they became the greatest generation that ever lived. They
were being prepared in Mitzrayim for that greatest scenario of
history: Maamad Har Sinai (the giving of the Torah at Sinai).
Their preparation began with slavery and persecution, and as
a result they cried out to Hashem. When the Torah tells us that
the Bnei Yisrael cried out, it doesn’t mean that each individual
cried out They cried out together to Hashem. They didn’t
daven, they simply cried out. Whenever they could, multitudes
of Bnei Yisrael got together, weeping and shouting and crying
out to Hashem. That is what Hashem was referring to when He
said, “”V’gam ani shamati es naakas Bnei Yisrael — And also I
have heard the cries of the Bnei Yisrael.” These outcries led to
such a clear awareness of Hashem that they paved the way for
Maamad Har Sinai. By crying out to Hashem, the Bnei Yisrael
prepared themselves to see Him face to face at Har Sinai.
The gemara tells us that Megillas Taanis was the first thing
that was written after the kisvei hakodesh (the 24 books of
Tanach). The gemara says that it was written by Chananya
ben Chizkiya ben Doron among a company of great men. Why
did they write it? “She’haya mechabed b’yimos hatzaros —
They loved times of trouble.” Obviously they didn’t love the
tzaros (troubles) themselves; they loved the tzaros because
they helped them accomplish great things. These men wrote
down all the events in our history since the closing of the
Tanach, and they made yamim tovim whenever these tzaros
were over. It doesn’t say that they loved the redemption and
therefore they celebrated each time they were rescued from a
certain trouble, no. They understood the potential for greatness
inherent in the difficulties Hashem sent. These difficulties
refined our character; they elevated us to new levels of
daas (knowledge of) Hashem. We cried out to Hashem, and
Hashem answered us because of the greatness we gained by
crying out to Him.
Because the Bnei Yisrael cried out in Mitzrayim, they
reached such greatness that they became the most perfect
of any generation in history. After all, weren’t they the ones
who received the Torah? They stood at Har Sinai and heard
the voice of Hashem. Did any other people hear the voice
of Hashem? It was only for them that Hashem split the sea.
Only they ate mann in the desert. Do you think it was because
Hashem couldn’t give them regular food in the desert? He
gave them mann in order to teach them that “Poseiach es yadecha
u’masbia l’chol chai ratzon — Open your hand and He
will satisfy the will of every living being” (Ashrei). Hashem is
the creator of this miracle.
Despite their greatness and their closeness to Hashem,
this great generation has been criticized and maligned by the
teachers. We were all taught about how sinful the generation
that left Mitzrayim was, how obstinate they were, how troublesome
they were. Obviously, we were taught this in order to
chastise them and chastise us. But the truth is that the generation
of Bnei Yisrael that left Mitzrayim became great because
of their difficulties. They are the ones who were chosen
by Hashem to be the witnesses to the greatest events in our
history. To this day, we look through their eyes at the giving
of the Torah, through their eyes we see the splitting of the sea.
They testify to us.
Acquiring Perfection
How did they gain that perfection? Lechem oni, it was the
bread of affliction that they ate in Mitzrayim that made them
great. Lechem she’onim alav devarim harbei, their affliction
and their crying out caused many great things. When a person
has troubles, chalila, he should know that Hashem is bestowing
on him a very great happiness. V’ozel lo, when the time will
come, az yishallel, he is going to be proud of the daas Hashem
that he developed when he cried out to Hashem.
But what about us? Baruch Hashem we are not suffering.
Baruch Hashem we’re not crying out from tzaros. What
should we do? We’re left out in the cold! The answer is that
there are two kinds of crying out. We discussed crying out
from pain, but there is another way of crying out. “Enu
l’Hashem b’soda — Cry out to Hashem with thanksgiving”
(Tehillim 147:7). That’s also oneh, it’s a form of crying out
to Hashem. Instead of crying out of pain, it’s crying out of
gratitude. When you say Bircas Hamazon, thank Hashem for
the food enthusiastically! Don’t whisper the words quietly,
cry them out loud. When nobody is listening, say the words,
ah, Hashem, I love You! Say it. Open your mouth and praise
Hashem.
