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This week's Torah portion, Nitzavim, always reminds me of an amazing story recounted by Rabbi Benjamin Blech in the last chapter of his book, 'If G-d is so good, why is the world so bad?' He describes a chance meeting he once had with a Jewish mystic that forever changed his life....
He was visiting Israel when a friend told him that there was someone very special that he wanted him to meet. A saintly scholar who lived in the holy city of Tzfat, in northern Israel. When he met him, the man revealed to him a mystical "secret" of the Torah, but on two conditions: that this secret not be revealed publicly until he informed Rabbi Blech that the time was ripe, and that he never reveal his identity, disturbing his lifelong pursuit of anonymity. This secret had a great effect on the Rabbi's life & view of the world, but he never divulged it to anyone. Years passed, until one day the mystic called the Rabbi and said simply: "Now is the time."
What was the "secret"? The mystic called it the "secret of sentences." Said the mystic: "Know that the verses in the 5 books of Moses, the Torah, correspond to the years of history. Every major event of all times will have some allusion to it, direct or indirect..." Rabbi Blech was doubtful. So he said, "what about the state of Israel?" Israel became a state in 1948; in the Jewish calendar, 1948 is the year 5708 (in a week from now, on Rosh Hashana, we will be entering year 5772). Painstakingly, Rabbi Blech began counting from the 1st verse, Bereishit, describing the creation of the world. When he reached the 5,708th verse, it was Deuteronomy 30:3 (this week's Torah portion): "And the L-rd your G-d will turn your captivity and have compassion on you, and will return and gather you from all the peoples where the L-rd your G-d has scattered you." Shocked, Rabbi Blech's finger moved 3 verses back, to the verse corresponding to the secular year 1945, the last year of the holocaust. "The secret things belong to the L-rd our G-d; and the things that are revealed to us and our children forever are to do all the words of this Law."
At the end of the day, G-d is wiser than we are. As the 11th-century sage, Bachya Ibn Pakuda said: "If we could understand G-d we would be G-d." Like our response to everyday troubles, we must remember this verse, that G-d has a good intention for us, even if we don't immediately understand (see last week's email :) G-d's love for us is constant, and will never change, no matter how hard that is to see with our physical eyes.
After I read this chapter, I decided to look up one last event, the miraculous victories by Israel in 1967 (5727). Israel conquered the west bank of the Jordan, Judea & Samaria, but halted there, not entering Jordan proper. The 5,727th verse in the Torah states: "(Moses) said to them, 'I am 120 years old today; I can no longer go out and come in, for Hashem has said to me, 'You shall not cross this Jordan.'" Wow. Now, I don't think we can predict events through this, and I don't think we can even identify very many past events. What we do see though, is that the Torah isn't an ordinary book. It is our guide to life. A sacred, G-dly book that contains all that we need to know & do in life, like an instruction manual or blueprint - our life's road map. It has stayed the cornerstone of our people for thousands of years, through thick & thin, for good reason.
May we approach these high holidays with an inspired feeling toward G-d & His special Torah! Shabbat Shalom!
-Daniel
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