Q:
Regarding the recent Iranian earthquake, how does the following statement from the Ayatollah Khamenei reflect on the Iranian people? ‘We have considered the natural disaster as a divine test and we submit ourselves to the will of Allah?
A:
I’ll tell you. I’ll formulate the question a little differently. ‘What should we learn from the earthquake in Iran?’ I’ll say that.
אין פורענויות בא אלא בשביל ישראל – No misfortunes come upon the world except for the sake of Yisroel, and Rashi says ליראם – to make Yisroel afraid. We should learn that there is a such a thing as retribution. Hakadosh Baruch Hu brings retribution. And because of that we should be afraid and try to avoid anything that would make us chalilah worthy of retribution.
Now why should we consider the Iranians deserving of retribution? The answer is because they were persecuting the Jews. No question what they were doing lately, keeping them in prison, not allowing them to depart; no question about that.
The hatred towards the Jews in Eretz Yisroel — I’m not talking about Zionist things but there are Jews in Eretz Yisroel. The Iranians are full of hatred towards Jews and that’s enough of a reason.
The fact that there are other anti-Semites in the world? Wait. Don’t give up. Things will happen to them too. Be patient.
But the main purpose is not to rejoice in their misfortune; the main purpose is to think about ourselves. When we think about what’s happening in this country, the wickedness that’s taking place here and many Jews are participating in this wickedness, you have to be afraid. And the more we’re afraid, the better off we are.
(June 1990)
