// 845.371.2222 squanders his opportunity, Hashem who considers the united Klal Yisroel collectively to be tzaddikim, enables him with another chance to eventually include himself through the zechusim of Klal Yisroel who collectively are entitled to olam haba. כמוך לרעך ואהבת is an all-inclusive principal. Loving others as yourself is a prerequisite to the Torah. Conversely when our actions are divisive, it is destructive. Looking back, we see that whenever there was disunity, Hashem punished His people. Other times when they were deserving of punishment, but they were united, Hashem waited for another opportunity when there would be a rift amongst them. In the meantime, they had a chance to do teshuva. Before Bilam went to say lashon hara against Klal Yisroel to foment Hashem’s anger against them, Balak advised him to find weakness and transgression only in small factions of Klal Yisroel, because if he will say lashon hara on all of Klal Yisroel, Hashem will be lenient in punishing them... Moshe Rabbeinu was zoche to transmit the Torah to His people, by virtue of his love for his brothers. He was a prince, who was exempt from slavery yet Moshe joined them to share their burdens, as Rashi comments, “He devoted his eyes and heart to feel with them.” Hashem recognized in him the deserving quality needed for him to eventually become a faithful and loving leader to Klal Yisroel. Hashem derives so much pleasure from our achdus that He is more lenient to accept our teshuva for aveiros committed against Him bein adam Lamokom than aveiros bein adam lachaveiro... The Tanna Reb Hillel, the sample of ahavas Yisroel says: לי מי ,לי אני אין אם If I am not for myself, then who am I? Though it is praiseworthy to listen to and be inspired by others, a person carries the ultimate responsibility for his own behavior. Pointing fingers to blame others by saying, ‘She/He caused me to sin’ does not negate one’s own accountability. אני מה ,לעצמי וכשאני If I am for myself than what am I? Reb Mendel of Kotzk famously stated: “If I am I, because I am I, and you are you because you are you, then I am I, and you are you. If I am I, because you are you, and you are you, because I am I, then you are not you and I am not I.” A person has to know where he stands in his relationship with Hashem. He will never be authentic by ‘trying to fit in’ to other people’s expectations of him. Attempting to be a people pleaser will not make him a better person, nor will it earn him respect. Working on our midos means working on our ‘I’, No one else can do it for us. Otherwise, living to please others will turn us into characterless robots, programmed by the yetzer hara. This is relevant today where people set artificial standards such as in style, in spending, in chinuch…. There are those who always want to fit in, and think that this will bring respect, but it is the opposite. The people who stand up to their principles, even when others do not, they are respected for maintaining the authentic ‘I’. לי אני אין אם If I am not for myself, If I make myself secondary, and stay humble, then no one can crush or overcome me. But if I am engrossed in ego then, אני מה ? what do I accomplish? When someone craves honor, he becomes a slave to it. He will lie, slander, and do crooked things to achieve it. He hands himself over to the yetzer hara to manipulate. He is an addict who is aware that his behavior is harmful, yet he continues to be drawn by its power. Chazal tell us that only with Hashem’s help is it possible to overcome the yetzer hara. If so, then why doesn’t Hashem simply eradicate it? Hashem does not expect us to conquer but only to make a small opening, ’the size of a needle’ and Hashem will open our hearts to be wide as the opening in the hall of the Beis Hamikdash. That is what the Tanne Reb Hillel alludes to. “לי אני אין אם ” if I do not make that small opening, then who will do it for me? If I will insist and say “ לעצמי וכשאני ”, I will do it on my own, then “ אני מה ” what will become of me? לעצמי is inclusive. The lamed indicates that a person must not only be concerned with his own personal welfare, but must include others. “There are two ways for someone to warm up,” the Kotzke once said. “He can put on his fur coat, or he can light a fire and warm up the room. His choice makes the difference between warming himself or, with a little effort, also warming up others in the room.” Likewise, when Sara Imeinu gave birth to Yitzchak, Hashem also blessed the other women who were longing to have children. This was because Sara always extended herself towards others. She would not have been able to enjoy her blessings when seeing their pain. A mortgage broker, a chassid, once had a friendly business meeting with a banker. In the middle of the discussion the banker said with admiration: “You people have no problems. When someone is in financial debt, five of you could just be sitting together and you’ll put down money or raise money to help them out. For us it is a rat race and everyone fends for themselves.” ישראל כעמך מי! We are surrounded with individuals in our communities who do chesed for others with mesiras nefesh, as well as countless organizations for gemachs, pekuach nefesh, Bikur Cholim to name some. This determines the ani -who we are, and together we form the collective ‘kol yisroel’ who merit olam haba. Gut Shabbos פרקי אבות, פרק א Write it, Pen it …. or WOW IT!!! Express yourself with poems, essays, documents… with a unique twist. Chana Lebovits 514 2734047 ︱ ozer514@gmail.com 139
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTY1MDA0