cups of wine, and read from a Haggadah. No matter how far they are gone, the Pesach story still speaks to them and ignites a spark of belief and faith.

Rav Yitzchok Silberstein recounted the story of a doctor who immigrated from Russia and claimed he was Jewish. The bais din was attempting to verify the validity of the claim and asked him to bring two witnesses who could verify his Jewishness. He brought with him a man who said that he had attended his bris as an infant and another who was a doctor like him.

The man had a fascinating tale to tell. He said that he served as a doctor in the same hospital as the applicant’s mother, and they had a deal between them that could have cost them their lives had they been caught.

He said, “Back in the day, potatoes were a very valuable commodity. Every day of the year, his mother would sneak me a potato, and in return, when Pesach came, I would bring her shmurah wheat flour, which was prepared with all the hiddurim. She would use that flour to bake matzos. This went on for a very long time. She held back valuable potatoes from her children every day of the year so that she would have kosher matzos for Pesach.

“You must know that had she been caught, she would have lost her job in the hospital, as well as lost her life. The best that she could have hoped for had she been caught with her matzos was being sent far, far away. And despite that, she kept this up for many years.”

Turning to the bais din, he said, “Now, I ask you: Is there any doubt that she is Jewish?”

After that dramatic testimony, the head of the bais din turned to the son of the heroic doctor who risked her life for the mitzvah of matzah and asked if she was still alive. The man answered that she is very much alive, and because of her excellence in medicine, despite her old age, she was still a practicing doctor in the hospital she worked in with the man who testified.

They called her on the phone and the rov asked her if she observes Shabbos. She said that she would do so, but her job held her back. However, after saying that, she became overwhelmed with emotion, as she told the rov how she was “moser nefesh for Pesach.”

Here she was, hiding her Jewishness from the hospital and the authorities. From all outward appearances, there was nothing that identified her as Jew, but she held on to Pesach with mesirus nefesh.

What was it about Pesach that kept her Yiddishkeit alive? No doubt, it was the memories of her father sitting at the Seder eating matzah and instilling the messages of our faith in her. It was because her father – and perhaps her grandfather as well – sat at his Seder table and engaged in the mitzvah of vehigadeta levincha in a way that left an indelible impression upon her. He leaned to his left and ate the matzah - michla demehemnusa – explaining its importance and conveying with the way he enjoyed each bite how important matzah and its message are to every Jew. And thus the tradition continued.

Even amidst the frigid temps of some Russian village, with hatred for Jews abound, and threats so palpable that she felt that she could not keep Shabbos, throughout the whole year she sacrificed as she dreamed of the night she would partake of matzah.

Matzah, with its multiple messages - the bread of affliction, lechem oni, the bread of freedom, lechem geulim, the bread of faith, michla demehemnusa - calls out to all who partake of it that no matter what your situation is, no matter where you find yourself, know that Hashem is with you and will lead you to freedom and geulah.

We live in a time of freedom and plenty, but there are ill winds blowing, as the freedom we have been enjoying is at stake. Many are suffering from an inflationary economy; aspects of the economy many of our brethren are involved with are in recession.

Israel has been at war for six months already. As the nations of the world are turning against it, war beckons on the northern border as well and a whole new threat has been opened with Iran. As people fear for their lives, hundreds of thousands of troops and reservists are girded for battle. The economy is teetering and the country’s zechus of Torah support is withering and at risk.

Despite it all, the matzah reminds us that we will persevere. In every generation, there is a despot or a nation who rises up to destroy us, but Hashem saves us from their evil plans. On Motzoei Shabbos Parshas Tazria, we all witnessed such an instance, as over 300 drones, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles were shot at Israel, each one of them packed with the ability to cause a catastrophe. Instead, they were miraculously destroyed before they could do any damage, besides for injuries caused to an unfortunate 7-year-old Bedouin girl. Once again, the Shomer Yisroel protected us from harm, this time in a most dramatic way.

