Moshe Kempinski
Moshe KempinskiMoshe Kempinski

The secret of life is the yearning soul.

We must ask the question as to why Hashem asked that a House be built for Him, even though He clearly knew that it would be destroyed. In the same vein, why did Hashem plant Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden while fully knowing that they would fail and be expelled? Why did Hashem create Man and Woman as one, only to separate them again?

The answer to all those questions is connected to “the power of yearning”. The greatest spiritual force in the Universe is yearning. The world and reality is built along a framework where perfection is displayed and then hidden, where paradise is revealed then lost. The Garden of Eden is revealed and then lost. Man and Woman are created as one and then they are separated. G-d reveals Himself in all His power and Glory during the Exodus in Egypt, and then goes into hiding. The First and Second Temples are built and experienced, and then they are lost.

Spiritual existence is about the yearning to reveal that which was hidden and find that which was lost. It is that spiritual force of yearning that fixes the world and restores it to its purpose.

G-d created a reality that would provide need and imperfection and therefore fire up the yearning to restore the world to perfection.

A deeper level is found in a powerful statement by the Rebbe of Kotzk;

“Where is G-d to be found?”, He asked. His answer was that “He is found in the place where He is given entry.”

His Presence may in fact be everywhere but it is only revealed in a place that “makes room for Him” in awareness.

Yearning is the spiritual force that reveals the deepest secrets that are hidden.

Yearning is also the spiritual force that bring back into reality and perception those things that have seemingly disappeared

If one takes a cursory and objective glance at the recent history of the people of Israel and the rebirth of a Jewish commonwealth in the land of Israel, one cannot escape the resemblance to a classic Biblical text.
If one takes a cursory and objective glance at the recent history of the people of Israel and the rebirth of a Jewish commonwealth in the land of Israel, one cannot escape the resemblance to a classic Biblical text. An oppressed, dispersed and maligned people ingathered to their ancient homeland. A small, beleaguered nation fighting off multiple nations intent on their destruction. An economy that began with young pioneers fighting off malaria that has soared to unexpected heights .

One cannot ignore the two-thousand-year-old yearning to return to their beloved Jerusalem ."If I Forget thee O Jerusalem let my right hand lose its strength" was the refrain , declared, sung and cried out for countless generations. It was declared in the Ghettos of Europe, in the Casbahs of the Middle East, and in the hills of the Gondar province in Ethiopia. It was heard even in the concentration camps of the Nazi murderers.

That yearning then became fulfilled in a miraculous six days in the summer of 1967. A story of Biblical proportions. How can one stand idly by and not burst into song?

If you ever tasted the yearning then you have the power to sing.

Yom Yerushalayim Sameach.

Rejoice in the fulfilment of yearning.

LeRefuat Kol Hacholim

Lerefuat Yehudit Bat Golda Yocheved and Yehudit bat Chaya Esther