Because We Were Lax
On Chanukah, we celebrate the salvation God granted us from the oppression of the Greeks. The Greeks disrupted the service in the Beit Hamikdash (Holy Temple), and made it very difficult for the Jews to practice Judaism. With supernatural victories, the Maccabees defeated the Greek army, and regained control over the Beit Hamikdash.
What was behind the oppression and what brought about the salvation? The Bach says (Orach Chaim, 670) that it was because we became lax in our service in the Beit Hamikdash that Heaven allowed the Greeks to come and interrupt the service. When we strengthened ourselves in our commitment to serving God, and risked our lives for the sake of our convictions of serving of God, that’s when we merited salvation.
If the Mitzvah is Attacked, We Strengthen Our Commitment
This concept is not isolated to the story of Chanukah. Rabbi Yeruchom Levovitz says (Da’at Chachmah Umussar, Vol. 2 ma’amar 69-70) that this is a principle with which God leads us in our times as well. Whenever opposition is formed against our service of God in a certain area, it is a sign that the we became weak in that aspect of service of God. When people stand up against our observance of mitzvot (Torah commandments), it means that we were lax in our commitment to do these mitzvot. The primary effort which will succeed in rectifying the challenge to our observance is not lobbying or political pressure. In order to regain liberty to do the mitzvot as we should, we need to strengthen our observance. We need to reinforce our commitment with extra vigor and be willing to sacrifice our comfort for the sake of performing our service of God properly.
Rabbi Levovitz applies this principle to an anti-shechitah (kosher slaughter of animals) law that was proposed in his time in Europe. He said that people shouldn’t view it as merely an act of antisemitism. If such a decree is being presented, it’s only because the Jews must have become lax in their observance of shechitah. The primary way to battle the decree and get it annulled is by strengthening our own observance of keeping kosher.
Mitzvot – Live Spiritual Beings
Rabbi Levovitz explains this concept with greater depth and says that mitzvot are live spiritual beings with which we Jews have a relationship. When a mitzvah sees that it is not appreciated enough, it leaves us. The way we regain favor of the mitzvah and cause it to want to return to us is by proving that we do care about it and appreciate it as we should. When we extend ourselves for the sake of the mitzvah and invest serious effort and sacrifice for the sake of its observance, then we attract the mitzvah to us. Then the mitzvah desires to return to us, and the obstacles which stood in our way are removed.
But I Keep Sabbath Properly!
A doctor called Rabbi B. with a problem. He had joined a group of doctors in a hospital with a stipulation in his contract that he would not have to work on Saturday, since it would conflict with his Sabbath observance. But they suddenly decided to change the terms, and if he wouldn’t agree to take a shift on Saturday, he would have to leave his job. Rabbi B. told him, “This is an abnormal challenge. You must be lax in your Sabbath observance.”
The doctor protested that he kept Sabbath properly. Rabbi B. asked him, “When do you finish work on Friday?” “I schedule my last appointment an hour before Sabbath,” responded the doctor. “That’s the problem!” said Rabbi B., “That’s not observing Sabbath properly. You are cutting it too close. You need to leave the hospital two hours before Sabbath.”
The doctor was reluctant to do this, but he decided to follow the rabbi’s advice. A few weeks later, the doctor who previously informed him about the change in terms, now turned to him and said, “By the way, forget about the change we discussed about taking a shift on Saturday.”
The Lesson of Chanukah – For All Jews and For Me
This is one of the lessons of Chanukah. This concept holds true both on a national level and on a personal level. Sometimes we try hard to do a certain mitzvah, but time and time again it doesn’t work out. Sometimes we are faced with difficulties which prevent us from serving God the way we want to, and we begin to wonder, “What’s going on? Doesn’t God want me to serve Him? Why do I have these challenges which hamper my ability to serve Him?!”
We may be at fault. In such a situation, we need to examine the way we behaved in the past. Perhaps we were previously negligent in performing the mitzvah we seek to do, and the mitzvah is evading us. Perhaps we did not perform our service in the past with proper devotion, and as a result, the opportunity to do so is being taken away from us. The way to regain the privilege of being able to do the mitzvot, and serve God the way we yearn to, is by strengthening ourselves in that area. By expressing care and commitment for the mitzvah, we make ourselves attractive to mitzvah. Through investing our energy and emotion into trying to serve God better, we earn the opportunity to be able to do so.
By Rabbi Yitzchok Aryeh Strimber torah4every1@gmail.com