Let us sit at the Seder reveling in its mitzvos, learning its lessons, and passing them on to the next generation. Let us appreciate the good we have and put it on display, reinforcing our emunah in the ultimate geulah and receiving help with our personal needs.

Leshanah haba’ah bnei chorin be’ara d’Yisroel. May this be the final year of golus. Next year free in Yerushalayim.

It’s All From Above

By Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz 

Here, we finally are in the month of Nissan. Pesach, the Yom Tov when we celebrate our freedom, is upon us. The weather has warmed, the days have lengthened, and we are only one week away from sitting down at the Seder to recite the Haggadah and be mekayeim the many mitzvos of that evening.

In 1948, as Israel was fighting its war of independence, people were worried about what the next day would bring. Rav Refoel Kook traveled to the Chazon Ish.

“People are asking me about what is going on now and how they are to understand the terrible situation they are in. Rebbe, I don’t know what to answer them.”

The Chazon Ish told him to tell the people that, “Everyone can see that from Shomayim we are being led somewhere, but we are not able to figure out what we are going through now will lead to. We cannot fathom the ways of Hashem.”

Pesach is the chag hageulah, but it is also the chag ha’emunah, the Yom Tov that reinforces our faith in Hakadosh Boruch Hu. It is because of the faith of the Jewish people while they were in Mitzrayim and at the Yam Suf that they were redeemed.

Throughout their period of slavery, they did not understand why they had to endure such pain and difficulty, but when they were redeemed, they understood that because of the torturous subjugation, they were freed almost two hundred years earlier than when Hashem had initially said they would be let go.

When they witnessed the makkos and many miracles at the Yam Suf, they understood that everything that happened to them was directed by Hashem, “vaya’aminu baHashem uveMoshe avdo,” and it caused them to reinforce their belief in Hashem and Moshe.

In our time, we see the people of Eretz Yisroel suffering. The country is already six months into a disastrous war that they entered after suffering a terrible tragedy. The economy is reeling. People are far from their homes, refugees in their own land, and even those who are in their homes barely have enough money for basic necessities. The nations of the world have turned on them, accusing them of terrible crimes. Their only crime is being forced to fight for their existence.

Perfidious allies have all turned against the country founded by people who thought that if they had their own country, anti-Semitism would end and the world would come to respect the Jewish people. Well, it was not meant to be. The nation that earned the world’s enmity at Har Sinai when the Torah was given is still hated and despised. Sometimes they pose as brothers, caregivers, friends and allies, but always that historic, eternal animosity is right beneath the surface, waiting to be exposed.

When the Jewish people become split and divided, when they veer from the path of Hashem, throwing away Torah and mitzvos, Eisov and Yishmoel return to form and torment them.

In Eretz Yisroel, brother has turned against brother and the forces of evil and the left conspire to bring down the government so that they can continue implementing their immoral agenda. The religious community has become the scapegoat once again, as the Supreme Court colludes with the out-of-control attorney general to starve yeshivos and yungeleit while attempting to force the draft of the 60,000 young men who have forsaken all and chosen a life of Torah study.

In this country, while thankfully there is no physical war going on, there are many issues that confound us. There is a war on morality that is being led by the Democrat Party and its voters against basic Judeo-Christian values upon which this country was built. We don’t discuss these ongoing encroachments on moral living, but that doesn’t mean that they are not taking place and succeeding in effecting rapid change.

That same party, under the leadership of President Biden and Senator Schumer, has led a treacherous turn against the State of Israel, an American ally since its founding. Never have a president and his underlings so publicly threatened the Jewish nation, especially as it fights an existential war.

The same president, under whose leadership many civilians were killed and abandoned in Afghanistan, publicly castigated Israel for a mistaken bombing, similar to what often happens in war. By slamming Israel and threatening it, not only does he weaken the one decent, moral, democratic ally in the entire region, but he also emboldens the forces of evil and terror that seek its demise.

