HaRav Arush on Moshiach

B'H

Rabbi Arush spoke about Moshiach in his shiur last Wednesday that I attended. The following is an outline of his words, translated from the Hebrew.

First he mentioned that many people have been asking about Moshiach coming. He was very funny about it, actually, imitating them: “What’s with Moshiach coming? Why hasn’t he come yet? Things are so hard!” He said yes, things are very hard…but we do not want Moshiach now! We do not understand what Moshiach coming is. He said that part of his avodat Hashem right now, is that he is connected to Moshiach every time he prays, literally in everything he does, he is connected to Moshiach…but Klal Yisrael is not ready for this.

Then he mentioned a story he heard from Rabbi Dovid Stern shlita, and confirmed by another person who was there at the time, that happened to Rabbi Yehuda Zev Leibovitz zt”l. Rabbi Arush said one day, a group of tzaddikim nistarim (hidden righteous men) came to Rabbi Leibovitz, and he knew what they wanted – to agree to let Moshiach come. He said to Aaron his helper – “Tell me, what he in the Holocaust?” Aaron said no. “And was he in the Holocaust?” Again, no. And for all the tzaddikim the answer was the same. Then Rabbi Leibovitz said: “Well I was in the Holocaust and far be it from me to agree to let one Jew suffer because of my decision!”

Then Rabbi Arush mentioned that if Rabbi Leibovitz had agreed, Moshiach would have revealed himself right then. But he did not agree, because Am Yisrael was not ready, and still is not ready. And then he said very strongly, looking right at the people listening to him: “Have you done true teshuva today? Are you doing a real cheshbon nefesh every day? Are you doing hitbodedut every day – one hour is just the minimum! How can you receive the face of Moshiach???”

It was very strong and very clear…we don’t want Moshiach until all of Klal Yisrael can say “yes” to that question. Because once Moshiach comes a person cannot move up levels…wherever they are, that is where they stay. And if you can't stand to see the face of Moshiach... “We do not want another Shoah!!!”

Rosh Chodesh Nissan - Time to Pray for Moshiach

I also want to share with you Rabbi Arush's thoughts on Rosh Chodesh Nissan, which is this Shabbos. This is a word for word translation!

We must prepare ourselves for a really important time. The month of Nissan. Rebbe Nachman writes that there are two months of teshuva – Tishrei and Nissan. In Tishrei we do teshuva because we are afraid – but in Nissan, we do teshuva because we love Hashem. All of that month, all of those days, are Yamim Tovim. They are festive days. The first twelve days, are days that there were sacrifices of the princes of Israel, 13^th is isru chag for the Nissim, 14^th is the sacrifice of Pesach, then 7 days of Pesach, then Isru Chag – one month of holidays!

This month it's going to be a new beginning for the rest of the year. It's the month of the Geula. Rabbi Nachman of Breselv writes in Likutei Moharan that this is the first day of the year for the kings. On this day Hashem is deciding all of the kings that are going to be. So there is an aspect that Rosh Chodesh Nissan is more important than even the first day of Rosh Hashanah in Chodesh Tishrei! On Rosh Hashanah Hashem judges us all individually. Each and every one, He is judging Him on his actions. But on Rosh Chodesh Nissan Hashem is judging generally – all of the world itself. Who is going to be the kings and so on. On Rosh Chodesh Nissan, Hashem is going to decide when Moshiach is going to come. There is not for no reason that our Rabbis say that Moshiach will come in Nissan. It's because on Rosh Chodesh Nissan, Hashem is going to decide if the king is going to be Moshiach, so he's going to come in Nissan. This is why everyone has to realize how important these days are and put in the effort, and especially on Rosh Chodesh Nissan, to pray that Hashem is going to put His kingdom on top, that He is going to be the King, and if you Hashem are not going to bring the Moshiach this year, please appoint good kings that it's going to be good for us.

How Do We Endure?

The story explained by Mystical Paths in Israel has been pretty scary. US armed forces following buses bringing kids to school, police with bats being rough with kids daring to play in the streets of Geula, more rockets in Sderot – and Bush offering a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital as reward for their terrorism. It sure seems like no one cares about the safety of Jews in their own land – but put Bush’s safety in jeopardy and the entire country shuts down (with of course no care again given to the Jews affected). How do we endure this suffering?

The same way that our ancestors did in Egypt – infallible belief that HASHEM CARES, we WILL be redeemed, and they will pay for every OUNCE of our suffering!

This redemption is supposed to mimic the redemption from Egypt. Here’s one big similarity:
In Egypt, we were supposed to spend a specific number of years in slavery. However, the Egyptians reveled in their power over us, and subjected us to much more severe suffering than had been ordained – and they were made to suffer, middah k’neged middah, for both enjoying giving us the suffering we were supposed to get, and making us suffer even more (and we were redeemed early).

