Jerusalem, Israel - Oct. 7, 2024 - This past Shabbat, I heard a beautiful thought from my rabbi.
We know that before Mashiach comes, we will experience what we call “Chevley Mashiach”, loosely translated as the birthing pains of Mashiach.
In other words, before the ultimate light arrives, we will experience great pain and darkness.
However, the word “Chevley” also means “Ropes”.
Rabbi Rosner explained that before Mashiach, Hashem will lower a rope down to us.
It is our job to hold onto that rope for dear life. The rope will swing side to side and it will be very difficult for us to continue holding on.
The rope will be volatile and even violent and aggressive, but we must continue holding until the rope stabilizes and Mashiach arrives.
This very much resonated with me.
That rope sure is challenging to hold onto as our world crumbles before our eyes.
But we have to hold on, as hard as it may be.
This past year was the ultimate test. And that test is still ongoing. It’s been a dark year. But you know what was infinitely darker? Every single Jewish holiday that we now celebrate.
Purim? The leader of the world, a king of 127 countries has agreed to annihilate us. The Jewish people were done. It was over. And today we celebrate.
Chanukah? That was a war we were NOT going to win. We had no chance. And today we celebrate.
Passover? 210 years of back-breaking slavery. And today we celebrate.
We didn’t recognize the miracles then and it is hard for us to recognize the miracles now.
God split the sea but the people were afraid to jump in. Today, God is splitting sea on a daily basis. It is near impossible to see.
But if we open our eyes and wipe away the tears, we will see God saying “I am right here with you in your pain. I know it’s hard for you to understand how I let any of this happen. I created you to ask those questions and it’s ok to ask them. One day you’ll understand, but for now, wipe away those tears and hold onto my rope.”
I can only beg Hashem to make the suffering end.
I can only beg Him to bring our poor hostages home.
I can only beg Him to bring an end to our evil enemies and let them join the countless empires who tried to end us, in history books.
It’s all I can do. It’s all any of us can do.
I cannot fathom how any of these events make sense or how God “allowed” them to happen. It’s beyond the comprehension of my finite human brain. But that’s the thing, my brain is finite and human. There are things, many things beyond my comprehension and this is one of them.
But I won’t stop believing for a second that He is our father and He decided we needed a shot, a very painful shot and as the equivalent of a toddler receiving a painful injection from a doctor while his father stands by his side seeing his son’s pain but knowing it’s for his best even if the child can’t possibly understand that, I know that God is good and that there’s a reason for all of this.
For now though, on this dreadful day in history, I ask my father in heaven, please just pull that needle out. The pain is unbearable.
And just like we celebrate Purim, Chanukah, and Passover, we will once again celebrate Simchat Torah even if it’s impossible to imagine that now.
What was, will no longer be.
Hamas will be gone.
Hezbollah will be done.
The evil Iranian regime will be gone.
And we, the Jewish people will remain, and continue to flourish because the words Am Yisrael Chai are not just a nice song, those words are a historical reality and if you don’t believe me, just ask yourself how many Babylonians you know.
We are here, they are not.
And when I say “They”, I mean the empires of ancient Egypt, Phillistines, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Crusaders, Spanish, Nazis, Soviet Union, and so many others.
Am Yisrael Chai is a fact built into the DNA of the world.
As hard as it is to believe now, we will dance again because we always do!!
For now, let’s get through this day together.
Jerusalem, Israel - Oct. 7, 2024 - This past Shabbat, I heard a beautiful thought from my rabbi.
We know that before Mashiach comes, we will experience what we call “Chevley Mashiach”, loosely translated as the birthing pains of Mashiach.
In other words, before the ultimate light arrives, we will experience great pain and darkness.
However, the word “Chevley” also means “Ropes”.
Rabbi Rosner explained that before Mashiach, Hashem will lower a rope down to us.
It is our job to hold onto that rope for dear life. The rope will swing side to side and it will be very difficult for us to continue holding on.
The rope will be volatile and even violent and aggressive, but we must continue holding until the rope stabilizes and Mashiach arrives.
This very much resonated with me.
That rope sure is challenging to hold onto as our world crumbles before our eyes.
But we have to hold on, as hard as it may be.
This past year was the ultimate test. And that test is still ongoing. It’s been a dark year. But you know what was infinitely darker? Every single Jewish holiday that we now celebrate.
Purim? The leader of the world, a king of 127 countries has agreed to annihilate us. The Jewish people were done. It was over. And today we celebrate.
Chanukah? That was a war we were NOT going to win. We had no chance. And today we celebrate.
Passover? 210 years of back-breaking slavery. And today we celebrate.
We didn’t recognize the miracles then and it is hard for us to recognize the miracles now.
God split the sea but the people were afraid to jump in. Today, God is splitting sea on a daily basis. It is near impossible to see.
But if we open our eyes and wipe away the tears, we will see God saying “I am right here with you in your pain. I know it’s hard for you to understand how I let any of this happen. I created you to ask those questions and it’s ok to ask them. One day you’ll understand, but for now, wipe away those tears and hold onto my rope.”
I can only beg Hashem to make the suffering end.
I can only beg Him to bring our poor hostages home.
I can only beg Him to bring an end to our evil enemies and let them join the countless empires who tried to end us, in history books.
It’s all I can do. It’s all any of us can do.
I cannot fathom how any of these events make sense or how God “allowed” them to happen. It’s beyond the comprehension of my finite human brain. But that’s the thing, my brain is finite and human. There are things, many things beyond my comprehension and this is one of them.
But I won’t stop believing for a second that He is our father and He decided we needed a shot, a very painful shot and as the equivalent of a toddler receiving a painful injection from a doctor while his father stands by his side seeing his son’s pain but knowing it’s for his best even if the child can’t possibly understand that, I know that God is good and that there’s a reason for all of this.
For now though, on this dreadful day in history, I ask my father in heaven, please just pull that needle out. The pain is unbearable.
And just like we celebrate Purim, Chanukah, and Passover, we will once again celebrate Simchat Torah even if it’s impossible to imagine that now.
What was, will no longer be.
Hamas will be gone.
Hezbollah will be done.
The evil Iranian regime will be gone.
And we, the Jewish people will remain, and continue to flourish because the words Am Yisrael Chai are not just a nice song, those words are a historical reality and if you don’t believe me, just ask yourself how many Babylonians you know.
We are here, they are not.
And when I say “They”, I mean the empires of ancient Egypt, Phillistines, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Crusaders, Spanish, Nazis, Soviet Union, and so many others.
Am Yisrael Chai is a fact built into the DNA of the world.
As hard as it is to believe now, we will dance again because we always do!!
For now, let’s get through this day together.
