From an email:
“Each person you meet
is an aspect of yourself,
clamoring for love.”
SHAAAAALLOOOMMM SWEEETEST
FRIENDS!!!!!
Who are the happiest people?
Research shows that people who feel CONNECTED to others are happiest! When we
feel lonely, we are sad.
The pasuk compares the generation of
the tower - דור הפלגה - to the Jewish
people [see Rashi Devarim 32, 7-9] . They had a GREAT idea! UNITY!! Achdus!!!
They were שפה אחת ודברים אחדים - they all
spoke the same language, both the literal language [Yiddish of course] and also
the same ideological language. They were all Democrats [or Republicans.
Actually, according to one commentary, they were all Communists...]. They felt
unity and THAT is powerful. They wanted to "wage war" against Hashem
and b/c of the power of togetherness, they had a solid chance. The pasuk
says
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר יְהֹוָ֗ה הֵ֣ן עַ֤ם אֶחָד֙
וְשָׂפָ֤ה אַחַת֙ לְכֻלָּ֔ם וְזֶ֖ה הַֽחִלָּ֣ם לַֽעֲשׂ֑וֹת וְעַתָּה֙
לֹֽא־יִבָּצֵ֣ר מֵהֶ֔ם כֹּ֛ל אֲשֶׁ֥ר יָֽזְמ֖וּ לַֽעֲשֽׂוֹת
And Hashem
said, "Lo! [did Hashem speak like Shakespeare?] [they are] one people, and
they all have one language, and this is what they have commenced to do. Now,
will it not be withheld from them, all that they have planned to do.
Because of the power of unity - they
have a shot! That is a rule of nature that Hashem created - that unity is super
powerful and potent! So the only solution is to mix up their language and
scatter them [as the psukim describe].
The Jews ALSO have unity but not in
the negative sense but in the most positive sense. The pasuk calls Yerushalayim
העיר שחוברה לה יחדיו - the city in which
we Jews are all together [Yerushalmi "שכל ישראל
נעשים חברים"].
The pasuk says "אם ה' לא יבנה בית שוא עמלו בוניו בו" - If Hashem
doesn't build the house [i.e. Beis Hamikdash] then all of the toil is for
naught. We need a House where we are all united around Hashem and His
service. Chazal say that a כנסיה לשם שמים
- a gathering for the sake of heaven - lasts. The דור
הפלגה was a כנסיה שלא לשם שמים
- not for the sake of heaven, so it didn't last. The
Beis Hamikdash was a כנסיה לשם שמים. [When we lost our
unity – we also lost the Beis Hamikdash].
The people of the דור הפלגה wanted to build a tower - unsuccessfully.
Calev said "עלה נעלה וירשנו אותה"-
Let us go up and capture Israel. Chazal explain - Even if we have to
build ladders to the heavens we will be able to capture Eretz
Yisrael. This alludes to the bad tower “ "מגדל וראשו בשמים of the דור
הפלגה – WE, said Calev, can build a SUPER
TOWER to the heavens, a holy tower – if necessary.
We ALSO want to build a tower to the
Shomayim - but for an altruistic reason. To extend BEYOND the narrow confines
of this world and reach the heavens. The pasuk says in Shir Hashirim "כמגדל דוד צוארך בנוי לתלפיות" - the
"Tower of Dovid" i.e. the Beis Hamikdash, is a "Tower"
which in fact connects heaven and earth [as the Zohar teaches]. Asking for
the Beis Hamikdash as we do daily is a request to build a proper Tower. A tower of unity between man and man, man and G-d,
heaven and earth.
So we want what the דור הפלגה wanted. A big Tower that unites us all.
The difference is that they wanted it to rebel against Hashem and we want it to
CONNECT to Hashem.
BELOVED FRIENDS!!! We are living in
the "דור הבידוד" - The
generation of quarantine. People are being forced to be alone. Yes, we have
phones and facetime and all the other gifts of
modern technology but it is not the same. On a national level there
is a TREMENDOUS amount of divisiveness and fragmentation. So much fighting, so
much mudslinging at people who think differently. OYYYYYY VEEEEYYYY!!!
OUR JOB is to restore unity. Vote
Ehrman for President. I will bring us together!!!!
We can do that by connecting to each
other through the values represented by Yerushalayim and the Beis Hamikdash.
Yerushalayim is called משוש כל הארץ - The joy of the
earth. We connect through JOY!!! In the Beis Hamikdash we brought "קרבנות" meaning "coming close"
which we do by giving an animal [which according to the Rambam represents man]
for a higher purpose. This means that we come close to EACH OTHER and Hashem by
giving of ourselves for a higher purpose.
In the Beis Hamikdash we had special
Yirah - AWE of a Higher Power. For us that means no EGO. EGO is an acronym for
"E'dge G-d O'ut". There is no "I" in team and WE are a
team.
So much more to say. I will let you
elaborate on the idea for yourselves.
I will end with a beautiful passage
I saw:
“Love does not
cost anything. Kind words and deeds do not cost anything. The real beauty of
the world is equal for everyone to see. It was given by G-d equally to all,
without restrictions.
Everyone, was given a beautiful vehicle in which to express love to others.
Feelings are free to express and give to ourselves and each other through our
willingness to give and care.
What is complicated about this... Why have we made others feel they have to
climb mountains and swim oceans in order to make a difference.
All we need to understand my friends, is that human life was given equally to
us all, not partially but in totality.
The sun was given to all. It does not shine on the few. So, just has nature is
indifferent to our station or situation, we need to know that we are all equal.
We need to focus on the things that are constant and not place our values on
things that can be blown away with the next, great, wind.
Value life in whatever house it dwells. For when it comes time that we are all
stripped to bare bones before the divine and facing eternity, we will
understand that the major law we were meant to follow, was to love ourselves
and each other. Nothing more...nothing less.”
Bi-ahava rabba and wishes for a
SWEEEEEET HEALTHY HOLY SHABBOS,
Me😀😊
[Based in part on the Sfas Emes]
