3rd of Elul
by HaRav Dov Begon, Head of Machon Meir
A generation deprived of love needs love all the more!
Eighty-eight years have passed since the third of Elul, 5695, when that great lover of Israel, Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak HaKohen Kook, passed away. Rabbi Kook was living fulfillment of the verse, “Say of the righteous man that it shall be well with him, for he shall eat the fruit of his deeds” (Isaiah 3:6). Our whole generation enjoys the fruits of his labors.
Rabbi Kook sets out to teach us how to love Israel precisely “at a time when our people are declining spiritually, when the trampling of what is sacred and the mocking of religion are at their zenith” (Orot 148). He explains that we have to recognize that “love of our fellow Jews results from faith in the divine light of the Jewish People… Moreover, we must gaze upon that inner light that penetrates the whole community, and whose dwelling place is likewise within every individual Jewish soul, openly or hidden. It even dwells in the soul that has withdrawn far from the path of G-d” (Orot, Ibid.).
To what may this be compared? To a child deprived of love due to his disturbed behavior. Yet it is precisely this child who needs even more love.
Rabbi Kook not only expounded in an attractive manner, but he behaved that way as well. He worked very hard to increase love between Jews. He would reach out to those far ¬removed, descend to the level of the people, suffer with their suffering and rejoice in their celebration. He would defend the motives of the entire generation, and atone for them through his prayers and his deeds.
Today, we must follow the path of Rabbi Kook, that high priest among his brothers, so great in his love of the Jewish People. He was a real shepherd for Israel, devoting himself to his flocks and caring and striving for their welfare in every way possible. Likewise, he stood in the breach, praying on their behalf to nullify harsh decrees and to open up for them the gates of blessing.
G-d loves only those who love Israel. The greater a person’s love of his fellow Jew, the more greatness G-d will give him.
Stages in the Generation’s Repentance
The anniversary of the death of Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook, the great lover of Israel, is the third of Elul. Rabbi Kook saw through his intuitive spirit the return to Jewishness of those circles that had distanced themselves from religion and tradition. He noted that the nation would return to Jewishness in four stages. The first stage would be that they would once more show respect for tradition and religion. After that, out of respect, they would once more come to feel affection for religion. Their respect and affection would bring them to study Torah, and their respect, affection and study would lead them to mitzvah fulfillment. (Orot HaTeshuvah 157)
Rabbi Kook points out that in this order of respect, affection, study and practice, is hidden the key to redemption.
Right now, eighty-eight years after the death of Rabbi Kook, we see clearly how the process of the return of those portions of the nation who distanced themselves from tradition and religion, as foreseen by Rabbi Kook, is gradually taking hold.
We see how amongst myriads of the Jewish masses respect for Jewish tradition is developing. This finds expression within the family and its customs, and in the return to the synagogue on Sabbath and holidays. Even politically, over half of the members of Knesset represent a public that supports tradition and religion. Out of that enormous group that shows respect to religion, there is a group that feels affection for religion and its institutions. They take an interest in Judaism, take part in study groups, attend seminars on Judaism and send their children to religious schools and Talmud Torahs. Out of that group that feel affection for religion and tradition, there is a group that fixes set times for Torah learning in yeshivot and synagogues, and through this, are devoted to mitzvah observance as well.
The return to Judaism can be viewed as a pyramid, at whose base are those who show respect for our faith, and at whose pinnacle are those who study and practice it. Even though many of our brethren are not advancing forward at the speedy pace we would like, all the while, there is great, unceasing movement from the base towards the pinnacle. The day is not far removed when the words of Isaiah 11:9 will be fulfilled: “For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the L-rd, as the waters cover the sea.”
