Desiring Eretz Yisrael and Yom Kippur Katan

I decided to copy my last comment from the previous post and copy it here. It is a response to several heated letters at the end of the last post about moving to Eretz Yisrael. I want to calm down the argument on this subject. It is an unnecessary source of friction even though it is a good positive attitude to at least desire intensely to be here at this time. Working toward that goal if your life's circumstances permit and after asking for Rabbinic guidance here in Israel is the important next step. I also wrote a short piece on Yom Kippur Katan which is today!

Wow I must admit that I did not expect the spate of anger for and against Jews being here in Eretz Yisrael this time during the thick of the War of Gog W. (read U) MaGog (read son of Gog). For those in Chul (outside Israel) please desire to be here as soon as possible. America's geshmackt lifestyle is coming to a close, but your desire to be here should be because you want to help perfect G-d's world most effectively. Desiring to be here should be intimately intertwined with the above purpose.Escaping the disasters that might yet befall America should be secondary to the above. Yet, lest you think that it will not get worse, please do not fool yourselves. I say this realizing that many are trapped in America because of debts and other pressing financial or medical situations that prevent their true desires from being fulfilled. For those you do not desire to be here as soon as possible, you should take stock of your spiritual self. It is for that, that you will need to account before G-d. I say this without malice. It is just a matter of fact that when Jews are suffering in Eretz Yisrael in order that the rest of the world can prosper, one needs to wonder whether the geshmackt way of life is continuing to help Jews in America gather sparks of purity through mitzva observance or whether they are helping to feed the husks of impurity that surround them. True, Hashem desires our attempts to cleave to him through mitzvot no matter where we are. The Ramchal in "The Way of HaShem" discusses the delicate balance between our work on perfecting ourselves in G-d's eyes through character development and mitzva observance and how these things lead to the perfection of the world while we are working on ourselves.

Yet, when Lavan's face changes, the Shekhinah (the Divine Presence) is on His/Her way out the door. Yakov Avinu left Lavan's house when his face changed. Perhaps those who worked for the re-election of Gog W. to Bait Lavan (The White House) should take a good look at his face these days. Summary investigations of AIPAC for no good reason and fears about speaking up to the man that many Orthodox Jews just helped re-elect about Gush Katif provide a convincing argument to the fact that the face of Lavan is not the same as it was even one year ago. (Actually, I believe that this was always Gog W.'s face. He just needed your votes.) Yet, his outward face has definitely changed. Since the beginning of the Al Aksa Intafada, signs were posted in America that prosperity there depended on "Israeli restraint" to vicious random slaughter. Bush's Saudi handlers would have it no other way. In short, the Shekhina already was knocking hard, "I am getting ready to leave this great American exile. Do you hear me knocking!" Now it has reached the point that many (but not all) American Jews are afraid to loudly cry out in an effective organizational way against the destruction of Jewish communities in Eretz Yisrael. By this point the Shekhina has left the platform. (The platform is now one big oily mess!) It is important to know when the Shekhina is leaving in order to know if you are still gathering sparks of holiness or if you are now feeding the klipot even through mitzvot. This is true even if G-d desires our mitzvot everywhere on the globe. How G-d balances His desire for Mitzvot and the feeding of the husks of impurity through Mitzvot is one of His closely guarded secrets. He loves His sheep in America and does not wish them harm, but the redemption depends on doing Mitzvot here more than there now that the Shekhina is leaving America. ( I discussed this point with Rav Pinchus Winston. He said that the sefer "Tuv HaAretz" makes this point succinctly.) So when America uproots Torah here in EY, there is Azezel to pay.

G-d in His Infinite Wisdom will gather the Golah (the lagging exiles that survive the storm of Gog UMagog) after Mashiach comes too, but for the sake of easing his coming, for G-d's sake and for ours, please desire intensely to be here now even if you cannot get here for whatever legitimate reason. Try to come to terms with the fact that although there is always eternal reward for mitzvot observance, the effect of doing so now in Chul (outside the Land) now that the Shekhina has left the platform is to feed the klipot, the husks of spiritual impurity that are around you. At the very least, those husks are now demanding an even heavier portion of tax on your mitzvah observance. I realize in this way the Creator is patient with His lagging sheep even if they are lagging for legitimate reasons. Just at this stage of the War of Gog W. (think U) Magog if your reasons are legit, at least desire to be here.

Enough said on this subject. NO HATRED HERE. With love, Dov

Also today is Yom Kippur Katan, the day before Rosh Hodesh Elul. Of course that day is really Shabbat this year, but let us all fast until noon tomorrow and reflect on our need to do teshuva for the next 40 days beginning on Saturday night. Also reflect on how Esau does his 40 days of repentence during his 40 day period of penitence (between Ash Wednesday and Easter). How does he spend the day before in preparation for his 40 days? The place most notorious for the debauchery preceding his 40 days of penitence is now sitting in several feet of water. While many decent folk have suffered and are continuing to suffer in this awesome tragedy, it is appropriate to reflect on what we should do to appropriately prepare for the Days of Awe on this Yom Kippur Katan. We should not treat the day before the 40 days as a day of wanton pleasure with no serious reflection, G-d forbid. I have a sense that this 40 day period of penitence may be the most awesome period of prep. in history. Just a sense, no prophesy. Let us prepare properly for the 2nd year of Sukkot, the year of Yitzkhak (Isaac). More next week on the unfolding judgment with an article soon on the year 5765, the first year of Sukkot, the year of Avraham. Remember in this year G-d has cursed those who have cursed us, in both cases with water. Yes, sadly America has misused its blessing for helping out so generously with the victims of the tsunami. Until now America was blessed this year with economic bounty for its chessed during the aftermath of the tsunami, but it has spoiled its bracha with this vile sin of destruction here in the Holy Land. America was warned during Hurricane Ivan on Rosh HaShana to not play G-d with Jewish communities here. Gog W. wanted His seat on the Heavenly Throne. G-d showed that His seat is not vacant for Gog to sit there.