5 Marcheshvan 5787
Erev Shabbat Kodesh
Parashat Noach
Rav Binyamin Ze'ev Kahane" HY"D...
...For 120 years, Noah fulfilled G-d's commandment and built the ark, all the while warning the people in his generation about the impending flood. When the people would pass by his house and ask what he was doing, he would reply, "The Almighty said that He is bringing a flood upon the world". The people reacted with vicious mockery. (Bereishit Raba 30:7)The question that can be asked is the following: For 120 years Noach warned of the flood. And what came out of it? At first glance absolutely nothing! In the end, the flood wiped out the entire world, except for whom? Except for Noach and his family. Not even one person was convinced to do "teshuva." Not even one! Noach's "life endeavor" of 120 years was a waste of time. Or was it?The story of Noach provides us with a concrete illustration as to what the true role of the chastising prophet is. Certainly the major goal of the warnings and admonishment are to direct the people onto the proper path, in the hope that they will do "teshuva" immediately. But in contrast as to what one might think, if the prophet does not succeed in bringing the people to "teshuva," this does not necessarily mean that he failed! A deeper look will reveal that the rebuke in itself has value. If we look at the prophets of Israel, we will notice an amazing fact: Generally speaking, they were a dismal failure. It seemed as if they influenced no one. The people were not interested in hearing them, and did not change their evil ways. Does this mean that there was no value in the warnings of the prophets? Of course not. After all, the words of the prophets are inscribed forever in our holy Tanach.The answer to this question can be found in G-d's answer to Ezekiel when He appoints him as a prophet (chapter 2) "And He said to me, Son of man, I sent thee to the children of Israel...that have rebelled against me...and you shall say to them, Thus says the Lord G-d. And they, whether they will hear, or whether they will refuse to hear, (for they are a rebellious house), so that they shall know that there has been a prophet amongst them." And afterwards (3:7): "But the house of Israel will not hearken to you..." Can this be? If G-d knows that they will not listen, why send Ezekiel out and put him through such humiliation and abuse? And so a new concept is learned here. The saying of truth has value, even if it has no apparent influence at that particular moment. What is the value? "So that they shall know that there has been a prophet amongst them." Even if immediate results are not seen, the value of the warnings are that they manifest the bringing in of G-d's word into the world. The prophet who expresses G-d's truth is giving expression to G-d's actual presence in this world. It is showing us that the world is not "hefker" (chaos). There is justice in the world. By so doing, the prophet in essence sanctifies G-d's name.-(Compiled by Tzipora Liron-Pinner from "The writings of Rav Binyamin Ze'ev Kahane" HY"D - end of commentary on Parashat Bereshit and commentary on Parashat Noach)
Rav Zamir Cohen shlita said that aswe don't have nevua today, Hashem talks to us through current events.
ReplyDelete1938 Kristallnacht
2018 eleven Jews murdered in America on the 80th anniversary of Kristallnacht. 80 is gvurot. Rav Anava spoke about this, before we moved into the peh years. That he hoped the geula would be before then.
2020 Isis attack outside the only shul in Vienna to survive the Shoah, on the anniversary of KN.
2025 Mamdani sworn in on the day before the anniversary of KN, first day in office canceled "no-protest zones" outside Jewish institutatios. In his first month in office, 182% year-over-year explosion in anti-Jewish hate crimes.
France, with the second largest exile community, is undergoing an insurrection funded by China. The mayhem is the goal. Mayhem is never good for Jews.
Before and even during the Shoah, many Jews thought it was 'over there' or 'only those Jews. The message of events in France, California, NY, Bondi Beach, Manchester, and where not, is for Jews everywhere. The reference to California,is for Paul Kessler HYD murdered by an Arab, who spent a whole SIX MONTHS in prison for his crime. The value of a life of a Jew in the USA.
Surely it should be crystal clear that we are in the years of gvurot and that Hashem is closing down the exile. It's not just a mater of if one will be saved, but how.
Hitoreri
With all due respect to Rav Cohen, we most certainly do have nevuot today - the ones written down for us and preserved for us in our Tanakh. It's a tragedy that more Jews don't read them, for the simple reason that it is the best understanding we can have of the way God 'thinks,' what He expects from us, and how he judges us.
DeleteThe most chilling prophecy I've ever read is found in the Book of Yechezkel, chapter 20, wherein God says that at the End of Days He will set His hand to regather us from the four corners of the world, but that although we will certainly leave the lands of our dispersion, not everyone of those will enter the Land of Israel.
I can predict that someone will come back with - "a negative prophecy does not have to come true." However, the fact is, if you look back down the corridors of history, they always have.