The president and his party embraced the anti-Israel position not because of some change in foreign policy, but because Binyomin Netanyahu refuses to entertain their two-state solution, gifting the Palestinians with a country for their fictitious claims and terror campaign. They have therefore targeted him and his government for regime change.

All of this is because Biden and the Democrats think that in order to win the upcoming election, they must kowtow to the Arab residents of two important states, Michigan and Minnesota. To appease a few hundred thousand Arabs, they throw Israel and the Jews to the dogs, hoping that decent people all across the country won’t realize how corrupt the president and his allies have become.

Anti-Semitism is rising steeply here, as is crime, while the economy sinks. Interest rates remain high in a bid to lower the crushing inflation that Biden has caused. Housing is a crushing expense, putting buying a home, or even renting a larger apartment, out of reach for many families. Food and clothing have also become a stretch for many families as prices continue to rise.

People wonder why all of this is happening and everyone has a different explanation. As believing Jews, we need to know that Hashem is directing what is happening. What we know is that in an eis tzarah, we are meant to call out to Hashem for salvation and engage in teshuvah.

We remember that those who have emunah are able to maintain a sense of calm and serenity. Because we know that nothing happens without Hashem directing it to happen, we don’t necessarily fear the events of the day, for we know that everything Hashem does is for our benefit. Some things we understand now and some later, but we are content with the knowledge that this is all part of a Divine plan that will play out for our good.

The month of Nissan and the Yom Tov of Pesach remind us that when there is a deluge of negativity and painful news, we respond with faith, not fear; with tefillah, not despair; and with the knowledge that geulah is in the air.

Three times a day, in Modim, we thank Hashem for the daily miracles, some of which we recognize and some of which we don’t, but we know they are there. Be on the lookout for them, write them down, and appreciate the good that we have. Doing so helps us deal with our difficulties and know that we are never alone.

Seventy-five years ago, when murder and destruction spread across Europe, a small group of yeshivos were brought through Divine intervention to Shanghai, where they spent the awful years in relative peace. In that hot, faraway city they had never previously heard of, they flourished, as their suffering brought forth much growth in Torah, eventually gifting our people with a generation of gedolim, roshei yeshiva, rabbonim and maggidei shiur.

When the war ended, the full brunt of their situation finally hit them. Free to travel, they realized that few among them had parents or families waiting to reunite with them. There was nowhere to go back to. Everyone had been killed. Everything had been destroyed.

As a steady stream of talmidim headed to Eretz Yisroel and America, several were stuck behind, waiting for visas. For the first time, they were overtaken by despair. The Gerrer Rebbe, the Imrei Emes, penned a letter to a group of stranded Polish bochurim. He wrote, “The main thing now is to know that everything comes from Hashem and no bad emanates from Him. Everything is for the good... As the seforim teach, ‘Vayehi erev vayehi voker yom echod,’ both the darkness and kindness are from one source and for one goal: to illuminate the world for us later on.

“We believe that just as the Tochacha, the prophecies foretelling difficult times, were fulfilled, so will the hopeful and comforting prophecies come to be. The hester ponim is a test, an illusion, and in the end, everything will turn out very good.”

The Gerrer Rebbe quoted the Rambam’s Iggeres Teiman, where he encouraged the beleaguered Jews of Yemen during a difficult time.

“The Rambam writes that a cord of Torah and mitzvos connects heaven and earth. To the degree that a person grasps it, he will be strengthened...”

The rebbe sought to sustain the refugees with the eternal message that g’nus leads to shevach, winter leads to spring, and darkness leads to light. This message is as old as the first day of creation, when night and day were formed, as the posuk states, “Vayehi erev vayehi voker yom echod.”

The Sefas Emes explains that Nissan is considered the first of the Hebrew months because it was during this month that Hashem unveiled the hanhogah that became revealed and visible in this world during Yetzias Mitzrayim.

