03 Dec As Rockets Rain Down on Our Brothers and Sisters in Eretz Yisroel (Part 2)

Last week, we started reflecting upon the frightening barrage of rockets that our brethren in Eretz Yisroel are being assaulted with. Jews all over the world look in amazement at the reaction of the global community. Their silence is deafening. Would any other country tolerate even one missile being launched at their homeland? Many just shake their heads in disbelief and wonder why the world isn’t showing outrage at such vile behavior. The more knowledgeable observer says sagely this is just proof of what the Navi says that we are a “Seh bein shivim zea’vim – We are like a sheep surrounded by 70 wolves.” Others elaborate further that it’s no surprise for we are taught, “Halacha b’yadua she’Eisav soneh es Yaakov – It is an immutable way of the world that Eisav hates Yaakov.”

While this is true, there is another dynamic at play. The Gemora in Masechtas Megillah wonders why Esther invited Haman to a private feast. How was she able to sit at a private meal with such a monster? The Gemora offers many explanations. One of them is that Esther wanted to ensure that the B’nei Yisroel not relax and say “We have nothing to worry about because, “Achos yeish lanu b’beis ha’melech – We have a sister in the palace.” We have an ace up our sleeve. We don’t have to get too worried. Esther didn’t want them to put their faith in her, but rather in Hashem above. Similarly, if America, Great Britain, and Canada would be up in arms and would threaten the Arabs, we wouldn’t be running for our Tehillims and our Siddurim. Hashem wants us to remember, “Ein lonu l’hisha’ein elah al Avinu she’baShamayim – We don’t have anybody to rely on except our Father in Heaven.”

There is another aspect about the rocket attacks that I want to point out. There was a rocket that landed right in the middle of a busy highway. A motorcyclist took a video of it and I saw the video. The highway was as busy as the Belt Parkway during rush hour. The rocket landed smack in the middle. If it had hit a moving car, it would certainly have killed the occupants and likely caused a fatal pileup. However, there was one lone dumpster by the divider of the highway and the rocket hit that dumpster and nothing else. When we see this, we must know that our collective prayers and Torah study are at work in successfully shielding our brothers and sisters.

Then there is our other secret weapon and that is our Gedolei Yisroel, our great Tzadikkim. When Moshe Rabbeinu sent the spies to check out Eretz Yisroel, he asked them to see if ha’yeish bah eitz im ayin, if there is a tree or not. That seems to be a very queer instruction. He wanted to see if there was a lone tree in Canaan? Rashi explains that he was telling them to search whether there a righteous person living among the seven nations, like a stout tree, who would protect them – as we find that Mesushelach protected his entire generation from the flood until he died. It is said that the Chazon Ish, zt”l, zy”a, said that he was unaware of the holocaust for if he had been aware he would not have let it happen (through his prayers). This is why in the blessing of Al HaTzadikkim we pray that Hashem should show mercy to our righteous ones because we realize that the continued existence of such giants like Rav Chaim Kanievsky, shlit”a, ensures the safety of the entire land.

One more thing. Hashem gave us the great gift of the iron dome and the brave soldiers that man it. The iron dome has protected us mightily. Any one of the rockets it intercepted could have landed on a hospital, school or apartment complex. The iron dome gives us something definitive to pray for as Elisha asked the woman who asked him for help with sustenance, “Do you have anything is the house.” She answered him that she had oil. He told her to get many vessels and keep on pouring the oil, but she needed a little oil for the blessing to devolve upon. So too, we keep crumbs on the table when we bentch so that our requests for parnasah should have something to devolve upon. The iron dome give us something concrete to pray: That it shouldn’t miss its mark and always be accurate.

In the merit of our prayers, may there be serenity in Eretz Yisroel, tranquility for Jews all over the globe, and we should be blessed with long life good health and everything wonderful.

To be continued.