Now, it is the same thing. We have paid twice the suffering allotted, and the goyim have indeed – and continue to – revel in the continued suffering they inflict on Jews. It feels never ending, and so, so unfair. The double standard is so blatant, and yet no matter how much we protest, write letters to the White House, our representatives, and the media, it just doesn’t change. It’s because they don’t want to listen. They don’t want to hear the truth. They continuously choose to harden their hearts against us.

Just remember that they don’t run the show – Hashem does. No matter how much they fight against His people, no matter what they try to do to erase us and everything we stand for off the map, whether they do so using Katyushas or “peace” treaties and politics – they will not succeed. They will become just like the Egyptians, who were wiped off the map and weren’t heard from again for hundreds of years, and in truth, never really recovered even half of what they had been previously. “Hashem ish milchamah” – Hashem is a Man of war. It is not the IDF that fights our battles, nor the Israeli government that it is our spokesman, but Hakadosh Baruch Hu Himself.

“There is an Ear that hears, and an Eye that sees, and everything is written in the Book, and the signature of each man is transcribed therein.” When the Day of Judgment comes, the goyim that were against us will fight the verdict, but lo and behold, it will be their own signature. They will get their due and we will rejoice – not for sweet revenge, but in celebration of Justice and the fulfillment of His word. Amen!

Link to Mystical Paths Post: http://mysticalpaths.blogspot.com/2008/01/well-this-explains-lot-or-not.html

Reality Check: Comparisons between Iraq and Israel

I would like to comment on the amazing "coincidence" that is happening in the Middle East, specifically designed by G-d to make us wake up:

1. In Israel, there is a Green Line separating Israel from the Palestinian Arabs, designed to safeguard Jews

a. In Iraq, there is a Green Line separating the Americans from the Arabs, designed to safeguard Americans.

2. Israel is faced with recurrent suicide bombers who try to kill civilians any which way – in markets, on the roads, buses, etc.

a. America is faced with recurrent suicide bombers who try to kill soldiers any which way – in markets, on the roads, car bombs, etc.

3. Due to the insurgence of terror, Israel must operate checkpoints to be able to monitor people and items coming in and out of the border. These are contested and many people complain about them, saying that they are an affront to the rights of the Arabs.

a. Due to the insurgence of terror, America must operate checkpoints to be able to monitor people and items coming in and out of Iraq/the border/different safe zones. Where are the human rights people now?

4. Granted the severe situation, Israel finds itself in a quandary, faced with a seemingly endless situation with opponents who don't fight fair and won't talk – or talks, and lies. Many people say that Israel should leave (cease to exist/give up more Israeli land).

a. Granted the severe situation America finds itself in a quandary, faced with a seemingly endless situation with opponents who don't fight fair and won't talk – or talks, and lies. Many people say that America should leave.

I am sure that there are many more similarities that I can't think of right now. Do we learn? Does America/the Western World stop limiting and fighting Israel's right to defend itself, even as they are forced to take the exact same measures to protect themselves? Even more so – America is trying to protect soldiersand Israel is trying to protect civilians who shouldn't be in the war in the first place. Should the civilians not have at least as many, if not more, safeguards than soldiers?

We are living in a time of great illusion, where truth is twisted and everything is backwards. And still, no one wants to look, they just want to say "Get outa my face." America – and many Israelis for that matter - just want the situation to "go away" and are not listening to the Arab who is cursing them with death in the meantime.

The situation isn't going away, because both parties have to want it. In reality, one party has told us numerous times what it wants – a world without Jews, and a world without Americans/Christianity/the West either, and they are happy to kill us and themselves to get it. We have to be willing and able to fight to the death to meet the challenge, and we're too stuffed with materialism and excess to want to do anything besides retreat to our nice little beachside second home in La-La Land.

Be Wary

Sat-Sun-Mon before Annapolis (Thanksgiving weekend): Strong earthquakes in Japan, Indonesia and India
Thurs before Annapolis: 2 medium earthquakes in Jerusalem (actually I only saw one reported - possible one and aftershock), 7.4 (REALLY BIG) earthquake in the Caribbean Islands just off Martinique (most popular island?) and Fort-of-France and another medium earthquake in Chile.

The world is not on solid footing. I would be interested to see stats of probability of earthquakes in all those places at once, granted that they're on different plates. Interesting though that America and Europe were not hit with natural disasters.

Even more: June 15 a press release was given stating that the Old City of Jerusalem and the Al-Aksa Mosque in particular are in danger of severe collapse if there is a strong earthquake in Jerusalem, which the city is supposedly overdue for. This is especially because these areas are built on rubble as opposed to rock.

The prophets say that before Moshiach comes, there will be a great earthquake in Israel, and "every wall shall fall, and the mountains shall be laid bare." Nice way to get rid of that disgusting dome, Hashem, that rests on stolen land. Very clever.