Until then, it was a hanhogah of hester, but during the month of Nissan, Hashem burst forth openly into the lower worlds, revealing His presence and strength in Mitzrayim b’yad chazokah uvizroa netuya.

Each year, during Nissan, that energy once again fills the world, providing a chance to reveal Hashem in the lower spheres, filling this world with His presence. Pesach, the Yom Tov of emunah, gives us the opportunity, the chance to fill our hearts - and those of our children - with this awareness of freedom and protection.

As the month of Nissan begins, it reminds us that Hakadosh Boruch Hu is here, just as He was in Mitzrayim, pulling the strings, setting up the world for the redemption.

When the Imrei Emes passed away in 1948, his oldest surviving son, Rav Yisroel, became rebbe. It was a very difficult time. The people had not yet recovered from the losses they had each suffered in the Holocaust. Israel was at war for its survival and there were regular attacks in settled areas and cities.

When he spoke the first Shabbos, he quoted his grandfather, the Chiddushei Harim, who shared a fantastic concept to explain why the halachos of eved Ivri only apply when there is Yovel. When Yovel came to an end with the churban, so did the phenomenon of a Jewish slave.

He explained that this is so that the Jews should know that every period of difficulty, every challenge, does not last forever. Every tzorah has a time when it ends and when the good times return. When Yovel, which frees the slaves, is no longer active, there are no longer Jewish slaves, because there is no way to end their challenging, painful period.

We must know that what we and our brethren in Eretz Yisroel and across the world are experiencing today will not last forever. The tough time will end, hopefully soon, and the good times will return. Have no fear. Don’t despair.

Rav Yisroel Eliyohu Weintraub noted that difficult times are always followed by good times. After the darkness that descended upon the world when the Asarah Harugei Malchus were killed, Rabi Shimon Bar Yochai lit up the world with the revelation of the Torah’s secrets as he wrote the Sefer HaZohar. Following the awful period of Tach V’Tat, when many thousands of Jews were killed and pillaged, we were blessed with the Vilna Gaon, the Baal Shem Tov and the Ramchal. After the darkness and sadness that was brought by the Holocaust, he said, came the great light of the unprecedented burgeoning Torah communities.

The Sefer Hachassidim explains this phenomenon. He says that Hashem wants to do good with man, but the Soton interferes and says that man doesn’t deserve it. The Soton questions why Hashem is being so kind to undeserving people. He says that it is for this reason that Hashem brings periods of great pain and nisyonos to silence the evil Soton.

And today, just as in Mitzrayim, for us to merit Hashem’s light and goodness, we must first endure darkness and pain. Let us strengthen ourselves in Torah and good deeds, so that we will quickly merit the great light and growth that are on the way.

As we approach Pesach, let us strengthen ourselves in emunah and bitachon so that on this Yom Tov of emunah, we will merit to have our faith rewarded with everything we wish for with the coming of Moshiach. Amein.

Living With Faith

By Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz

In this week’s parsha, we learn about one of the great days in the history of Klal Yisroel. They were finally redeemed, for as the Ramban explains, the redemption from Mitzrayim would not be complete until they had set up the Mishkon and the Shechinah had a home among the Jewish people.

But the joyous day that celebrated the consecration of the Mishkon did not go as planned. The two eldest sons of Aharon Hakohein, great men in their own right, transgressed a commandment of Hashem and were consumed by a holy flame.

The Torah tells us that in this time of public and private grief, Aharon remained silent: “Vayidom Aharon.” Moshe offered him words of consolation and Aharon did not respond verbally. His only response was silence.

It was the greatest day in his life, when he was finally able to perform his avodah service with the assistance of his sons. Suddenly, without warning, two of his sons were snatched from him. The great orator, who was appointed by Hashem to be Moshe Rabbeinu’s spokesman, did not utter a word.

