22 Nov Kristallnacht and 9/11
Recently, on November 9th was the 79th Anniversary of the infamous day known as Kristallnacht, the Night of the Broken Glass. In a very real way, that night was the beginning of the end of Eastern European Jewry. There is a discrepancy of reports. Some say 276 synagogues were destroyed, but the Holocaust Museum places the number at about one thousand shuls. Seventy-five hundred businesses had their glass shattered and were looted, and 30,000 Jewish men were taken from their homes to places like Dachau – many who were never seen again. The destruction was so terrible that it took the entire output of Belgium’s plate glass industry (Germany did not manufacture plate glass) six months to repair the damage. To add insult to injury, the Germans then blamed the entire incident on the Jews, fining them 1 billion Reichsmarks for the damages. Then, to top it off, the Germans confiscated all of the money from the Jewish insurance claims and turned the payments over to the government. After this night, everything went downhill. The Jews were stripped of their driver’s licenses, curfews were leveled against the Jewish population making it illegal for them to go out from 9 PM to 5 AM, and a whole slew of other terrible edicts.
But, I would like to point out a very critical observation. We are warned in the Tochachah, the Chastisements of Parshas Ki Savo, “Im halachtem imi b’keri – If you walk with Me (Hashem) thinking that everything is merely coincidental (instead of realizing that everything is divinely ordained).” It is important that we recognize Hashem’s Hand in the events of history. In order to help us achieve this, Hashem orchestrates patterns that we should recognize that nothing is mere happenstance – but is rather the Hand of Hashem.
The date 9/11 is seared forever in our minds as a time of infamy when the two planes murderously brought down our Twin Towers. But upon careful observation, we will notice that November 9th, the date of Kristallnacht, is also 9/11 – for November is the 11th month. If you think that’s mere coincidence, let me blow you away with an observation about the saddest day on the Jewish calendar. That day is without question the 9th of Av, the day both our Temples were destroyed, the great Jewish metropolis of Beitar was wiped out, and the day the entire generation that was with Moshe in the desert died. Hold on to your hats and your sheitels! The 9th of Av is also 9/11 for the month of Av is the 11th month counting from Rosh HaShannah. This is but just one example of how Hashem makes patterns throughout history to show that everything is Divinely planned.
The very first word in the Torah, Bereishis, has a gematria of 913. The first letter, beis, which means “in,” has a numerical value of 2. Thus, the first word can be read “in 9/11.” This is extremely significant since an anagram of Bereishis is Bris Aish – A Covenant of Fire. So the Torah, at its very beginning, warns us that if we don’t keep our pact with the Torah, on 9/11 there will be a fire like the fire that destroyed both Temples, the fireball of the destruction of the Twin Towers, and the fires that burnt so many of our shuls and Sifrei Torahs on Kristallnacht.
The week that the towers were destroyed, we read Parshas Ki Savo. There it says that “The enemy will come “Kasher yideh hanesher – As the eagle swoops.” The parsha goes on to say that “Your towers will fall, your most fortified ones that you have the most complete confidence in,” an allusion to the towers of the World Trade Center. The word ‘yideh’ to swoop, is unique. It is not found anywhere else in the Torah. The more common word would be ya-uf – to fly. Amazingly, look at the construction and spelling of the word yideh, yud-daled-alef-hei. If you take it apart, the yud (10) and the alef (1) make 11, and the daled (4) and the hei (5) equal 9. When will the ‘swooping’ occur? On 9/11.
Lekah midei delo remizah b’Oraisah – There is nothing that is not hinted to in the Torah.
May it be the will of Hashem that we should see Hashem’s Hand wield mercy and redemption for our people and in the merit of our Torah study may we be blessed with long life, good health, and everything wonderful.
Please learn, daven & give Tzedakah for the refuah sheleima of Miriam Liba bas Devorah, b’soch shaar cholei Yisroel.