Once again, last week, Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, gave a powerful speech before the international community, addressing the United Nations General Assembly via video because of the Corona crisis. Once again, he used visual aids in a convincing manner, showing illustrations how the Hezbollah has used the civilian population in Beirut to hide a dangerous weapons depot. Even Mr. Netanyahu’s political opponents admit that he is a gifted speaker and showman. So let’s imagine the following scenario:

Imagine that Bibi once again addresses the world community of nations. Try to hear his voice. This time, he takes a crown out from his bag of tricks. He holds up the crown for the world to see.

“Ladies and Gentlemen,” he says, staring seriously into the camera, one eyebrow raised in his challenging fashion. “Everyone knows that this is a crown. And everyone knows that a crown is a symbol of kingship. Well, I have secret to reveal. The Nation of Israel is not only known as a nation repected for its great military prowess and military intelligence. The Nation of Israel is also known the world over for its great spiritual prowess and Torah wisdom. But one doesn’t have to be a prophet or a learned Rabbi to know that everything in the world derives from the Creator."

"Ladies and Gentlemen, fellow citizens of the world, my brothers and sisters, descendants of Abraham, the word Corona also means crown. Surely, this is no accident. What can we learn from this? We can learn from this that the Creator of Heaven and Earth, the Master of the Universe, is calling out to us, to all of mankind, to all nations, and to the leaders of all countries, including all of you here in this great General Assembly of the United Nations, and, first and foremost, to the leader of the great country of America, my dear friend, President Donald Trump, yes, my friends, through the plague of Corona, the King of the Universe is calling out to humanity to return Him. He is calling out to us to repent of our evil ways, and to return to the paths holiness, righteousness, and justice which He set forth in the Torah and handed down to Moses and to the Nation of Israel as His messenger to the world.”

Then Bibi cracks a small charming smile and says with a chuckle, “If I could, I would pull the Holy One Blessed Be He out of my bag, and ask him to tell You Himself, but that trick I can’t do. So you will have to take my word, based on the revelation of the Almighty in the living history of the Jewish People, and on the universally recognized words of the Prophets of Israel, and on the teachings of our Sages throughout the chronicles of time, that the Corona epidemic has been sent to the world for our good, to warn us of the stubbornness of our hearts, and of the danger of our wanton and egotistical paths, in order to bring us back to our Maker and to the world’s one-and-only King, as the Jewish People declare every day – Shema Yisrael, the L-rd our G-d, the L-rd is One.”

That’s a speech we would all like to see, may it be soon. Our Sages teach that if person puts his hand into his pocket to pull out a five-shekel coin and he pulls out a ten shekel coin instead, the small anguish it causes is a form of punishment and atonement for his misdeeds.

So too the demonstrations against Bibi. While their political content is empty, they too are from Heaven. Perhaps, the small anguish they cause him has come, like the annoyance of flies, because he has not used his talents of speech in the most exalted service of G-d, by declaring His Kingship over all of the Earth – the true job of a Jewish leader – and by calling on the world to return to His true worship, in fulfillment of our prayers throughout the Days of Awe: “The L-rd G-d of Israel is King, and His Kingdom rules over all.”

Imagine.

Tzvi Fishman was awarded the Israel Ministry of Education Prize for Jewish Culture and Creativity. Before making Aliyah to Israel in 1984, he was a successful Hollywood screenwriter. He has co-authored 4 books with Rabbi David Samson, based on the teachings of Rabbis A. Y. Kook and T. Y. Kook. His other books include: "The Kuzari For Young Readers" and "Tuvia in the Promised Land". His books are available on Amazon. Recently, he directed the movie, "Stories of Rebbe Nachman."