The Chofetz Chaim would say that the word “vayidom” is derived from the word “domeim,” which means an inert object such as a stone. Not only did Aharon not speak of his pain and tragedy, but he did not flinch and it was impossible to notice anything about him from looking at him.

How did he do that? How was he able to remain silent and composed in an unplanned moment of great personal tragedy?

His ability to remain in full self control, without betraying any mourning or sadness, was due to his complete faith in Hakadosh Boruch Hu. He knew that everything that happens in our world is because Hashem wills it so, and certainly, if it took place in Hashem’s house, so to speak, Aharon knew that it was from Hashem. And if is from Hashem, then it is good.

For his faith as expressed by his silence, he was quickly rewarded.

In our individual lives, we experience periods of challenges and tragedy, ups and downs regarding health, relationships and finances. As we discussed last week, the people of faith are always at peace, no matter what they are facing away from public view, for they know that it all comes from a merciful Creator, who wants what is best for his creations.

We don’t have to understand everything, and there is much that we are confronted with in life that we don’t grasp, but we can’t let that get us rattled or get us down. We accept what Hashem has done and wait until another day to comprehend what it’s all about.

Following the Holocaust, there were two courses of action for survivors. Their harrowing experiences left many forlorn and broken. They lost their will to live and felt that Hashem had forsaken them. And who could blame them? They couldn’t recover.

But there were people whose emunah was stronger, and although they had lived through those same experiences as the people who became depressed and lost, they put their lives back together, established new homes, and found things to celebrate as they went on to live productive lives of “vayidom,” neither complaining nor becoming immobilized by their multiple tragedies.

Far be it from us to comprehend what they lived through or to judge the people who were subjected to sub-human abuse, but we can learn from their examples. Each one of those people, from the simple Jews to the venerated leaders, is a hero to our nation. Together, they rebuilt and resurrected a decimated people. Their bodies were ripped apart, their families were destroyed, they were penniless and lonely, but their souls remained whole and pure.

When the news is too awful to bear, when death befalls people young and dear, when fire consumes good people at a time marked for joy, it is a time of “vayidom,” thousands of years ago and today. With superhuman strength and hearts tough as steel, it is a time of “vayidom.”

Whatever life does to us, we must remain whole and unbroken. Sometimes, the temptation is to fall apart and break down. If we can rise above our experiences in a state of “vayidom,” we can bounce back and resurrect ourselves, triumphing despite many setbacks. Of course, it’s easier said than done. Oftentimes, we need the help and reassurance of good people to keep us on track, but survival and endurance beat the alternative.

I am reading a fascinating new book dedicated by the Werdiger family about the rebbe of Ger, the Beis Yisroel, written by my dear friend, Yisroel Besser. Though I study Sefas Emes, I am not a Gerrer chossid, but the book fascinates, as it traces the rebbe’s life through his daunting challenges to what he was able to build as he practiced vayidom on his great losses.

It was a mission that he took over from his father, the Imrei Emes, who led legions of chassidim in der heim. Most of them perished during the war, while he was miraculously saved and brought to Eretz Yisroel. When he met the Belzer Rebbe, Rav Aharon, for the first time after they each suffered crushing losses, they sat in a room and not a word was spoken. Vayidom. Then, finally, breaking the silence, the Belzer Rebbe offered some words of consolation to the Gerrer Rebbe.

The Imrei Emes responded and said, “Belzer Rov, we will have to start from the beginning.”

And that was what they both did.

The weakened Imrei Emes set about rebuilding his chassidus, bringing together shattered, broken, grieving people, and uniting them.

Upon his passing, his son, Rav Yisroel, was tasked with continuing the mission. Instead of becoming broken at the loss of his wife, children, and close members of his family, as well as what had consisted of his entire world, newly crowned as rebbe, he set out to resurrect and rebuild an entire world that was decimated. His chassidim were people who had the will to live sucked out of them, and others who could barely deal with what they had seen and experienced in Poland’s ghettos and camps.

