Ever wonder why Ariel Sharon's insane plan of Disengagement was planned for the period of the 9th of Av, the day that was decreed to be a day of mourning for generations? Just a coincidence that it's taking place at this time of the year, and was not called for, say, in February or December? I don't think so.
Last week's parsha concluded the book of Numbers. The book of Numbers is, in reality, the end of the Torah, being that the book of Deuteronomy, also known as the Mishneh Torah, is in essence a repeat of the Torah, and a rebuke and concluding remarks by Moses. And which topic did we find concluding the book of Numbers? None other than the repeat story of the daughters of Zelophchad, with their dedication and great love for the Land of Israel, teaching us that the final tikkun, or repair, that the Jewish people will have to do before the complete redemption can come is correcting the sin of the spies, who spoke harshly about the Land and were people of little faith.
And without missing a beat, we find in our parsha that Moses rebukes the people for this sin, the sin of the spies who spoke harshly about the Land and did not have the faith to enter the land of goodness, which HaShem promised them: "Yet in this matter you did not believe in HaShem." That day, of course, in which the spies came and spoke badly against the Land of Israel was none other than the 9th of Av.
This sin has been following the Jewish people around since the beginning of time, like a bad plague. Whether it was the 80% of the Jews in Egypt who did not want to leave and so were buried there, or the Jews who, even after given permission by Cyrus, king of Persia, to return home to Israel, did not. And so on throughout our history, whether from Spain, Germany or elsewhere today, the Jew prefers to go anywhere but back home to Israel, and the sin of the spies still sticks to us like glue.
No Coincidence
The spies who set out for the Land of Israel started their journey in the south of the country; yes, none other than the Gush Katif area, and planned their evil scheme there. The tikkun, or the rectification, of the sin of the spies will then come from this area. For 40 days, they marched though the land. These are the days from the month of Tammuz until the 9th of Av. And it was at that time that the children of Israel cried for nothing, and the day was decreed by HaShem to be a day of mourning for generations. So, it is no coincidence that the plan to uproot the Jews from this area is taking place now, during this time.
But, unknown to Sharon and Co., the original date set for the disengagement, during the Three Weeks, was pushed off until after the 9th of Av, closer to the 15th of Av. Just a coincidence? The 9th of Av represents the sin of the spies and lack of faith in HaShem as Master of the world we live in, but the 15th of Av, our rabbis teach us, is the day that the punishment of the sin was over. In fact, there is no happier day for the Jewish people than the 15th of Av.
The fact that the plan was pushed off to a better timing for the Jewish people shows that the rectification of the sin of the spies has been accomplished by the Jews of Gush Katif, who are holding on to the land for all of our sakes with great love and faith in HaShem. This is exactly opposite of what the spies did, with the great majority of the Jews in the Gush unmoved by any financial loss to themselves, even at the cost, in some cases, of millions of shekels - all for their great love for the land. Has there ever been such devotion by Jews to their land and G-d since the beginning of time?
The ten evil spies came back to camp with the fruits of Israel in order to discourage going to the land, as eight of them were found carrying two poles, taking a cluster of grapes, and the other two carried a pomegranate and a fig. All this was a heavy load for the spies, but, still, to put fear in the hearts of the people they were willing to carry the burden. Today, too, as we head down in our efforts to help our brethren in Gush Katif and march there to join up with them, we, too, carry a heavy burden on our backs, with our knapsacks and tents, canned foods and other essentials that we may need for the long haul. Walking around in the hot sun, bitten by mosquitoes, we continue the journey, both old and young. And with every bead of sweat that pours off of our bodies, all for the sake of saving our land, we rectify the sin of the spies.
So, it will come to pass that the punishment that awaits the evil planners will be that their end will be like the spies before them, and for the Jews who cherish the land, there will be great happiness and rejoicing. For there is no greater day for the Jewish people than Tu B'Av - the 15th of Av.
Last week's parsha concluded the book of Numbers. The book of Numbers is, in reality, the end of the Torah, being that the book of Deuteronomy, also known as the Mishneh Torah, is in essence a repeat of the Torah, and a rebuke and concluding remarks by Moses. And which topic did we find concluding the book of Numbers? None other than the repeat story of the daughters of Zelophchad, with their dedication and great love for the Land of Israel, teaching us that the final tikkun, or repair, that the Jewish people will have to do before the complete redemption can come is correcting the sin of the spies, who spoke harshly about the Land and were people of little faith.
And without missing a beat, we find in our parsha that Moses rebukes the people for this sin, the sin of the spies who spoke harshly about the Land and did not have the faith to enter the land of goodness, which HaShem promised them: "Yet in this matter you did not believe in HaShem." That day, of course, in which the spies came and spoke badly against the Land of Israel was none other than the 9th of Av.
This sin has been following the Jewish people around since the beginning of time, like a bad plague. Whether it was the 80% of the Jews in Egypt who did not want to leave and so were buried there, or the Jews who, even after given permission by Cyrus, king of Persia, to return home to Israel, did not. And so on throughout our history, whether from Spain, Germany or elsewhere today, the Jew prefers to go anywhere but back home to Israel, and the sin of the spies still sticks to us like glue.
No Coincidence
The spies who set out for the Land of Israel started their journey in the south of the country; yes, none other than the Gush Katif area, and planned their evil scheme there. The tikkun, or the rectification, of the sin of the spies will then come from this area. For 40 days, they marched though the land. These are the days from the month of Tammuz until the 9th of Av. And it was at that time that the children of Israel cried for nothing, and the day was decreed by HaShem to be a day of mourning for generations. So, it is no coincidence that the plan to uproot the Jews from this area is taking place now, during this time.
But, unknown to Sharon and Co., the original date set for the disengagement, during the Three Weeks, was pushed off until after the 9th of Av, closer to the 15th of Av. Just a coincidence? The 9th of Av represents the sin of the spies and lack of faith in HaShem as Master of the world we live in, but the 15th of Av, our rabbis teach us, is the day that the punishment of the sin was over. In fact, there is no happier day for the Jewish people than the 15th of Av.
The fact that the plan was pushed off to a better timing for the Jewish people shows that the rectification of the sin of the spies has been accomplished by the Jews of Gush Katif, who are holding on to the land for all of our sakes with great love and faith in HaShem. This is exactly opposite of what the spies did, with the great majority of the Jews in the Gush unmoved by any financial loss to themselves, even at the cost, in some cases, of millions of shekels - all for their great love for the land. Has there ever been such devotion by Jews to their land and G-d since the beginning of time?
The ten evil spies came back to camp with the fruits of Israel in order to discourage going to the land, as eight of them were found carrying two poles, taking a cluster of grapes, and the other two carried a pomegranate and a fig. All this was a heavy load for the spies, but, still, to put fear in the hearts of the people they were willing to carry the burden. Today, too, as we head down in our efforts to help our brethren in Gush Katif and march there to join up with them, we, too, carry a heavy burden on our backs, with our knapsacks and tents, canned foods and other essentials that we may need for the long haul. Walking around in the hot sun, bitten by mosquitoes, we continue the journey, both old and young. And with every bead of sweat that pours off of our bodies, all for the sake of saving our land, we rectify the sin of the spies.
So, it will come to pass that the punishment that awaits the evil planners will be that their end will be like the spies before them, and for the Jews who cherish the land, there will be great happiness and rejoicing. For there is no greater day for the Jewish people than Tu B'Av - the 15th of Av.