When you cry out to Hashem in happiness, you can achieve
more daas Hashem than when you cry out in sadness and
pain. The rich man who praises Hashem is greater than the
poor man who cries out to Hashem. The poor man cries out
because he has no choice, and nevertheless Hashem loves
him. Hashem loves poor people because they cry out all the
time. Rich men don’t cry out. But suppose you are the kind of
rich man that does cry out? Suppose you’re an affluent person,
you have good health, you’re young, you have plenty to
eat, and you cry out to Hashem in gratitude. In that case, you
have reached a tremendous level of closeness to Hashem; a
level that is even closer than the poor people who cry out.
The Chovos Halevavos says that the highest level of perfection
is when a person is a baal teshuva (penitent person)
despite the fact that he is happy, successful and does not
have any difficulties in life. Our homes today are so luxurious;
we have heating, running water, a telephone, a refrigerator,
everything. Not long ago a home like ours today was
unimaginable. When I was a bachur (student) in Europe no
body even dreamed of these things. But don’t make any mistake;
you have to thank Hashem for all these conveniences.
When you walk to your refrigerator, say baruch Hashem I
have a refrigerator. Isn’t that a silly idea? Who doesn’t have a
refrigerator? The refrigerator was given to us for one purpose,
enu l’Hashem b’soda, that we thank Hashem for it. You’re obligated
to do that. When I came to Slabodka as a young American
bachur, no one had running water in the house at all.
Then I appreciated cold running water. Hot running water?
Unthinkable. When I was a boy we heated our house by coal
stove. In the kitchen it was warm, but the rest of the house
was cold. I used to lie on the floor and read books near the
coal stove. Central heating was an unheard-of luxury. You
have radiators, you’re wealthy. You have to thank Hashem,
you have to pay the price. Think of how fortunate we are, baruch
Hashem, to have a warm house, ah, we thank You Hashem,
we love You Hashem. Baruch Hashem for every kind of
convenience and comfort.
And don’t forget to thank Hashem for the fact that you
have a bathroom in your house. That is also a tremendous
luxury. In Slabodka, going to the bathroom at night during
the winter was no small feat. I would put on my overcoat and
big rubber boots and wade through the snow out in that dark
yard to the outhouse, which a half block away from where I
was sleeping. We had no conveniences at all. You have everything
right in the comfort of your own home. You are obligated
to thank Hashem for it.
In those days, no one even dreamed of the conveniences
that we have today; they never knew that such things existed.
So when they cried out to Hashem and gained reward, perhaps
some of them didn’t cry out enough. But we live with all
these conveniences and luxuries. We have to recognize that
the world was once bereft of everything. Our greatness is to
take this opportunity to thank Hashem for everything that
He has given us. Thanking Hashem is what will enable us to
achieve perfection in this world, l’maan shemo, for the sake
of His great name. We recognize Hashem’s great name as a
result of the benefit that He showers upon us daily, the food
that He gives us every day, the clothing that He gives us every
day, the comfortable homes and good health that He gives
us every day. Baruch Hashem for everything. By constantly
expressing our thanks to Hashem we become greater and
greater at recognizing His name, and thereby we achieve our
purpose in life.
Question:
What is preferable, crying out to Hashem out of
pain, or abstaining from crying out because everything
that Hashem does is for our benefit?
Answer:
Everyone has to recognize that he is a neshama, a soul, as well
as a body. The body is given to us on loan on condition that we
take care of it. There are tzaddikim who would like to put their
bodies through yesurim, torture, because it will benefit their neshamos.
If they get sick, they will be able to cry out to Hashem
and improve themselves. But it’s a chait, a sin to make yourself
sick. Do you know why? Because the body is not yours. It’s My
body, Hashem says, I gave it to you on condition that you take
care of it and preserve its health.
What if another Jew is suffering? Should others refrain from
crying out to Hashem on his behalf in order to be sameiach in
his yesurim? Of course not. We must cry out for others. And
if, chalila, you are the one who is suffering, you have to cry out
for yourself. This is not a contradiction to being happy with yesurim.
You should thank Hashem for the benefit He’s giving
you, but also cry out from the pain. In this way you will gain
emunah and grow as a result of the yesurim. So both calculations
are true. A tzaddik should take care of his health and go to
a physician when necessary. He should also cry out to Hashem
and ask him for help. At the same time, he should thank Hashem
for the yesurim He sends, because they are for his benefit.
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