It was at the Seder and Rav Yisroel Alter was reading the words, “Yachol mibe’od yom. I would have thought that the obligation to discuss leaving Mitzrayim begins when it is still light out, by day, but when the posuk, discussing the obligation of the Seder, states, ‘Ba’avor zeh,’ we derive that the mitzvah of recounting our exodus from Mitzrayim is only when matzah and maror are before us, which is following nightfall, when it is dark out.”

The rebbe stopped and observed that perhaps people might think that the obligation to believe in Hashem is only when it is light and everything is clear and positive, but when everything is dark and gloomy, and enveloped by sadness and tragedy, the obligation to believe and serve Hashem is not in effect. Therefore, the posuk says that even when sitting at a table with the poor man’s bread of affliction and bitter vegetables in front of you, we are still obligated to serve Hashem and appreciate what we have.

With a transplanted generation of broken, suffering souls, the Beis Yisroel set out to build people, to give them a will to live, to carry on, to dream, to excel, and to build homes, families and futures. At a time of darkness and pain, he showed them how to rise ever higher, lighting their neshamos with the fire of Kotzk and Torah and avodah, so they could climb on a path of gedulah and gevurah.

In a generation that could have easily fallen into despair after losing so much, experiencing so much pain and grief, transplanted into a new country, and overwhelmed by crushing poverty, he brought reasons to celebrate and showed them how they could live lives of simcha with a redeemed faith in themselves and in Yiddishkeit.

The Beis Yisroel once confided to his gabbai that he viewed it as his mission in this world not to put up large buildings, but rather to help people build ehrliche Yiddishe homes. Instead of being consumed by emotions of sadness and mourning, he used those emotions to help people who had been overcome, live once again.

The book is laced with anecdotes of how the Beis Yisroel accomplished his mission. It is a source of chizuk for people going through rough times and good ones. We all need little reminders of what we are about, what it means to be a Yid and how we can make the world a better place. It gives us a new respect for our parents and grandparents and the storms they weathered as they developed and brought up families such as ours, continuing the golden chain of Yiddishkeit that stretches through centuries of good – and not-so-good – times.

Everyone can use some inspiration. We should always be on the lookout for seforim and books such as this that provide inspiration in our darkening world. Mibayis and michutz, from inside and outside, we are under attack. Hashem has allowed our enemies to become emboldened, and they march in the world’s capitals calling for our scalps, accusing us of genocide and other crimes. People are afraid to walk in the streets, as they see fearful days ahead. America is safer and better off, but with an unfriendly administration and leading political and media figures speaking against us, those who seek to do us harm find strength in the changing attitudes and climate.

Our own brethren are now after us, whipping up old canards and new ones against Torah observers and those who dedicate their lives to Torah study. They aim to rid our community of its political power, punish its school-aged youth, and institute crushing financial penalties against Torah causes. They don’t appreciate the foundations of Yiddishkeit and fail to study history and the fate of the countries that have sought to force Torah scholars to forsake the Torah they dedicate their lives to. To struggle for Torah is not new to us. It is in our DNA. Being mocked by people who have veered from the path of Yiddishe life is also, quite sadly, nothing new.

Our forefathers, gedolim and leaders of the past generations have showed us the way. When others measured their strength in chariots and swords, we drew close to Hashem Yisborach. He protected us then and will protect us now.

When beset by financial problems or those involving health, shidduchim, schools or children, we would do ourselves well to remember and be inspired by the lesson of Aharon Hakohein in this week’s parsha and by all those who have gone before us.

At the root of our belief is that everything that happens to us - and that means everything, every single thing - is from Hashem. Nothing happens by itself. No arrow hits us without being sent by Hashem.

Our task in life is “Vayidom,” to accept it with love and heart and strength.

Doing so will enable us to persevere and live lives of happiness and success as we wait for Hashem to send us Moshiach. May it happen very soon.